G 7b13 (G7b13)

Download MIDI
1+3+5+b7+b13
GBDFEb
4 4

Notes in G 7b13

G (root)BDFEb

Inversions

Same notes as G 7b13, 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

GBDFEb

1st inversion

B in the bass (G7b13/B)

BDFGEb

2nd inversion

D in the bass (G7b13/D)

DFGBEb

3rd inversion

F in the bass (G7b13/F)

FGBDEb

4th inversion

Eb in the bass (G7b13/Eb)

GBDFEb

Open voicings

A close-position chord like G 7b13 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

F on the bottom

FGBDEb

Drop 3

D on the bottom

DGBFEb

Press G, B, D, F and Eb together on the keyboard and you're playing G 7b13.

A dominant seventh with a flattened thirteenth, which is the same pitch as a sharpened fifth an octave up. It darkens a plain dominant just enough to pull harder toward its resolution, and it is one of the most common altered colors in jazz comping.

Difficulty: Advanced. 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.