A♭7 chord on piano
A♭7 is A♭, C, E♭ and G♭. A♭ sits on the middle black key of the three. Tap Play, then slow it down.
root position · A♭–C–E♭–G♭ · right hand 1-2-3-5
- Notes
- A♭ · C · E♭ · G♭
- Formula
- 1 · 3 · 5 · ♭7
How to play A♭7 on piano
Start on A♭, count 4 half steps up to C, 3 half steps up to E♭ then 3 half steps up to G♭. That's the whole chord: 4 keys.
- Right hand: 1 on A♭, 2 on C, 3 on E♭ and 5 on G♭.
- Left hand: 5 on A♭, 3 on C, 2 on E♭ and 1 on G♭.
- On the keyboard it's black, white, black and black keys, the same pattern as E♭7, so your hand shape carries over.
A♭7 inversions
- root position: A♭–C–E♭–G♭. Fingers 1-2-3-5.
- 1st inversion: C–E♭–G♭–A♭, with C at the bottom. RH 1-2-3-5.
- 2nd inversion: E♭–G♭–A♭–C, with E♭ at the bottom. Right hand 1-2-3-5.
- 3rd inversion: G♭–A♭–C–E♭, G♭ lowest. Fingers 1-2-3-5.
Nobody plays every chord in root position. The inversions let A♭7 sit wherever the previous chord left your hand.
Moving between A♭7 and its neighbours
Songs rarely hold A♭7 for long. Here's what your hand does on the moves that come up most.
- C♯ (the V7 pulls home a fifth below): A♭7 to C♯: play C♯ in 2nd inversion (G♯–C♯–E♯) and G♯ stays under the same finger, while C moves up to C♯ and G♭ down to E♯. C♯ on piano
- C♯maj7 (I in D♭ major): A♭7 to C♯maj7: play C♯maj7 in 2nd inversion (G♯–B♯–C♯–E♯) and G♯ and B♯ stay under the same fingers, while E♭ moves down to C♯ and G♭ down to E♯. C♯maj7 on piano
- B♭m7 (vi in D♭ major): A♭7 to B♭m7: play B♭m7 in 3rd inversion (A♭–B♭–D♭–F) and A♭ stays under the same finger, while C moves down to B♭, E♭ down to D♭ and G♭ down to F. B♭m7 on piano
A♭7 is a dominant seventh chord: a major triad with a flattened seventh on top. Use A♭7 where you want motion: it leans toward the chord a fifth below and turns up on almost every blues. On piano you hear it best with the keys pressed together, then rolled.
Getting A♭7 under your fingers
Play A♭7 broken, one key at a time: A♭, C, E♭, G♭, E♭, C, A♭. Then press the keys together and check that all 4 sound at the same volume. Next, walk up through A♭–C–E♭–G♭ → C–E♭–G♭–A♭ → E♭–G♭–A♭–C → G♭–A♭–C–E♭ without lifting your eyes to your hand.
The keys of A♭7
A♭7 is a dominant seventh chord, 1–3–5–♭7 from A♭. Root position, from the bottom: how A♭7 is built.
| Note | Key | Fingers | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| A♭ | black key | RH 1 · LH 5 | root |
| C | white key | RH 2 · LH 3 | major third |
| E♭ | black key | RH 3 · LH 2 | perfect fifth |
| G♭ | black key | RH 5 · LH 1 | minor seventh |
G♯7 is another spelling of A♭7. Same keys, same sound.
Where A♭7 shows up
In A♭ major, I7–IV7–V7 (12 bars) on piano is A♭7 (A♭–C–E♭–G♭), C♯7 (C♯–E♯–G♯–B) and E♭7 (E♭–G–B♭–D♭). About the 12-bar blues.
In D♭ major, ii–V–I on piano is E♭m7 (E♭–G♭–B♭–D♭), A♭7 (A♭–C–E♭–G♭) and C♯maj7 (C♯–E♯–G♯–B♯). About the jazz cadence.
A♭7 on guitar and ukulele
A♭7 on guitar and ukulele uses the same 4 notes in a different layout. See all three together.
Close to A♭7
Other dominant seventh chords
A♭7 on piano: questions
What notes are in A♭7 on piano?
A♭, C, E♭ and G♭: A♭ (black key), C (white key), E♭ (black key) and G♭ (black key). Right hand 1-2-3-5, left hand 5-3-2-1.
How do you play A♭7 on piano?
Press A♭, C, E♭ and G♭ together (3 black, 1 white). Right hand: 1 on A♭, 2 on C, 3 on E♭ and 5 on G♭.
What are the inversions of A♭7?
1st inversion (C–E♭–G♭–A♭), 2nd inversion (E♭–G♭–A♭–C) and 3rd inversion (G♭–A♭–C–E♭), after root position (A♭–C–E♭–G♭). Same notes, a different one at the bottom.
What does A♭7 look like on the keyboard?
black, white, black and black keys, the same pattern as E♭7, so one hand shape covers all of them.
Shapes and sound are generated from the notes A♭, C, E♭ and G♭ and tested automatically. Updated September 2026.