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Drop 2 Voicing Reference

C-Db-Eb-A — Drop 2 Voicings

C · Db · Eb · A

▶ Click any diagram to hear it played.

Root
Other chord tones

Low E string on the left, high e on the right. Each column climbs the neck, position by position; the open-position voicing is fixed to this key. Some voicings are extremely difficult or impossible — attempt at your own risk.

Tensions Over Every Bass Note

What each note in C-Db-Eb-A becomes when you slide the bass underneath it, chromatically through all twelve — plus the normal chord symbol, wherever the resulting stack has one. Click any chord symbol to hear it played over that bass note, or click a bass note itself to drone it while you try voicings above.

BassTensionsAlso known as
Cb9  b3 (or #9)  13 (or 6)▶ C(b9, b3, 13)Try it in: Dorian ♭2 · Locrian ♮6 · Ultra Locrian
Db7  9  #5 (or b13)▶ Db(9, #5, 7)Try it in: Lydian Augmented · Harmonic Minor · Ionian ♯5
Db7  7  b9  5—
Eb13 (or 6)  b7  #11 (or b5)▶ Eb(#11, 13, b7)Try it in: Lydian Dominant · Locrian ♮6 · Dorian ♯4
E#5 (or b13)  13 (or 6)  7  11 (or 4)—
F5  #5 (or b13)  b7  3▶ F7 (add #5)Try it in: Mixolydian ♭6 · Phrygian Dominant
Gb#11 (or b5)  5  13 (or 6)  b3 (or #9)▶ Gbdim7 (add 5)Try it in: Dorian ♯4 · Lydian ♯2 · Hungarian Major
G11 (or 4)  #11 (or b5)  #5 (or b13)  9—
Ab3  11 (or 4)  5  b9▶ Ab(b9, 3, 11, 5)Try it in: Phrygian Dominant · Double Harmonic
Ab3 (or #9)  3  #11 (or b5)▶ Adim (add 3)Try it in: Altered · Lydian ♯2 · Ultra Locrian
Bb9  b3 (or #9)  11 (or 4)  7▶ Bb(9, b3, 11, 7)Try it in: Melodic Minor · Harmonic Minor · Diminished (Whole-Half)
Bb9  9  3  b7—