ArpeggiosEN

Arpeggio quality

m7♭5

The minor seventh flat five — the half-diminished chord — is the softer, more musical cousin of the diminished seventh. It keeps the minor third and flat fifth but takes a plain minor seventh, which makes it sound melancholic rather than menacing. In a minor key it is the ii chord of the ii–V–i cadence, the natural home of the locrian scale, and a gateway into altered dominant sounds. Jazz players also use it as a substitute for a dominant flat-nine. Arpeggiated, it maps perfectly onto the locrian shape. Listen for the minor seventh relaxing the flat fifth's bite.

Formula
1 ♭3 ♭5 ♭7
Notes
C♯ E G B
Family
Augmented / Diminished

Notation in C♯

representative key
441♭3♭5♭7

Fretboard — frets 0–12

C♯ m7♭5 — frets 0 to 12, 28 notes, roots in orange♭3♭5♭71♭3♭71♭3♭5♭7♭5♭71♭3♭5♭3♭5♭71♭71♭3♭5♭3♭5♭71♭30123456789101112
C♯ m7♭5 — frets 0 to 12, 28 notes, roots in orange♭3♭5♭71♭3♭71♭3♭5♭7♭5♭71♭3♭5♭3♭5♭71♭71♭3♭5♭3♭5♭71♭30123456789101112

All 17 keys

open a key →

Same family

How to practise this arpeggio

  • Play it as the ii chord of a minor ii–V–i and feel the pull.
  • Compare it with dim7 and hear the softer, more melancholic seventh.
  • Resolve the flat fifth down to the root of the next chord.
  • Loop it over a half-diminished vamp and accent the seventh.