A♭ / G♯ minor thirteenth
How to play A♭m13 — Minor thirteenth
A♭m13 (Minor thirteenth)A♭ · C♭ · E♭ · G♭ · B♭ · F
Guitar samples: Acoustic guitar — University of Iowa (via tonejs-instruments, CC-BY 3.0)
A♭ / G♯ minor thirteenth — notes and structure
The A♭m13 chord extends the minor family up to the thirteenth — deep and jazzy.
The A♭m13 minor thirteenth consists of the notes A♭, C♭, E♭, G♭, B♭, F. Its interval structure is R–3–5–7–9–13 — the root, then each chord tone stacked above it. This is the same chord you see in the interactive finder above, drawn on the guitar fretboard with the root circled and every chord tone labelled.
A♭m13 stacks a minor third (C♭), a perfect fifth (E♭), a minor seventh (G♭), a ninth (B♭) and a thirteenth (F) above the root A♭.
The finder shows 2 ways to play A♭m13 — movable shapes higher up the neck reaching up to the 13th fret. 1 of them use a barre.
What key is A♭m13 in?
Every note of A♭m13 belongs to the scales below, so the chord sounds at home in each of these keys — the roman numeral is the degree it sits on.
- F♯ major — the ii chord
- D♯ minor — the iv chord
Chords that go with A♭m13
In F♯ major, the chords built on the first, fourth and fifth degrees carry most songs — put A♭m13 next to these:
Frequently asked questions
- What notes are in the A♭ / G♯ minor thirteenth chord?
- The A♭m13 chord contains the notes A♭, C♭, E♭, G♭, B♭, F. It extends the minor family up to the thirteenth — deep and jazzy.
- How many ways can you play A♭m13 on guitar?
- 2 voicings are shown on this page — movable shapes up the neck — each with its own fingering diagram and audio.
- Is A♭m13 a hard chord to play?
- It is a movable shape played higher up the neck rather than in open position, so it takes a little more hand strength.
- What key does A♭m13 belong to?
- A♭m13 fits F♯ major (where it is the ii chord), D♯ minor (where it is the iv chord) — every note of the chord is in those scales.