G minor sixth

Gm6

Also written Gmin6 · G−6

NotesG · B♭ · D · E
Formula1 · ♭3 · 5 · 6
G1D5E6B♭♭3
Root position

The tonic of minor-key jazz, with a bright major 6th on top of the minor triad. Gm6 has the same notes as Eø7, a relationship behind countless minor ii–V–i lines.

How pianists voice Gm6

Nobody plays a jazz chord in root position. These are the shapes that actually get played — the same ones Cadenza shows when you play the chord.

Shell Left hand

G1E6B♭♭3

1 · ♭3 · 6 — root, 3rd and 6th: the three notes that say what the chord is. Left hand, low; everything else is colour.

Rootless A From the 3rd

D5E6A9B♭♭3

♭3 · 5 · 6 · 9 — no root: the bass player has it. The left-hand voicing of modern jazz piano. Without G underneath, the same keys read as B♭maj7(♯11) — the bass turns them into Gm6.

Rootless B From the 6th

E6A9D5B♭♭3

6 · 9 · ♭3 · 5 — the other half of the pair. A and B alternate through a ii–V–I so the hand barely moves.

Drop 2 Two hands

D5G1E6B♭♭3

5 · 1 · ♭3 · 6 — close position with the second voice from the top dropped an octave: wider, warmer, the standard for chord melody.

Gm6 inversions

The same 4 notes with a different one in the bass. Each inversion is written as a slash chord.

Root position Gm6

G1D5E6B♭♭3

Root at the bottom, stacked in 3rds: 1 · ♭3 · 5 · 6.

1st inversion Gm6/B♭

D5E6G1B♭♭3

B♭ (the ♭3) in the bass: ♭3 · 5 · 6 · 1.

2nd inversion Gm6/D

D5E6G1B♭♭3

D (the 5) in the bass: 5 · 6 · 1 · ♭3.

3rd inversion Gm6/E

E6G1D5B♭♭3

E (the 6) in the bass: 6 · 1 · ♭3 · 5.

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