Seventh Chords on Guitar

When opening up a guitar songbook, seventh chords are typically written using chord symbols above the staff. These movable shapes allow you to adjust them up or down on the fretboard as needed.

All seventh chords consist of three triads connected by a 7th interval above their roots. There are four different kinds of seventh chords: major, minor, dominant and diminished.

Major Seventh

Major seventh chords (maj7s), commonly used in jazz and blues music, represent an advanced step up from triads. Made up of the first, third, fifth notes plus an added major 7th interval they provide an array of tones that evoke classic chord progressions from classical composers like Beethoven.

These chords are well-known for their soulful, smooth sound. When used thoughtfully within a progression, maj7 chords can add an elegant flourish. Artists such as Alicia Keys and Marvin Gaye know exactly how to set the atmosphere with carefully placed maj7s in their songs.

To play a maj7 chord on guitar, start with a regular C major chord and add a major 7th note to it. As this can be difficult to remember, use a chart of maj7 chords as practice to familiarize yourself with its shape. Furthermore, try different drop 3 voicings by shifting down one note an octave; this will produce either a maj9, maj7add11, or maj7b5 chord – each offering unique sound qualities!

Minor Seventh

Minor seventh chords are an effective way of adding extra depth and sophistication to guitar progressions, from jazz through rock and funk, providing your tune with an atmospheric soundscape. They add an intimate, warm quality that’s great for creating moody melodies.

These chords are created by adding the flat 7th interval from a major triad to its root note, often creating an easygoing progression in music such as bossa nova or jazz. They often create an atmospheric ambience.

To play a minor seventh chord on guitar, simply lower both of its third and seventh notes by half steps – this creates a C minor seven chord on the low E string and G minor seventh chord on A string (you can see their shapes above and below). This exercise will help you quickly master minor seventh shapes!

Dominant Seventh

Dominant seventh chords are an extremely popular type of chord that contains both major and minor triads. To form them, one adds a flat 7th to an existing major chord and refers to them by their root note number along with “7.”

These chords combine major and minor elements to create tension that must be released through tonality in a tonic chord, making them the ideal V chord in chord progressions.

You’ll find dominant seventh chords in many blues songs – both modern and classic. Listening to John Lee Hooker’s “Boom Boom” or Muddy Waters’s “Blues Before Sunrise,” for instance, you might notice them using E dom7 chords for their IV and V chords respectively – worth adding these shapes into your chord repertoire and learning how to navigate between them on the fretboard.

V7

The V7 chord, often referred to as a dominant seventh, is one of the most widely used seventh chords in music. Constructed from a major triad with an additional major seventh interval above its root (e.g. Cmaj7), its nomenclature can vary depending on who wrote, published or copied out your piece of music.

Funk’s V7 chord is an effective tool for creating harmonic tension and resolution while adding drama and grandeur. When mastering these new shapes, be sure to listen for how dominant seventh chords add depth and character in timeless tunes such as Stevie Wonder’s Raindrops Keep Fallin’ On My Head by stacking thirds above the root until one of four different triads appear: major 7ths (7 chords above root), minor 7ths, dominant seventh chords or minor seventh b5s! Intervals are key when mastering all these shapes!