I've watched a few YouTube videos that purport to talk about seventh chords;
normally they show the most frequent chords and ignore the more exotic
varieties. I am going to put my point of view forward. First, some definitions:
a seventh chord has four notes (root, third, fifth, seventh), and so has three
intervals, where each interval can be either a minor or a major third. Thus
there are 23 = 8 different seventh chords. That's actually not true,
as there are a few really exotic chords that have a flat 5 (i.e. the interval
between the third and fifth is a diminished third).
Name | Third | Fifth | Seventh | Notes in C |
---|---|---|---|---|
Dominant 7 | Major | Minor | Minor |
C E G Bb |
Major 7 | Major | Minor | Major |
C E G B |
Minor 7 | Minor | Major | Minor |
C Eb G Bb |
Minor Major 7 | Minor | Major | Major |
C Eb G B |
Half diminished 7 | Minor | Minor | Major |
C Eb Gb Bb |
Fully diminished 7 | Minor | Minor | Minor |
C Eb Gb Bbb |
7#5 | Major | Major | Diminished |
C E G# Bb |
7b5 | Major | Diminished | Minor |
C E Gb Bb |
Major7b5 | Major | Diminished | Major |
C E Gb B |
Major7#5 | Major | Major | Minor |
C E G# B |
I've ranked the chords in approximately their frequency of use. I have used on
occasion the 7#5 that sounds like an enhanced dominant seventh and I have used
here and there the Major7b5, but I have never used or even seen the Major7#5 -
this sounds like a fully diminished seventh chord, but it isn't.
Some of these chords, when inverted, give other chords; for example, C minor 7
in the first inversion is the same as Eb6 (Eb G Bb C), and C half diminished 7
in the first inversion is Ebm6 (Eb Gb Bb C). There are only three fully
diminished chords, as the same notes in different inversions give differently
name diminished sevenths - C Eb Gb Bbb, Eb Gb Bbb C, Gb Bbb C Eb and Bbb (A) C
Eb Gb - are all the same.
I suppose that theoretically there are even more exotic chords, such as C Eb
G# Bb, which might be called Cmin7#5. This sounds remarkably
consonant when playing it on the piano, as the G# makes the chord sound
like Eb6sus4, especially if it is played in first inversion with Eb in the
bass.
There's a very easy chord shape on the guitar for FMajor7b5: first play an
open position E chord (x22100), then move the fingers up a fret, leaving the
top two strings to ring out (x33200). These notes are C,F,A,B,E. The first
three notes are an F major chord, the fourth note is the flat fifth and the
fifth note is the major seventh.
This day in history:
Title | Tags | ||
---|---|---|---|
58 | Busy morning | Programming, Randy Newman, Paul Simon | |
642 | Paul Klee | Personal, Bristol Grammar School | |
1084 | Sumptuous Saturday Seven - baked hake with potatoes and vegetables | Cooking |
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