Seventh chords can take four distinct inversions. Each inversion possesses its own sound that may create tension or resolution depending on its harmonic context.
Roman numerals provide us with a straightforward means of labelling seventh chords. They indicate their type (major or minor), show their quality, and indicate whether or not the chord has been diminished or amplified.
Major Seventh
Seventh chords possess a distinct sound and function in harmonic progressions. Their arrangements impact other chords in the music and may influence voice leading. Understanding their inversions helps effectively analyze and notate chords for smooth melodic composition.
Roman numeral analysis for seventh chords starts with the scale degree of its root note and continues with Roman numerals that indicate its quality: capital letters for major and dominant, lowercase for minor diminished and half diminished chords and special symbols to denote augmented (+) or diminished (o) seventh chord qualities.
Dominant seventh chords contain a major triad, with the seventh note half-stepped below its counterpart bass note – creating tension and instability before ultimately leading to tonality. Major seventh chords tend to be romantic and soothing while dominants can be more dissonant and discordant – this distinction often leading composers to alternate between major and dominant seventh chords when creating music.
Minor Seventh
Minor seventh chords offer similar possibilities of quality and inversion as major seventh chords, so musicians utilize Roman numerals when labeling minor seventh chords to identify both its root scale degree and quality characteristics; adding either an “o” or + sign will indicate whether the chord has been diminished or amplified respectively.
Note intervals between roots and fifths in inversions vary, creating unique sound qualities which can affect harmonic progression and voice leading within musical compositions. When learning these inversions, pay special attention to where the seventh falls relative to bass as this will alter how the chord sounds and resolves in its harmonic context.
Add seventets to the root, third, and fifth triads in your music to increase its harmonic movement and tension. Make sure the bass note remains clear when voicing these seventh chords, and that any octave or doubling takes place correctly.
Dominant Seventh
Dominant seventh chords can be used across many genres of music to generate tension and offer resolution, featuring the first, third, and fifth notes from any scale accompanied by a flattened seventh note that is half-step lower than its full counterpart – providing tension relief via various means that lead back up to its tonic chord.
When adding a V7 chord, a second inversion figure may be added to indicate the presence of a minor seventh between its root and seventh note, often indicated with VV7, OV7 or Vivi7 letters.
However, unlike major and minor seventh chords, dominant seventh inversions do not follow a set of specific rules for their identification. It is important to keep in mind that inverted chords like V4/2 and V6/5 merely highlight different harmonic functions when resolved to their tonic chord.
Half-Diminished Seventh
The half-diminished seventh chord is an often underutilized chord in tonal music. When examined using the Triad/Interval method, its analysis is similar to that of a diminished sixth chord; nevertheless, in minor key progressions it functions like an inverted seventh chord viio7 chord.
Like any seventh chord, a half-diminished seventh is made up of a diminished triad and minor 7th interval. The lowest note in the triad is known as its root; middle note as fifth; and top note known as seventh.
Half-diminished seventh chords differ from major seventh chords in that their triad cannot be removed when voicing them, so when using figured bass notation they require an indication of each member in their bass lines. When using this notation method a C half-diminished seventh chord would be written as 6/4/2 on a staff diagram.