A Half-Diminished Guitar Chord
Voicing Positions (6)
Interval Colors
In Chord8, every interval has a unique color. The colors follow the function of each note relative to the root — so they change when you switch chords.
A Half-Diminished Chord
The A Half-Diminished chord is built from the intervals: R, b3, b5, and b7. It contains the notes A, C, Eb, and G. The added seventh gives this chord a richer, more complex sound.
What A Half-Diminished Is
The A Half-Diminished is a half-diminished seventh chord — a diminished triad plus a minor seventh, with interval membership [0,3,6,10]. It commonly functions as the ii chord in a minor-key cadence.
How A Half-Diminished Sounds
The A Half-Diminished has the dark, suspended character of a half-diminished seventh chord. The diminished triad supplies instability while the minor seventh makes the chord less symmetrical than a fully diminished seventh, giving it a clear root and a strong pull toward the dominant in a minor key.
How To Use A Half-Diminished In A Progression
Half-diminished seventh chords most commonly function as ii in a minor-key iiø-V-i cadence. The diminished fifth and minor seventh prepare the dominant while preserving a distinct root, and smooth voice leading then carries those unstable tones into the dominant and onward to the minor tonic.
Playing A Half-Diminished On Guitar
On guitar, the most common voicings of A Half-Diminished use the open position when possible (which is why guitarists tend to favour keys like E, A, D, G, and C) and movable barre or half-barre shapes everywhere else. The voicing diagrams above show several practical positions across the neck — the open or low-fret voicings will sound brightest, while the higher voicings will have a thinner, more focused tone. Always experiment with which fingering serves the line you are playing.
Related Chords
Same quality (Half-Diminished)
See the music. Every interval has a color.
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