What notes are in an A♭ augmented chord?

A♭ augmented contains three notes: A♭ (the root), C (the major third), and E (the augmented fifth).

Is A♭ augmented the same as C augmented?

Enharmonically yes — same three pitches in different inversions. A♭+, C+, and E+ all spell A♭, C, and E in pitch class.

How is A♭+ different from A♭ major?

Only the fifth changes. A♭ major has E♭ as the fifth; A♭+ raises that fifth to E natural. The half-step shift creates the augmented fifth and the chord's floating quality.

Where does A♭ augmented appear in music?

In F harmonic-minor cadences (as III+), in D♭-major altered-dominant progressions, and in chromatic-mediant motion through flat keys. Chopin's F minor literature uses A♭+ regularly.

Ab augmented chord — notes, intervals, and practice

A♭ augmented — A♭, C, E — stacks two major thirds. A♭+ is enharmonically equivalent to C+ and E+ in inversion. The chord functions as III+ of F harmonic minor and as an altered V in D♭ major.

Intervals

The Ab augmented chord stacks two thirds on the root. Each interval and its size in semitones:

Ab→Cmajor 3rd4 semitones
C→Emajor 3rd4 semitones
Ab→Eaugmented 5th8 semitones

On the keyboard

Each note of the Ab augmented chord highlighted on a piano. Pitch class is what matters — any octave works.

On the guitar

One voicing of the Ab augmented chord on a six-string guitar fretboard.

Common mistakes

A♭+ has A♭ and C as the lower notes (matching A♭ major) but the fifth is E natural, not E♭. The single natural inside a flat-key chord is unusual visually. Replacing E with E♭ makes an A♭ major chord — the augmented colour vanishes.

In context

A♭+ functions as III+ of F harmonic minor: Fm → A♭+ → D♭ (i → III+ → VI). In D♭ major, A♭+ acts as an altered V chord, with the augmented fifth (E natural) resolving up to F in the tonic D♭ chord.

Drill it

The Ab augmented chord is one of 48 in the Chord Trainer. Open the full trainer to practice it alongside related chords with timing and best-time tracking.

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Frequently asked

What notes are in an A♭ augmented chord?: A♭ augmented contains three notes: A♭ (the root), C (the major third), and E (the augmented fifth).
Is A♭ augmented the same as C augmented?: Enharmonically yes — same three pitches in different inversions. A♭+, C+, and E+ all spell A♭, C, and E in pitch class.
How is A♭+ different from A♭ major?: Only the fifth changes. A♭ major has E♭ as the fifth; A♭+ raises that fifth to E natural. The half-step shift creates the augmented fifth and the chord's floating quality.
Where does A♭ augmented appear in music?: In F harmonic-minor cadences (as III+), in D♭-major altered-dominant progressions, and in chromatic-mediant motion through flat keys. Chopin's F minor literature uses A♭+ regularly.