G# Minor Add9 (G#madd9)

Also written as Ab Minor Add9 (Ab and G# are the same key).

Download MIDI
1+b3+5+9
BG#D#A#
4 4

Notes in G# Minor Add9

G# (root)BD#A#

Inversions

Same notes as G# Minor Add9, with a different chord tone as the lowest note. Useful for smoother movement between chords instead of jumping around the keyboard.

Root position

G# in the bass

BG#D#A#

1st inversion

B in the bass (G#madd9/B)

BD#A#G#

2nd inversion

D# in the bass (G#madd9/D#)

BD#A#G#

3rd inversion

A# in the bass (G#madd9/A#)

BA#G#D#

Open voicings

A close-position chord like G# Minor Add9 can sound cluttered in the middle of the keyboard. Jazz players open it up by dropping one note down an octave, spreading the same notes wider without changing the chord.

Drop 2

D# on the bottom

BD#G#A#

Drop 3

B on the bottom

BG#D#A#

Press G#, B, D# and A# together on the keyboard and you're playing G# Minor Add9.

A minor triad with a ninth added but no seventh. It keeps the plain minor mood while sounding a little wider and more thoughtful. Pop ballads and film piano use it when a normal minor chord feels too bare but a full minor ninth would sound too jazzy.

Difficulty: Intermediate. Category: Extended chords. Click any highlighted key on the diagram above, or tab to it and press Enter, to hear that single note. Inversions mark the bass note with a contrasting outline.