Ebm7 Piano Chord

E flat minor seventh is the Ebm7 piano chord. It has four notes: E flat, G flat, B flat and D flat. Every one of them is a black key, which makes it the only four note chord in this library that touches no white keys at all.

1E♭2G♭3B♭5D♭C4C5

E♭ at the bottom, then G♭ and B♭ and D♭. Right hand 1-2-3-5, left hand 5-3-2-1. The black keys are E♭ and G♭ and B♭ and D♭.

How to play Ebm7 on piano, step by step

  1. Start on the E♭ above middle C. That is the lowest note of the chord.
  2. Thumb (1): E♭
  3. Index finger (2): G♭
  4. Middle finger (3): B♭
  5. Little finger (5): D♭
  6. Press them together with the right hand. The left hand plays the same notes with fingers 5, 3, 2, 1 an octave lower, or just E♭ on its own as a bass note.

An all black chord is easier than it looks. The keys are raised and evenly spaced, so the hand sits deep and the fingers land in a natural curve.

Inversions of Ebm7

The same 4 notes with a different one at the bottom. All of them are Ebm7; which you play depends on what the hand is coming from. Tap any card to hear it.

First inversionG♭ B♭ D♭ E♭
Ebm7 piano chord diagram, first inversion, G♭ B♭ D♭ E♭
Lighter than root position and less final. A flat third in the bass tips the chord forward, which is why it usually sits between two other chords rather than at the end of a line.
Second inversionB♭ D♭ E♭ G♭
Ebm7 piano chord diagram, second inversion, B♭ D♭ E♭ G♭
Open and slightly unresolved. A fifth in the bass makes the chord sound like a step on the way somewhere, which is mostly how it is used.
Third inversionD♭ E♭ G♭ B♭
Ebm7 piano chord diagram, third inversion, D♭ E♭ G♭ B♭
The most restless of the four. The seventh is the note that wants to move, and putting it underneath the whole chord makes that pull impossible to miss.

If it sounds wrong

A finger drops onto a white key
Play well into the keyboard. Nothing in this chord is white, so there is no reason for the hand to be near the front edge.
You are in the wrong group of black keys
E flat and G flat sit either side of the gap between the groups of two and three. Find the groups first and the chord places itself.
The notes sound uneven
Black keys are narrow. Aim each fingertip at the middle of its key rather than the edge.

What makes it an Ebm7

E♭ · G♭ · B♭ · D♭ 1 ♭3 5 ♭7

E flat minor seventh is an E flat minor triad, E flat G flat B flat, with a D flat added: the flat seventh. All four notes are black keys, which happens only for this chord in the whole library.

It is the ii chord of D flat and the vi of G flat. Those are rare keys, so the chord usually turns up as a borrowed colour rather than as part of a home key.

Ebm7 vs Ebm

E flat minor seventh is E flat minor with a D flat on top. Both are all black key chords, so the seventh costs nothing in comfort: it is one more finger in the same hand position.

That makes this pair unusually easy to move between, which is worth knowing given how forbidding six flats look on the page.

Questions about Ebm7

Which notes are in an Ebm7 chord on piano?

E flat, G flat, B flat and D flat. All four are black keys.

Is Ebm7 hard to play?

No, and it surprises people. All four keys are black, raised and evenly spaced, so the hand falls into shape naturally.

What fingers do you use for Ebm7?

Right hand: thumb on E flat, index on G flat, middle on B flat, little finger on D flat. Left hand: 5, 3, 2, 1.

Is Ebm7 the same as D#m7?

The same four keys and the same sound. E flat minor seventh is the more common spelling.

Where is the Ebm7 chord used?

As the ii chord in D flat and the vi in G flat, and as a borrowed chord in E flat major.

Chords to learn next

Other Eb chords