Use the piano diagram below to identify the notes that compose this chord, then use the interval link to identify their note interval numbers and chord note names based on scale note positions.
There are eight distinct 7th chord qualities; diminished, half-diminished, minor, minor-major, major, augmented and augmented-major. Each can be built from a triad chord but contain different notes in their seventh position of their scale.
Root Note
A flat minor 7 is a 4-note chord composed of the root note (Ab), minor third, perfect fifth and flat seventh of Ab Major scale. These notes may be moved around within their chord to produce various inversions with sharps or flats added as desired; nonetheless, the resulting chord will always remain the same type.
The flat minor 7 chord is an example of a borrowed chord, formed from a major scale but altered through adding or subtracting accidentals to create different sounds. Usually the root note serves as the lowest note in borrowed chords and this change usually involves lowering it an octave lower.
Minor seven is an invaluable chord in your repertoire as it fills in many chord progressions that would otherwise lack strong low key sections. Particularly useful when it comes to blues and jazz music, minor seven chord is one that you cannot overlook when developing your repertoire.
The flat minor seven is another very commonly encountered chord found in basslines. Although less universal than root or 5th chords, more care must be taken when applying it to other chords; experience will teach when to utilize this chord.
Another noteworthy element of the 7th chord is its flat fifth, making two flats in total for this particular seventh chord. As most other sevenths don’t contain one of these unusual characteristics, learning how to play this chord may initially prove somewhat challenging.
Major Third
A flat minor 7 is a minor triad with the Major seventh tone (an interval of an augmented fifth), creating a generally joyful sound compared to more dissonant dominant seventh chords.
The above chord quality features the most popular voicing, but other variations are possible. For instance, inverting or loweringing of the minor 7th may produce a more dramatic or blues-inspired sound; or it could simply be lower as an A-flat minor-major 7 chord alteration.
All seven-chord qualities are based on triads. For any seventh chord quality, the initial three notes correspond with one of several different triad chord qualities and additional notes are simply added on to create fuller chords. Every seventh chord quality has its own individual sound due to the combination of note intervals it includes.
To form this chord, the 1st triad degree of Ab major scale is C, while its remaining two triad degrees are E and A. For added texture and sound effects, you could include E-flat as third triad degree while A-flat could act as seventh. These subtle details combine to give this chord its signature sound which can be heard across many musical genres.
Each interval quality can be seen reflected in the note names used for each note in triad chords. For instance, while a diminished fourth might enharmonically equal to a major third, major sevenths do not since major thirds span four staff positions while diminished fourths only encompass three.
These interval qualities, in addition to those already listed (major, minor, perfect and augmented), may be altered using sharp and flat accidentals – starting point being always from major scale note names listed in step 4.
Minor Third
The minor third is a musical interval consisting of three half steps or semitones and smaller than its larger counterpart, the major third, which spans more staff positions. When used within chordal music composition, minor thirds may also be known as flat thirds.
A flat minor seventh chord features a flatted minor third, giving it a distinct sound and feel from dominant 7th chords. When played against tonic or dominant chords, a minor seventh can add tension that adds drama and tension. Because of this feature, blues music often uses minor sevenths in its progressions to heighten drama.
Minor seventh chords can create tension as they move closer towards resolution with their tonic chord. Therefore, it’s essential that when using minor 7ths as substitutes or alternations to dominant 7th chords in any way that they play it correctly in terms of key and tuning.
Minor seventh chords can also be played as suspended chords, creating an open and ambiguous sound due to not containing any root notes for suspension purposes.
A minor seventh chord can be broken down into its individual components, or mutual third intervals, as shown in the chart below. This breakdown helps make it easier to comprehend its sound and why it stands out, while making learning new minor seventh chords much simpler since you will quickly recognize their mutual third intervals.
Perfect Fifth
The perfect fifth is an interval consisting of two notes that share an identical pitch ratio and has become one of the most reliable parts of harmonic scale. It occurs above each root note in all major and minor triads and also appears as part of “tall tertian” harmonies (containing more than three tones stacked above root tone), where its presence helps soften dissonance; for minor 7 flat 5 chord structures it forms part of their overall chord structure.
Musically, the perfect fifth is distinguished by its smooth and consonant sound. As an essential interval, it forms the basis of many popular chords; in particular it was used primarily in major and minor triad construction up until early 19th century when composers started using other chord structures such as pentatonic scales.
Listen for songs such as Twinkle Twinkle Little Star or The Last Post that contain opening notes matching up with an interval – for instance, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star or The Last Post are great ways to identify perfect fifths by ear.
A perfect fifth is one of the few intervals in the scale with consistent distance between adjacent notes regardless of key. Other intervals have different distances depending on their key, for instance when used between F and G on piano it would not be considered a perfect fifth but instead be classified as diminished sixth interval.
As an aid to speedily notating intervals, it can be useful to remember that if the number of lines or spaces between the tonic and an interval sharing the same number on the staff is an exact multiple of 3, then its resultant interval will be perfect. Therefore, counting line or space numbers instead of note names may often prove easier when notating an interval.
Minor Seventh
As its name implies, this chord consists of a minor triad with a flat 7 (1-3-5-7) that’s popularly heard in popular and rock music as well as classical pieces like Claude Debussy’s famous piece “Claire De Lune.” You’ll often find this type of 7th chord used in love songs and sentimental pieces – as its warm sound makes an excellent foundation for sentimental pieces such as love songs. Additionally, its root note can easily be played using your index finger while the remaining notes all remain within easy reach of your thumb (although beware going over flat three as this will create fret buzz and sound bad!). Finally, take note not to go beyond its bottom note since overshooting this will create fret buzz and make your chord sound bad!
Minor seven flat 5 chord is not one of the more frequently seen 7th chords; in fact, you may never even encounter it during standard chord progressions. However, learning it can be beneficial in adding variety to your playing as it adds tension or contrast as well as relaxing or dreamy qualities to a phrase or part of song with its more relaxed sound.
This chord is most frequently written as a m7b5, or sometimes with parentheses omitted as m7(b5), though other variations include Cm7(b5), Cmi7(b5) and Co.
Minor seven flat five has its own distinctive interval quality that can be quickly identified using this table along with short interval names/abbreviations for each chord note. These tables make a convenient way of quickly reviewing chord qualities on-the-fly and understanding how they relate to one another.