A minor, flat sixth
How to play Am♭6 — Minor, flat sixth
Am♭6 (Minor, flat sixth)A · C · E · F
Guitar samples: Acoustic guitar — University of Iowa (via tonejs-instruments, CC-BY 3.0)
A minor, flat sixth — notes and structure
The Am♭6 chord is a minor triad with a flattened sixth — tense and dramatic.
The Am♭6 minor, flat sixth consists of the notes A, C, E, F. Its interval structure is R–3–5–6 — 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.
Am♭6 stacks a minor third (C), a perfect fifth (E) and a minor sixth (F) above the root A.
The finder shows 2 ways to play Am♭6 — an open-position shape reaching up to the 7th fret. They use a barre.
What key is Am♭6 in?
Every note of Am♭6 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.
- C major — the vi chord
- F major — the iii chord
- A minor — the i chord
- D minor — the v chord
Chords that go with Am♭6
In C major, the chords built on the first, fourth and fifth degrees carry most songs — put Am♭6 next to these:
Frequently asked questions
- What notes are in the A minor, flat sixth chord?
- The Am♭6 chord contains the notes A, C, E, F. It is a minor triad with a flattened sixth — tense and dramatic.
- How many ways can you play Am♭6 on guitar?
- 2 voicings are shown on this page — from open position up the neck — each with its own fingering diagram and audio.
- Is Am♭6 a hard chord to play?
- Some voicings use a barre, which takes practice, but the chord is very playable once that shape is comfortable.
- What key does Am♭6 belong to?
- Am♭6 fits C major (where it is the vi chord), F major (where it is the iii chord), A minor (where it is the i chord) — every note of the chord is in those scales.