I can't figure out what would go well with this chord!

[ptogg]

Anyone is welcome to offer any ideas or suggestions you might have....I have considered and tried out everything you guy's have offered me thus far

[mwalk]

A simple option would be to lower the note you're playing on the fifth string a 1/2 step. That turns the chord into an Amaj7. Might be something more like what you're looking for since you're fingerpicking and apparently "hanging out" out the chord, as opposed to moving chords quickly.

From the Amaj7 you could go to a B7 or B9 or something like that (a V in the key of E) and resolve to E.

[ptogg]

That's a great idea, mwalk. I'll definitely see how that goes once I find some time to put my nose back to the grindstone again

anyone else have any insights to offer? It's been a pleasure hearing from every one of you guys i can't thank you enough for such a warm welcome

[JonPR]

Just to recap:

As it is, your first chord is Bbm7b5, aka Bb half-dim. Or A#m7b5.
It's the natural vii chord in the key of B major, which is why it resolves well to B major.
But it's more commonly used as a ii chord in key of G# minor. (Ab minor if you like, but that has 7 flats, where G# minor has 5 sharps. Take your pick )
Which means the most common way you'll find your chord being used is in this sequence (not necessarily these voicings):

A#m7b5-D#7-G#m
-------------------
-14--14--12--------------
-13--12--13--------------
-14--13--13--------------
-13------11------------
-----11--------------

OTOH, a "sweeter" move is to resolve to the parallel major of G#m, i.e. Ab major, or Abmaj7 as here:
Bbm7b5-Eb7-Abmaj7
-------------------
-14--13--13--------------
-13--12--12--------------
-14--13--13--------------
-13------11------------
-----11--------------
(Chord names changed - "enharmonically" - to suit key of Ab major, 4 flats.)

However, you can also think of your chord as an inverted C#m6:
----
-14- = C# = root
-13- = G# = 5th
-14- = E = 3rd
-13- = A# = 6th
----

That's not often the beginning of a sequence, but would be common enough as part of what's known as a "line cliche", where you take a single chord (often a minor), and change one note a little each time:
Recognise this?:

C#m  C#m(maj9) C#m7 C#m6 Amaj7(C#m/A)
--9-----11------9-----9---9-----
--9-----9-------9-----9---9-----
--9-----9-------9-----9---9-----
--11----10------9-----8---7-----
---------------------------------
--------------------------------

The other way to look at your chord is as a rootless F#9. This is how it's one of B B King's favourite blues chords (which he probably got from T-Bone Walker). Here he is playing it down on fret 7, where it makes a rootless C9:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=862QmhLO7wY
---
-8- = G = 5th
-7- = D = 9th
-8- = Bb = 7th
-7- = E = 3rd
(8- = C root if you want it)

[Dalegreen]

just to add a little more confusion..

although the voicing suggests a Bbm7b5 chord you could also see it as both of these chords, very common in drop 2 / drop 3 chord forms

F#9 chord with no bass note ( as mentioned by Jon)


or a C7 (b9 b13) ... very common voicing form for the 7th (b9 b13) chord.
So you can see it / use it as a dominant 7th chord with augmentation, rather than a minor form. So keeping it straight forward, think Key of F and resolve to the Imaj7 voicing (Fmaj7)

A 7th(b9 b13) is a great tonal voicing for a dominant approach with tension to the tonic chord, makes a great resolution to an ending of a passage.

so that gives you many more options as where to resolve the original chord

[Dalegreen]

and the typical voicing for a 7th (b9 b13) chord would be the
3rd / 7th / b9 / b13

so in case of the Bbm7b5
(Root / b3 / b5 / b7)
..Bb ..Db ..Fb(E) ..Ab

the C7 b9 b13 can be seen as
(3rd / 7th / b9 / b13)
...E .. Bb ..Db ..Ab

[Ed-in-Ohio]

Originally Posted by ptogg

I was fiddling around on my nylon stringed guitar just the other day, and I happened to come across this hidden gem all the way don on the 13th and 14th fret:

e|--x--
B|--14--
G|--13--
D|--14--
A|--13--
E|---x--

...snip...

I have no idea what chord it is, but since it is a closed position chord, you can move it around up and down the fretboard. Let's call the position you're in "at fret 13". So, using the Nashville Number chord system;

• The I is at frets 13 and 1.
• The IV is at fret 6.
• The V is at fret 8.

I'd start by working in those positions.

[JonPR]

Originally Posted by Dalegreen

just to add a little more confusion..

although the voicing suggests a Bbm7b5 chord you could also see it as both of these chords, very common in drop 2 / drop 3 chord forms

F#9 chord with no bass note ( as mentioned by Jon)


or a C7 (b9 b13) ... very common voicing form for the 7th (b9 b13) chord.
So you can see it / use it as a dominant 7th chord with augmentation, rather than a minor form. So keeping it straight forward, think Key of F and resolve to the Imaj7 voicing (Fmaj7)

Good call. (I prefer #5 to b13, btw, but I guess that's pedantry! )

C7#5b9 > F69
--9-------8-------
--9-------8-------
--9-------7-------
--8-------7-------
--x-------8-------
--8--------------
...mellow!

OR:

Gm7b5 > C7#5b9 > F69
--------------------------
--11------14-------13-------
--10------13-------12----
--11------14-------12---
--10------13-------12---
-------------------13---

[ptogg]

Originally Posted by JonPR

Good call. (I prefer #5 to b13, btw, but I guess that's pedantry! )

C7#5b9 > F69
--9-------8-------
--9-------8-------
--9-------7-------
--8-------7-------
--x-------8-------
--8--------------
...mellow!

OR:

Gm7b5 > C7#5b9 > F69
--------------------------
--11------14-------13-------
--10------13-------12----
--11------14-------12---
--10------13-------12---
-------------------13---

These chords sound fantastic!! Thank you very much JonPR, I'm gonna need to find some way to use those!

[ptogg]

Well you clearly know a thing or two about music theory

Thanks for all the ideas...I can't say it enough!!

Also, I've thrown a bit of a huge curve ball by tuning my high "e" string down to an "A"...yeah. Not to mention, I've also tuned all the other strings down a whole step to get the sound I've been looking for. I really wish I didn't have to down tune my "e", but either way it sounds really nice now. not to happy that I can't play the standard D and G chords, though...I guess that just part of the creative process!

So now I separately pluck the 5th, 4th and 3rd string then pause for a second then pluck the 3rd followed by quickly arpeggiating the 4th, 3rd, and 2nd. to finish off, I pluck the 3rd, 4th, and then back to the 3rd string again.

I bit unusual, but what's creative that isn't

[JonPR]

Originally Posted by ptogg

Well you clearly know a thing or two about music theory

Thanks for all the ideas...I can't say it enough!!

Also, I've thrown a bit of a huge curve ball by tuning my high "e" string down to an "A"...yeah.

Why?

Originally Posted by ptogg

Not to mention, I've also tuned all the other strings down a whole step to get the sound I've been looking for. I really wish I didn't have to down tune my "e",

Why do you "have" to?

Originally Posted by ptogg

but either way it sounds really nice now. not to happy that I can't play the standard D and G chords, though...I guess that just part of the creative process!

OK, but you seem to be making things unnecessarily difficult for yourself: creating an unorthodox tuning. (There are plenty of other common alternative tunings if you're looking for a different sound.)
Still, it's good training (ear and theory) to work out how you can incorporate that 1st string into your chords. (Eg you can leave it open for a D chord - although you only get a D5 power chord - and for a G you can fret it on 2 or 5. Or leave it open for a Gadd9.)