D Half-Diminished 7th

Symbols:Dm7(b5), Dmin7(b5), D-7(b5), Dø7, Dm7b5
Scale Degree Formula:1-♭3-♭5-♭7
Interval Stack:m3 + m3 + M3
Notes:D, F, G#, C
Hear this chord:▸ Guitar

Construction

Using the scale degree formula, we first start with the D major scale, and number each note in the scale starting from 1 - these are the scale degrees. Next, we use the scale degree formula, in this case 1-♭3-♭5-♭7, to select notes from our enumerated scale. When a chord requires notes that are not in the scale, this is indicated with a flat (♭) or a sharp (#) along with the scale degree; a ♭3, for instance, would be one half-step down from the 3rd scale degree.
Alternatively, we can use the interval stack to construct our chord. With this approach, we first start with the lowest note of the chord (D), then move our first interval (m3), which brings us to our second note in the chord (F). We repeatedly apply each of the remaining intervals in the stack to get the full list of notes for our chord.
The diagram below shows how both the scale degree formula and interval stack methods result in the same selection of notes:
D1D#♭2E2F♭3F#3G4G#♭5A5Bb#5B6C♭7m3m3M3

Similar Chords

The following chords are similar to this chord and may be a suitable replacement in certain scenarios.

Chord TypeChords
7th Suspended Four Flat 9thG7sus4b9
7th Suspended FourthG7sus
7th Suspended SecondBb7sus2
Added 9thBbadd9
DiminishedDdim
Diminished 7thG#dim7, Fdim7, Ddim7, Bdim7
Diminished Major 7thDdimMaj7
Dominant 7thBb7
Dominant 7th Flat FifthG#7b5, D7b5
Dominant 7th Sharp FifthE7#5
Dominant 7th Sharp Five Flat 9thE7#5b9
Dominant 9thBb9
Major 2ndBb2
Major 6thG#M6, FM6
Major 7thC#M7
Major 7th Flat FifthG#Maj7b5
MinorFm
Minor 2ndFm2
Minor 6thFm6
Minor 7thFm7, Dm7
Minor 9th Flat FifthDm9b5
Minor Added 11thFmadd11
Minor Added 9thFmadd9
Minor Major 7thFmM7
Minor Six-NineFm6/9

Associated Scales

This chord can be found in the following scales.

ScaleRoots
BluesD
DorianF
Dorian b5D
Harmonic MajorC
Harmonic MinorC, A
Ionian #5C, D#
LocrianD
Locrian bb7B
Locrian ♮6B, D
LydianG#
Lydian #9G#, F
Lydian Augmented #2G#
Lydian b3F
MajorD#
MinorC
MixolydianBb
Mixolydian b2G
PhrygianG
Phrygian DominantG, E
Phrygian b4E
Super-Locrian bb7B, G#
Ukrainian DorianF, D

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