Piano chord · also written G♯add9

A♭ Add9 Piano Chord (A♭add9)

The A♭ Add9 chord on piano is made of the notes A♭, C, E♭ and B♭. Rich and shimmering. A major triad with an added 9th (no 7th).

A♭ Add9 chord on a piano keyboard: A♭, C, E♭, B♭ C5C6 A♭ C E♭ B♭

A♭add9 A♭ – C – E♭ – B♭

Tap any key to hear it.

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What notes are in A♭ Add9?

4 notes, built 1 – 3 – 5 – 9 up from A♭.

Notes
A♭ – C – E♭ – B♭
Formula
1 – 3 – 5 – 9
Semitones from the root
0 – 4 – 7 – 14
Symbol
A♭add9
Same keys as
G♯add9 (G♯ – B♯ – D♯ – A♯)
Chord type
Add 9, 4 notes

How to play A♭ Add9 on piano

A♭ Add9 spans more than an octave, so it is usually split between the hands.

  • Left hand: A♭ and E♭ (fingers 5 and 1).
  • Right hand: C, B♭ (fingers 1 and 5).
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A♭ Add9 inversions

Each inversion puts a different note of the chord in the bass. Written as a slash chord: A♭add9/C, A♭add9/E♭.

A♭ Add9 root position on piano: A♭, C, E♭, B♭ A♭ C E♭ B♭
Root position A♭add9 A♭ – C – E♭ – B♭
A♭ Add9 1st inversion on piano: C, E♭, A♭, B♭ C E♭ A♭ B♭
1st inversion A♭add9/C C – E♭ – A♭ – B♭ RH 1 – 2 – 3 – 5 · LH 5 – 3 – 2 – 1
A♭ Add9 2nd inversion on piano: E♭, A♭, B♭, C E♭ A♭ B♭ C
2nd inversion A♭add9/E♭ E♭ – A♭ – B♭ – C RH 1 – 2 – 3 – 5 · LH 5 – 3 – 2 – 1

Progressions with A♭ Add9

Press play: the chords move across the keyboard as they sound, voiced so your hand barely moves.

Pop progression

in A♭ major

  1. Iadd9 A♭add9
  2. V E♭
  3. vi Fm
  4. IV D♭
Pop progression in A♭ major: A♭add9, E♭, Fm, D♭ C E♭ A♭ B♭

Three-chord classic

in E♭ major

  1. I E♭
  2. IVadd9 A♭add9
  3. V B♭
  4. I E♭
Three-chord classic in E♭ major: E♭, A♭add9, B♭, E♭ B♭ E♭ G

Can you find A♭ Add9?

Tap the notes on the keyboard, then check. Six chords, starting with this one.

1 / 6 Tap the notes of A♭ Add9 (A♭add9)

Score 0

Any octave, any order. Each key you tap plays.

Practice keyboard: tap the notes of the chord

What key is A♭ Add9 in?

The keys whose scale contains every note of A♭add9, with the chord’s Roman numeral in each.

Major keys

  • A♭ majorIadd9
  • E♭ majorIVadd9
  • D♭ majorVadd9

Minor keys

  • F minorIIIadd9
  • C♯ minorVadd9 (harmonic minor)
  • C minorVIadd9
  • B♭ minorVIIadd9

A♭ Add9 chord FAQ

What notes are in the A♭ Add9 chord?

A♭ Add9 (A♭add9) has 4 notes: A♭, C, E♭ and B♭. Its formula is 1 – 3 – 5 – 9, counted up from A♭.

How do you play A♭ Add9 on the piano?

Spread it over two hands: the left hand plays A♭ and E♭ (fingers 5 and 1), the right hand plays C, B♭ (fingers 1 and 5).

Is A♭ Add9 the same as G♯ Add9?

On the piano, yes: G♯add9 (G♯, B♯, D♯, A♯) uses exactly the same keys as A♭add9 (A♭, C, E♭, B♭). Which name is used depends on the key of the piece; A♭add9 is the more common spelling.

What are the inversions of A♭ Add9?

1st inversion: C, E♭, A♭, B♭ (A♭add9/C). 2nd inversion: E♭, A♭, B♭, C (A♭add9/E♭).

What key is A♭ Add9 in?

A♭add9 belongs to A♭ major (Iadd9), E♭ major (IVadd9), D♭ major (Vadd9), F minor (IIIadd9), C minor (VIadd9) and B♭ minor (VIIadd9).

Other A♭ chords

Add 9 chords on every root

Piano chord chart: all 264 chords Open A♭add9 in the chord finder Free PDF chord chart Play it on the virtual piano