Once you’ve mastered major and minor chords, it’s time to advance into more complicated chords called 7th chords that feature an interval which adds jazzy improvisational flourish to piano music.
To create a seventh chord, take the root of a major triad and add another third – this will yield chord viio.
It’s a common chord
Major seventh chords are an extremely versatile jazz chord that are used as the basis for various chord progressions and add melodic soundscapes, like romantic ballads or soul songs. Furthermore, major seventh chords create a warm and soothing sound reminiscent of some jazz compositions, such as Claude Debussy’s “Claire De Lune.”
To create a major seventh chord, start by first building a major triad and adding an interval above its root note – for instance if playing G major chord, use B as its major seventh interval – this chord type is known as Cmaj7 chord.
Most maj7 chord shapes feature a bass note on the sixth string, making them moveable. You can use movable maj7 shapes like Emaj7 and Amaj7 for open position playing as well.
It’s easy to play
Major 7th chords can help expand your chord vocabulary. Although more difficult than standard triads to play, major 7ths are still easy enough for everyone. You’ll often see these chords used in popular music such as Tadd Dameron’s “Lady Bird” and Burt Bacharach and Hal David’s “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head”.
Major seventh chords can be created by adding a major seventh to the root of a major triad, creating a rich sound and adding to the emotion of any piece of music. Major seventh chords may also be used to add tension in various pieces of music.
Moveable chord shapes provide an easy way to play major seventh chords. Once found on the fretboard, its root should be located. For instance, Cmaj7 chord has its root at the third fret of A string. In order to form it as a major seventh chord you simply flatten out C note one octave higher by sliding it towards F string.
It’s easy to identify
A major seventh chord is a basic triad enhanced with an additional major seventh interval, often created through either stacking thirds on the tonic note or adding an extra note above it. Either way, its notes must be carefully evaluated in relation to one another in order to establish whether they belong in either major or minor chord territory.
The major seventh interval gives this chord its unique, bright sound. Typically found in jazz but sometimes used in pop and rock/blues music as well, its usage tends to be less prevalent among heavier styles such as metal.
Understanding how to construct and recognize different kinds of seventh chords is an integral component of becoming a musician. Being aware of them will enable you to build progressions that are harmonically stable while giving your songs more sophistication. There are various seventh chord types such as dominant, minor, half-diminished etc that all offer something different in terms of sound.
It’s easy to learn
Learning major seventh chords is an excellent way to strengthen your music theory skills. These chords can be used instead of triads for more interesting sound creation, and are very straightforward to play – perfect for jazz songs or works like Debussy’s Claire De Lune!
Major 7th chords are built similarly to major triads; they consist of three notes – the root note, third note and fifth note. To form a major 7th chord simply add another third to the root chord’s root note (for instance G major is made up of G, B and D chord notes; therefore if you wanted to create G major 7th, an F# note needs to be added on top).
Major seventh chords feature a bright, beautiful sound that makes them well suited to jazz music, though they’re also widely used across other popular genres such as rock.