How to play Ab13: a 13th built on Ab, with 1 voicing, the notes, the keys it belongs to, and songs that use it.
The first diagram is a common voicing: played at the 4th fret. An X above a string means don't play it; an O means play it open.
Frets from the low E string to the high E string: 4 x 4 5 6 x (x = not played).
| Note | Ab | C | Gb | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Interval | R | 3 | b7 | 13 |
Ab13 is a 13th with Ab as its root. The full theoretical spelling is Ab, C, Eb, Gb, Bb, Db, F. This voicing omits the 5th and 9th and 11th, the tones guitarists drop first when fitting a chord onto six strings. A note on 13th chords: the root, 3rd, 7th, and 13th are generally considered sufficient in practice, although the technical definition spells the 9th and 11th as part of the chord too.
Ab13 is a diatonic chord (built from the key's own notes) in 1 major key and 1 minor key. The roman numeral is the chord's place in that key; tap a key for all of its chords.
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Ab13 is spelled Ab, C, Eb, Gb, Bb, Db, F: the root, 3rd, 5th, flat 7th, 9th, 11th, 13th. The common guitar voicing sounds Ab, C, Gb, F, leaving out the 5th and 9th and 11th.
Frets from the low E string to the high E string: 4 x 4 5 6 x (x means the string is not played). Fret the low E and D strings at the 4th fret. Add the G string at the 5th fret. Add the B string at the 6th fret. Strum from the low E string down, skipping the A and high E strings.
Ab13 belongs to 2 keys: Db major (the V chord) and Bb minor (the VII).
