A♭m: G♯/A♭ Minor Piano Chord

Root position: either hand, fingers low note to high
Hand	Notes	Fingers
Right	A♭, C♭, E♭	1-3-5
Left	A♭, C♭, E♭	5-3-1

Scale degree, note, and interval measured from the root.
Degree	Note	Interval from root	Semitones
1	A♭	Perfect unison	0
♭3	C♭	Minor third	3
5	E♭	Perfect fifth	7

Construction

A♭ Minor = Root + Minor 3rd + Perfect 5th = A♭, C♭, E♭

Note	Interval	Degree
A♭	Root	1
C♭	Minor 3rd	♭3
E♭	Perfect 5th	5

Fingering

Note	Key color	Right hand	Left hand
A♭	black	thumb (1)	little finger (5)
C♭	white	middle finger (3)	middle finger (3)
E♭	black	little finger (5)	thumb (1)

Right hand: thumb (1) on A♭, middle finger (3) on C♭, little finger (5) on E♭.

Left hand: little finger (5) on A♭, middle finger (3) on C♭, thumb (1) on E♭.

A♭ Minor Inversions

Root position
A♭ – C♭ – E♭
1st inversion (A♭m/C♭)
C♭ – E♭ – A♭
2nd inversion (A♭m/E♭)
E♭ – A♭ – C♭

Key Signature

A chord has no key signature of its own, but the A♭ Minor is the tonic (i) chord of A♭ Minor, which shares the signature of its relative major, C♭ Major: 7 flats (B♭, E♭, A♭, D♭, G♭, C♭, F♭).

B♭E♭A♭D♭G♭C♭F♭

Order of flats

Flats are added in a fixed order — the reverse of the sharp order. Each new flat key adds the next flat on the list.

B♭E♭A♭D♭G♭C♭F♭

Mnemonic: Battle Ends And Down Goes Charles’ Father

Chords in the Key of A♭ Minor

These are the triads built on each degree of A♭ Minor:

i — A♭ Minor (minor)

Degree	Numeral	Chord	Quality
1	i	A♭ Minor	Minor
2	ii°	B♭ Diminished	Diminished
3	III	C♭ Major	Major
4	iv	D♭ Minor	Minor
5	v	E♭ Minor	Minor
6	VI	F♭ Major	Major
7	VII	G♭ Major	Major

How A♭ Minor functions in a key

The same chord takes on a different harmonic role depending on the key it appears in. Here is where A♭ Minor sits diatonically across the common keys:

In C♭ major, A♭ Minor is the vi chord — the tonic.
In A♭ minor, A♭ Minor is the i chord — the tonic.
In G♭ major, A♭ Minor is the ii chord — a predominant.
In E♭ minor, A♭ Minor is the iv chord — a predominant.

Scales That Include the A♭ Minor

E Major (iii)
B Major (vi)
F# Major (ii)
C# Minor (v)
G# Minor (i)
Eb Minor (iv)
F# Dorian (ii)
G# Phrygian (i)

A♭ Minor : Frequently Asked Questions

What is the A♭ Minor chord on piano?

The A♭ Minor chord contains the notes A♭ – C♭ – E♭. On piano, play these notes together to sound the chord.

What notes make up the Ab Minor chord?

Ab Minor contains three notes: Ab (root), Cb (minor third), and Eb (perfect fifth). Cb is enharmonically B on the piano. Ab Minor has two black keys (Ab and Eb) surrounding what sounds like B.

What fingering do I use for Ab Minor?

Right hand: finger 2 on Ab, finger 3 on Cb/B, finger 5 on Eb. Left hand: finger 3 on Ab, finger 2 on Cb/B, finger 1 on Eb. The middle note (Cb) is a white key (B), which can feel slightly unexpected given the flat key context.

What are the inversions of Ab Minor?

First inversion (Abm/Cb): Cb–Eb–Ab (B–Eb–Ab in white-key terms). Second inversion (Abm/Eb): Eb–Ab–Cb. Both inversions appear in Romantic music and film scores requiring deep minor-key gravitas.

What songs use the Ab Minor chord?

Ab Minor (enharmonically G# Minor) appears in Romantic piano repertoire by Chopin and Rachmaninoff, in film and game soundtracks, and as the vi chord in Cb/B Major. In pop contexts it often appears as G# Minor.

What is the relationship between Ab Minor and G# Minor?

They are enharmonically equivalent: the same piano keys, different spellings. Ab Minor (Ab–Cb–Eb) uses flat notation; G# Minor (G#–B–D#) uses sharp notation. G# Minor is more commonly seen in published music (relative minor of B Major).

What chords pair well with Ab Minor?

In Ab Minor: E Major/Fb Major (VI), B Major/Cb Major (III), Db Major (VII), Eb Major (V). In sharp-key notation (G# Minor): E Major (VI), B Major (III), D Major (VII), D# Major (V). G#m–E–B–F# is a common sharp-key minor progression.

A♭ Minor in detail

Exact

Every pitch class is present and nothing outside the chord is added.

Type	Notes	Semitones	Span	Omissions and additions	Set relation
Close, root position	A♭3 C♭3 E♭4	7	96 mm	none	identical
Close, first inversion	C♭3 E♭4 A♭4	9	124 mm	none	identical
Close, second inversion	E♭4 A♭4 C♭4	8	110 mm	none	identical
Open, fifth on top	A♭2 E♭3 C♭3	15	206 mm	none	identical

Reduced

A subset of the pitch classes: the identity is incomplete rather than altered.

Type	Notes	Semitones	Span	Omissions and additions	Set relation	Fit
Root and third only	A♭3 C♭3	3	41 mm	omits E♭	subset

Spans are measured centre to centre at a 165 mm octave (standard keyboard geometry).

Position	Bass note	Notes in order	Figured bass	Semitones	Span
Root position	A♭	A♭3, C♭3, E♭4	5/3	7	96 mm
First inversion: A♭m/C♭	C♭	C♭3, E♭4, A♭4	6/3	9	124 mm
Second inversion: A♭m/E♭	E♭	E♭4, A♭4, C♭4	6/4	8	110 mm

One position per chord tone in the bass. Spans are for close position: voiced inversions appear under Voicings.

Progression	Key	Role	Sequence	Voice leading
v, i	C♯ minor	v	G♯m to C♯m	A♭m opens the phrase
ii°, v, i	C♯ minor	v	D♯dim to G♯m to C♯m	1 tone held from D♯dim
iv, v, i	E♭ minor	iv	A♭m to B♭m to E♭m	A♭m opens the phrase
i, iv	E♭ minor	iv	E♭m to A♭m	1 tone held from E♭m
iii, vi, ii, V	E major	iii	G♯m to C♯m to F♯m to B	A♭m opens the phrase
I, iii	E major	iii	E to G♯m	2 tones held from E
ii, V, I	G♭ major	ii	A♭m to D♭ to G♭	A♭m opens the phrase

Root motion, common tones and voice displacement are computed from pitch class sets. Roman numerals follow common practice functional harmony.

Which keys it belongs to

Key	Roman numeral	Function
C♯ minor	v	Minor dominant
E♭ minor	iv	Subdominant
E major	iii	Tonic substitute
G♭ major	ii	Predominant
G♯ minor	i	Tonic, home
B major	vi	Tonic substitute

Classification system: common-practice functional harmony.

Change one note

Chords a single note away, and what moving that note does.

Chord	Change	Formula	Common tones
A♭m7	adds G♭	1 ♭3 5 ♭7	3
A♭mMaj7	adds G	1 ♭3 5 7	3
A♭m6	adds F	1 ♭3 5 6	3
A♭	C♭ becomes C	1 3 5	2
A♭dim	E♭ becomes E♭♭	1 ♭3 ♭5	2
A♭sus2	C♭ becomes B♭	1 2 5	2
A♭sus4	C♭ becomes D♭	1 4 5	2
A♭maj7	C♭ becomes C, G	1 3 5 7	2
A♭7	C♭ becomes C, G♭	1 3 5 ♭7	2
A♭m7♭5	E♭ becomes E♭♭, G♭	1 ♭3 ♭5 ♭7	2
A♭dim7	E♭ becomes E♭♭, G♭♭	1 ♭3 ♭5 ♭♭7	2
A♭7sus4	C♭ becomes D♭, G♭	1 4 5 ♭7	2

Frequencies

Note	MIDI	Frequency
A♭3	56	207.65 Hz
C♭3	59	246.94 Hz
E♭4	63	311.13 Hz

Reference pitch A440, 12-TET, close root position.

Set theory: prime form, Forte number, interval vector

Absolute pitch class set: {8, 11, 3}
Normal order: [8, 11, 3]
Prime form: (037)
Forte number: 3-11
Interval vector: <001110>

Pair	Interval	Semitones	Interval class
A♭ to C♭	Minor third	3	3
A♭ to E♭	Perfect fifth	7	5
C♭ to E♭	Major third	4	4

Where these facts come from

Every value on this page is derived from the note formula for a minor applied to the root A♭, using standard music theory. Nothing here is hand-entered per chord, so the notes, intervals, inversions and frequencies cannot drift out of agreement with each other. Pitches assume 12-TET at A440.

A♭ Minor

Fingerings

A♭ Minor: notes and degrees