B7b5 Piano Chord
A tense jazz chord with a tritone replacing the perfect fifth. Often serves as a tritone substitution in jazz progressions — replacing the classic dominant seventh chord.
Recommended voicing
Bb3 · D4 · E4 · Ab4
With bass · rootless
Left hand
E3 · Ab3 · D4
fingers 5–3–1
Right hand
Free
melody / improvisation
Jazz accompaniment with a bass player: the bass supplies the root, leaving the right hand free for melody or improvisation.
Notation for B7b5 chord
Other names: B 7th flat 5
Music theory name: seventh flat five chord
Common name: B 7b5 chord
Intervals and tones in B7b5 chord
| Note | Interval |
|---|---|
| B | Root |
| D | Major 3rd |
| E | Diminished 5th |
| Ab | Minor 7th |
Inversions
1st inversion
D4 · E4 · Ab4 · Bb4
2nd inversion
E4 · Ab4 · Bb4 · D5