What notes are in a D half-diminished chord?

D half-diminished contains four notes: D (root), F (minor third), A♭ (diminished fifth), and C (minor seventh).

How does Dm7♭5 resolve?

In C minor: Dm7♭5 → G7 → Cm. The chord sets up the V (G7), which then resolves to the tonic Cm. This is the most-used minor-key cadence in jazz.

Is Dm7♭5 the same as F minor 6?

Enharmonically the chord shares notes with Fm6 (F-A♭-C-D = same four pitches). But functionally they're different: Dm7♭5 is the iiø7 of C minor; Fm6 is the iv6 of C minor. Same notes, different roles.

What jazz standards use D half-diminished?

"Autumn Leaves," "Solar," "Beautiful Love," and many other minor-key standards. It's the default iiø7 chord in C-minor jazz harmony.

D half-diminished chord — notes, intervals, and practice

D half-diminished (Dm7♭5 or Dø) — D, F, A♭, C — is the iiø7 of C minor and one of the most-used jazz chords. It opens minor-key turnarounds in countless standards, and shows up in classical literature any time C minor needs a darker, jazz-tinged supertonic. Bach uses it constantly in his C-minor preludes and fugues.

Intervals

The D half-diminished chord stacks two thirds on the root. Each interval and its size in semitones:

D→Fminor 3rd3 semitones
F→Abminor 3rd3 semitones
Ab→Cmajor 3rd4 semitones

On the keyboard

Each note of the D half-diminished chord highlighted on a piano. Pitch class is what matters — any octave works.

On the guitar

One voicing of the D half-diminished chord on a six-string guitar fretboard.

Common mistakes

Dm7♭5 has D-F-A♭-C — one flat, three naturals. The most common error is reading A♭ as A natural, which makes Dm7 (a regular minor seventh, much less tense). The flat fifth (A♭) is what produces the half-diminished colour and the strong tension that pulls toward G7 → Cm.

In context

Dm7♭5 → G7 → Cm is the ii–V–i in C minor — the most-used cadence in any C-minor jazz tune. "Autumn Leaves" (the most-played jazz standard ever) contains Dm7♭5 → G7 → Cm at its main cadence. In classical, Bach uses the same harmonic preparation in his C-minor literature.

Drill it

The D half-diminished 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 a D half-diminished chord?: D half-diminished contains four notes: D (root), F (minor third), A♭ (diminished fifth), and C (minor seventh).
How does Dm7♭5 resolve?: In C minor: Dm7♭5 → G7 → Cm. The chord sets up the V (G7), which then resolves to the tonic Cm. This is the most-used minor-key cadence in jazz.
Is Dm7♭5 the same as F minor 6?: Enharmonically the chord shares notes with Fm6 (F-A♭-C-D = same four pitches). But functionally they're different: Dm7♭5 is the iiø7 of C minor; Fm6 is the iv6 of C minor. Same notes, different roles.
What jazz standards use D half-diminished?: "Autumn Leaves," "Solar," "Beautiful Love," and many other minor-key standards. It's the default iiø7 chord in C-minor jazz harmony.