The key of A♭ major on mandolin
A♭ B♭ C D♭ E♭ F G — and everything inside it.
The key of A♭ major on mandolin: the scale, the chord on every degree, the seventh chords and the pentatonics — drawn above, each a tap away. The row of chips over the mandolin is the key’s chords; the dropdown switches it to seventh chords or pentatonics, the shape menu draws a chord as one grip at a time, and a tap on any note finds the chords that hold it. For the why, read chords in a key.
The notes of A♭ major
A♭ major — also spelled G♯ major — is A♭ B♭ C D♭ E♭ F G: the major scale on A♭, seven notes, labeled 1 to 7 on the mandolin above. The scale on its own, in every position, is on its page.
The chords in A♭ major
The triad on each degree, stacked from the key’s own notes; the numeral’s case is the chord’s quality. The explorer above draws the six you can rest on.
| Degree | Chord | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| I | A♭ | A♭ C E♭ |
| ii | B♭m | B♭ D♭ F |
| iii | Cm | C E♭ G |
| IV | D♭ | D♭ F A♭ |
| V | E♭ | E♭ G B♭ |
| vi | Fm | F A♭ C |
| vii° | G° — passed through, not rested on | G B♭ D♭ |
The seventh chords in A♭ major
One more third on each — the row on “Tetrads” above.
| Degree | Chord | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Imaj7 | A♭maj7 | A♭ C E♭ G |
| ii7 | B♭m7 | B♭ D♭ F A♭ |
| iii7 | Cm7 | C E♭ G B♭ |
| IVmaj7 | D♭maj7 | D♭ F A♭ C |
| V7 | E♭7 | E♭ G B♭ D♭ |
| vi7 | Fm7 | F A♭ C E♭ |
| viiø7 | Gm7♭5 — passed through, not rested on | G B♭ D♭ F |
The pentatonics in A♭ major
The five-note scale on each degree that fits inside the key — major where the degree’s chord is major, minor where it is minor. The row on “Pentatonics” above.
| Degree | Scale | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| I | A♭ pent | A♭ B♭ C E♭ F |
| ii | B♭m pent | B♭ D♭ E♭ F A♭ |
| iii | Cm pent | C E♭ F G B♭ |
| IV | D♭ pent | D♭ E♭ F A♭ B♭ |
| V | E♭ pent | E♭ F G B♭ C |
| vi | Fm pent | F A♭ B♭ C E♭ |
| vii | Gm pent — not in the key | G B♭ C D F |
The same notes from another home
Relative minor: F minor; Its dorian mode: B♭ dorian; Its phrygian mode: C phrygian; Its lydian mode: D♭ lydian; Its mixolydian mode: E♭ mixolydian. Parallel minor, the same root with different notes: A♭ minor.