Seventh chord

${ \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \relative c' { \clef treble \time 4/4 <c e g bes>1 } }$

A seventh chord is a

major triad together with a minor seventh

. However, a variety of sevenths may be added to a variety of triads, resulting in many different types of seventh chords.

In its earliest usage, the seventh was introduced solely as an embellishing or nonchord tone. The seventh destabilized the triad, and allowed the composer to emphasize movement in a given direction. As time passed and the collective ear of the western world became more accustomed to dissonance, the seventh was allowed to become a part of the chord itself, and in some modern music, jazz in particular, nearly every chord is a seventh chord. Additionally, the general acceptance of equal temperament during the 19th century reduced the dissonance of some earlier forms of sevenths.

Classification

Most textbooks name these chords formally by the type of triad and type of seventh; hence, a chord consisting of a major triad and a minor seventh above the root is referred to as a major/minor seventh chord. When the triad type and seventh type are identical (i.e. they are both major, minor, or diminished), the name is shortened. For instance, a major/major seventh is generally referred to as a major seventh. This rule is not valid for augmented chords: since the augmented/augmented chord is not commonly used, the abbreviation augmented is used for augmented/minor, rather than augmented/augmented. Additionally, half-diminished stands for diminished/minor, and dominant stands for major/minor. When the type is not specified at all, the triad is assumed to be major, and the seventh is understood as a minor seventh (e.g. a "C" chord is a "C major triad", and a "C⁷" chord is a "

Popular music symbols § Seventh chords

.

Tertian

The most common chords are tertian, constructed using a sequence of major thirds (spanning 4 semitones) and/or minor thirds (3 semitones). Since there are 3 third intervals in a seventh chord (4 notes) and each can be major or minor, there are 7 possible permutations (the 8th one, consisted of four major thirds, results in a non-seventh augmented chord, since a major third equally divides the octave^[2]). The five commonly found in western music are the major seventh, the minor (or minor/minor) seventh, the dominant (or major/minor) seventh, the half-diminished seventh, and the diminished seventh. The less commonly found tertians are the minor major seventh and the augmented major seventh.

Tertian seventh chords used in Western music
Common name	Chord on C	Common symbols on C	Intervals from root			Quality of consecutive thirds
Common name	Chord on C	Common symbols on C	Third	Fifth	Seventh	1st	2nd	3rd
Major seventh	${ \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \relative c' { \clef treble \time 4/4 <c e g b>1 } }$	Cmaj⁷ CM⁷ C^Δ7 C^Δ	major	perfect	major	major	minor	major
Minor seventh	${ \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \relative c' { \clef treble \time 4/4 <c es g bes>1 } }$	Cmin⁷ Cm⁷ C−⁷	minor	perfect	minor	minor	major	minor
Dominant seventh	${ \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \relative c' { \clef treble \time 4/4 <c e g bes>1 } }$	C⁷	major	perfect	minor	major	minor	minor
Half-diminished seventh	${ \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \relative c' { \clef treble \time 4/4 <c es ges bes>1 } }$	Cm^7♭5 C−^7♭5 C^ø⁷	minor	diminished	minor	minor	minor	major
Diminished seventh	${ \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \relative c' { \clef treble \time 4/4 <c es ges beses>1 } }$	C^o⁷ Cdim⁷ Cm^(♭7)♭5 C−^(♭7)♭5	minor	diminished	diminished	minor	minor	minor
Minor major seventh	${ \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \relative c' { \clef treble \time 4/4 <c es g b>1 } }$	Cm^maj7 Cm^M7 Cm^Δ7 C−^Δ7	minor	perfect	major	minor	major	major
Augmented major seventh	${ \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \relative c' { \clef treble \time 4/4 <c e gis b>1 } }$	Caug^maj7 C+^maj7 C+^M7 C+^Δ7	major	augmented	major	major	major	minor

Non-tertian

Seventh chords can also be constructed using augmented or diminished thirds. These chords are not tertian and can be used in non-tertian harmony. There are many (mathematically, 64) chords that can be built, however, only a few of them are used in Western music.

Commonly used non-tertian seventh chords
Common name	Chord on C	Common symbols on C	Intervals from root			Quality of consecutive thirds
Common name	Chord on C	Common symbols on C	Third	Fifth	Seventh	1st	2nd	3rd
Augmented seventh	${ \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \relative c' { \clef treble \time 4/4 <c e gis bes>1 } }$	Caug⁷ C+⁷	major	augmented	minor	major	major	diminished (equiv. major second)
Diminished major seventh	${ \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \relative c' { \clef treble \time 4/4 <c es ges b>1 } }$	Cm^M7♭5 C−^Δ7♭5	minor	diminished	major	minor	minor	augmented (equiv. perfect fourth)
Dominant seventh flat five	${ \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \relative c' { \clef treble \time 4/4 <c e ges bes>1 } }$	C^7♭5	major	diminished	minor	major	diminished	major
Major seventh flat five	${ \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \relative c' { \clef treble \time 4/4 <c e ges b>1 } }$	C^M7♭5	major	diminished	major	major	diminished	augmented

In tuning systems other than equal temperament there are further possible seventh chords. In just intonation, for example, there is the harmonic seventh.

Types

Dominant seventh chord

${ \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \relative c'' { \clef treble \time 4/4 <g b d f>1 } }$

The dominant seventh chord (V⁷) in C major, G⁷

A dominant seventh chord, or major-minor seventh chord is a

popular music symbols by adding a superscript "7" after the letter designating the chord root.^[3]^: 77 The dominant seventh is found almost as often as the dominant triad.^[3]^: 199 The chord can be represented by the integer notation

(0, 4, 7, 10).

Of all the seventh chords, perhaps the most important is the dominant seventh. It was the first seventh chord to appear regularly in

degree) of some major diatonic scale

.

Take for example the C major scale (C, D, E, F, G, A, B, C):

${ \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \relative c' { \clef treble \time 7/4 c4 \once \override NoteHead.color = #red d e \once \override NoteHead.color = #red f \once \override NoteHead.color = #red g a \once \override NoteHead.color = #red b \time 4/4 c1 \bar "||" \time 4/4 <d, f g b>2 <g b d f> \bar "||" } }$
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The note G is the dominant degree of C major—its fifth note. When we arrange the notes of the C major scale in ascending pitch and use only these notes to build a seventh chord, and we start with G (not C), then the resulting chord contains the four notes G–B–D–F and is called G dominant seventh (G⁷). The note F is a minor seventh from G, and is also called the dominant seventh with respect to G.

Harmonic seventh chord

${ \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \relative c' { \clef treble \time 4/4 <c e g beseh c>1 } }$

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[1] ISBN 0-07-300056-6
.

[2] Hughes, Bryn. "Equal Divisions of the Octave". Open Music Theory. University of Nebraska System.

[benwardsaker-3] 
ISBN 978-0-07-294262-0
.

[Mathieu_pg._126-4] ISBN 0-89281-560-4
.

[5] Seventh chord - Inversions - HK Piano

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[2]

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Seventh chord

Classification

Tertian

Non-tertian

Types

Dominant seventh chord

Harmonic seventh chord

Major and minor seventh chords

Half-diminished seventh chord

Diminished seventh chord

Inversions

See also

References

External links