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B♭ half-diminished chord

B♭ half-diminished Diminished & augmented family

Bittersweet and searching.

Easiest shape1 of 5

Square: the root. In colour: the flat 5th, which gives the chord its sound.

Change a finger and see what it becomes

Built from

B♭root
D♭minor 3rd
F♭flat 5th
A♭flat 7th

A minor 7 with a flat 5th: the softness of the 7th meets the instability of the flat 5th.

Tension: Restless

Hear it in a progression

Minor ii–V–i
The sad cousin of the jazz ii–V–I. In G♯ minor.
Capo and transpose

Where it goes next

Thinking in G♯ minor, where it is the iiø7 chord.

D♯m7
v7. The minor setup: ii° pulls into v or V.

Sounds close

D♭m7
Shares 3 of its notes. Both have D♭, F♭ and A♭.
D♭dim7
Shares 3 of its notes. Both have B♭, D♭ and F♭.
G♭7
Shares 3 of its notes. Both have B♭, D♭ and F♭.
Amaj7
Shares 3 of its notes. Both have D♭, F♭ and A♭.

Keys it lives in