The A flat diminished chord (Ab dim or Ab°) contains the notes Ab, Cb and Ebb (E double flat). It is produced by taking the 1st, flat 3rd and flat 5th notes of the A flat Major scale.
A diminished often appears as Ab dim or Ab°.
The diminished chord played by itself has a dissonant sound. This is largely due to the existence of the tritone interval, which is otherwise known as the devil’s interval. The A flat diminished chord contains a tritone between the notes Ab and Ebb.
Even though the Ab diminished chord sounds dissonant on its own, it can sound beautiful when played in the right context. Pairing the Ab diminished chord with the A Major chord, for example, creates a sense of tension and release, which works well. A good exercise is to switch between the Ab diminished chord and the A Major chord and hear for yourself how this sounds
10 Ways To Play The A Flat Diminished Chord
If you’ve come to this page just to view some chord diagrams for A flat diminished, here they are.
Some Quick Ab Diminished Chord Theory
- The Ab diminished chord contains the notes Ab, Cb and Ebb.
- The A flat diminished chord is produced by taking the 1 (root), b3 and b5 of the A flat Major scale.
- The A flat diminished chord (just like all diminished chords) contains the following intervals (starting from the root note): minor 3rd, minor 3rd, tritone (which leads back to the root note).
- Ab diminished resolves naturally to the A chord.
- Ab diminished can be written as Ab dim or Ab°.
- The Ab locrian scale can be used when soloing over the A flat diminished chord.
Further Reading
