MUSC 101 Music Fundamentals - Spring 2012

[Overview] [Syllabus]

Unit 16 - Seventh Chords

If you stack a third on top of a triad you get a seventh chord. The chord gets its name from the interval of a seventh formed between the root and the bass.

The names of the chord notes are root, third, fifth, and seventh.

Seven vs. Seventh

It can be confusing at first whether to call a chord a "seventh" chord or a "seven" chord. The term seventh refers to a class of chords as in "Seventh chords are more common in Romantic period music than in Classical period music." The term seven refers to an individual chord as in "that's a G Seven chord."

Qualities

There are nine seventh chord qualities. Eight of them are formed from the combination of the four triad qualities plus a major or minor seventh. The ninth quality is the fully diminished seven chord that is formed from a diminished triad and the interval of a diminished seventh.

Seventh Chord Names

The general form of a seventh chord name is

<ROOT><TRIAD QUALITY> <SEVENTH QUALITY>

An example would be an Eb Major Minor 7 chord. The first term (Eb) refers to the root of the chord. The second term (Major) refers to the quality of the triad that forms the lower three notes of the seventh chord. The third term (Minor) refers to the quality of the interval of the seventh formed between the root and the seventh. You can abbreviate the names by using upper case M for major and lower case m for minor, Eb Mm7.

Seventh Chord Quality	Notation	Long Name	Short Name	Listen
Major Major		F Major Major 7	FMM7 FM7 FMaj7 F Major 7
Major Minor		F Major Minor 7 Dominant 7	FMm7 F7
Minor Major		F Minor Major 7	FmM7
Minor Minor		F Minor Minor 7	Fmm7 Fm7 Fmin7 F minor 7
Diminished Major		F Diminished Major 7	FdM7 FoM7
Diminished Minor		F Diminished Minor 7, F Half Diminished 7	F°m7 Fø7 Fm7b5
Diminished		F Diminished 7 Fully diminished 7	F°7 Fdim7
Augmented Major		F Augmented Major 7	F+M7 FM7#5
Augmented Minor		F Augmented Minor 7	F+7 F7#5

The Five Common Seventh Chords

Five seventh chords are commonly used:

• MM7 (Major Major 7)

• 7 (Major Minor 7)

• m7 (Minor Minor 7)

• ø7 (Diminished Minor 7, half diminished 7)

• °7 (Diminished Diminished 7)

Inversions

A seventh chord can appear in four inversions depending on whether the root, third, fifth, or seventh is the lowest note. In the following example, the CMM7 chord appears in four different inversions.

Dominant Seven Chord

The dominant seven chord is the most commonly used seventh chord. In scale degree terms the fifth note of the scale is called the dominant. The seventh chord that is built on the fifth note of the scale is called the dominant seven chord, or the V7 ("five seven") chord.

Roman Numeral Seventh Chord Names

The naming conventions for seventh chords also apply to Roman Numerals.

Root

The scale degree of the root is expressed as a Roman Numeral, e.g.: I, ii, iii, iv V

Quality

These are commonly used abbreviations for seventh chord qualities.

Inversion

The symbols used to identify seventh chord inversions are based on the interval structure measured upwards from the lowest note of the inversion in closed spacing.

• Seventh chord root position is 7
• Seventh chord first inversion is 65
• Seventh chord second inversion is 43
• Seventh chord third inversion is 42

Diatonic Chords

Major Scale Diatonic Sevenths

This example is in C Major and is true for every major scale.

• The I and IV chords are Major Major sevenths.
• The V chord is a Major Minor seventh.
• The ii, iii, and vi chords are Minor Minor sevenths.
• The vii chord is a Half Diminished seventh.

Natural Minor Scale Diatonic Sevenths

This example is in C natural minor and is true for every natural minor scale.

• The i, iv, and v chords are Minor Minor sevenths.
• The ii chord is a Half Diminished seventh.
• The III and VI chords are Major Major sevenths.
• The VII chord is a Major Minor seventh.

Harmonic Minor Scale Sevenths

This example is in C harmonic minor and is true for every harmonic minor scale.

• The i chord is a Minor Major seventh.
• The iv chord is a Minor Minor seventh.
• The V chord is a Major Minor seventh.
• The ii and vii chords are Half Diminished sevenths.
• The III chord is an Augmented Major seventh.
• The VI chord is a Major Major sevenths.

Melodic Minor Scale Diatonic Sevenths

This example is in C melodic minor and is true for every melodic minor scale.

• The i chord is a Minor Major seventh.
• The IV and V chords are Major Minor sevenths.
• The ii chord is a Minor Minor seventh.
• The III chord is an Augmented Major seventh.
• The vi chord is a Half Diminished seventh.
• The vii chord is a Fully Diminished seventh.

Seventh Chord Naming Examples

Question: Name this chord in the key of D Major.

1. Key (It's D Major - the directions said so)

2. Root (it's E)

3. Quality (It's minor minor 7)

4. Inversion (It's 65, because that's the symbol for a first inversion seventh chord)

5. Roman Numeral Root (It's ii because E is the second note in the scale of D major)

6. Answer: ii65

Seventh Chord Writing and Playing Example

Question: Write (or Play) a iiø43 chord in the key of G minor.

1. Key (It's g minor - the directions said so)

2. Root Scale Degree (It's A because A is the second (ii) note of the G minor scale)

3. Quality (It's half diminished 7 because of the ø)

4. Inversion (It's a second inversion seventh chord because of the 43)

5. Answer:

[Overview] [Syllabus]

Revised by John Ellinger, Spring 2012.