What chord voicings can you use for a half-diminished chord?

I was recently asked:

"Could you explain which voicings you use for half-diminished 7 chords?"

Here's my answer:

First, let's review the half-diminished chord itself (before we get to the voicings):

C half-diminished (written as Cø) = C Eb Gb Bb (root, minor 3rd, flat 5th, minor 7th).

It's basically a minor 7 chord with a flat 5 - and is sometimes notated as 'C min 7 b5'. This is just a different notation style which some arrangers use.

What chord voicings can you use for a half-diminished chord?

First, you can play the chord literally as it's written: C Eb Gb Bb.

This is called a 'closed position voicing'. You're just playing the chord in root position, with nothing fancy.

This is a great voicing which I sometimes use.

However, my favorite one-handed voicing for half-diminished chords is this:

C F Gb Bb

It's similar to the 'closed position voicing' above (C Eb Gb Bb) but you're moving the minor 3rd (Eb) up a whole-step to the chord's 4th (F).

This voicing is nice because you can play it in one hand (your left hand) - while your right hand plays the melody.

Another great voicing:

You can also invert this chord voicing (rearrange its notes) and play it like this:

C half-diminished: C / Gb Bb C F

Think of it like this: 1 / b5 b7 1 4

This is a great voicing and I use it a lot - because for whatever reason the melody note above half-diminished chords often happens to be the 4th - I would say it's the most common melody note I see.

So by playing this chord voicing you can play the chord voicing and the melody note at the same time (as long as the melody is F, the 4th):

C / Gb Bb C F

If you're not able to play the root (C) yourself, you can just play the upper part of the voicing:

Gb Bb C F

Not every chord has to have its root note played.

Think of it this way: Just find the notes of the half-diminished chord (C Eb Gb Bb) and then move the chord's 3rd (Eb) up a whole-step to the 4th (F).

It's simple, but it sounds so classy.

Free Resource: Download my 'Jazz Piano Chord Voicing Guide' (11 pages).