Diminished 9th chord?

In the movie Rhapsody In Blue, a young George Gershwin is seen shopping his new tune, Swanee, around Tin Pan Alley. Several people look at the score and comment, "hmmm.....a diminished 9th!".

I can't quite figure out what a diminished 9th is, nor can I identify in which measure the supposed chord appears. Is this just made up dialog or is there a real musical basis for the remarks?

Hmmm...

Not common used terminology...

Could be a 7b9. Could be a diminished chord with an included ninth. Could even be something like a m9b5...

I've never actually looked at the score for "Rhapsody."

You can voice a dim9 ( low to high - C A Eb Gb D) and it's probably referring to the main lick or riff of Rhapsody, which is a big dom.b9 chord. But it's just some Hollywood script BS to make it sound 'complicated' or 'new'.

Try this: Bb Db E C low to high and move that parallel for main 'blues' melody in RinB.

There's no º9 chord. Note wise it's just (if you're thinking from C) a B7(b9#9) or D7b9 chord.

*It 'could' possibly be referring to a m9b5 chord as JT just mentioned?

I was thinking along those lines jazztele and klasaine but couldn't come up with anything definitive. BTW, the song in question is Swanee, not Rhapsody.

I'll bet it is an inside joke. The interval of a dim 9 is the enharmonic equivalent of an octave.

I recently saw an old Columbo episode where he uses the phrase "mound of venus" as an art term. Which it is, of course, but not in the way that he used it. Also, don't ask me how I came across this, but there is a cartoon where for one frame, Bugs Bunny's private parts are exposed.

I'll bet it is an inside joke. The interval of a dim 9 is the enharmonic equivalent of an octave.



That was my initial thought - lol!

IN effect, technically a diminished 9 chord is built in this manner, correct???
1, b3, b5, bb7, 9.

Our point is is that we don't know because it's not a term that's used.

It could be a fully º7 with an added 9th or it could be a fully º7 with a diminished 9th which could be either a b9 or a bb9 - in which case it's just the octave.
You see the potential confusion?

Thanks for clearing that up, Klasaine.....and I am being serious while I am laughing. You know that I am not as the country song says..."trained in theory and composition". (IIRC that line..) It is just that I happened to be looking at "The Original Gig Bag of Picture Chords", which was in a box of stuff I bought from a frustrated musician, two days ago...and ran through the key of C. The Cdim7 that is shown there shows a dimished chord with a double flatted 7th. I figrued that the 9th would be a step above the tonal center or key note or whatever one calls it..the C in this case making the 9th a D.
So, I guess I'll just wait until I see a chord written and then I"ll figure it out. HOpefully it will be in staff form so I don't have to worry about whether the 9th is flatted or not or double flatted or not. 'Til then, yes, I can see how it must really BE confusing. Everytime I think it is simple, it turns out to be confusing. LOL
So, if you had a chord chart for some new music in front of you and the chord is indicated 'Cdim9'......what would you play the first time through...without asking any questions? JUst curious....

I thought I spotted that chord on the Gershwin piano roll version of the song, but I guess not.

Bars 15 and 16 of Herbie Hancock's 'Speak Like a Child' are an F#º7 with an added (natural) 9th in the melody ... ?