Understanding 7th Chords On Piano
Seventh chords (or 7th chords) are some of the most beautiful chords on the piano. There are several variations of seventh chords. Let’s break down SEVEN types of seventh chords on the piano and explain how to create them.
As this is about seventh chords, I’ll take you through seven different seventh chord variations. The Major 7, the Minor 7, the Dominant 7, the Diminished 7, the Half-Diminished 7, the Dominant 7 sus4, and the Minor+Major 7 (phew…!). After this lesson, you’ll be able to play ALL of the 7th chords on the piano!
I’ll also give you quick and easy formula hacks to construct ANY seventh chord in ANY key.
Triads are chords made of up 3 notes, 7th chords are made up of 4 notes. Therefore we just need to add one extra note to a triad in order to construct a 7th chord. The reason it is called a 7th chord is because we are adding the seventh note from the scale to the chord. Let’s dive into the different types (all illustrated using C as the basis).
- To construct a major 7th (Cmj7 / CMAJ7), play a major triad and add the 7th from the major scale. Formula: 4 semitones-3-semitones-4 semitones
2. To construct a minor 7th (Cm7 / Cmin7), play a minor triad and add the 7th from the minor scale. Formula: 3 semitones-4-semitones-3 semitones
3. To construct a dominant 7th (C7), play a major triad and add the 7th from the minor scale. Formula: 4 semitones-3-semitones-3 semitones
4. To construct a diminished 7th (Cdim7), play a diminished chord and add the diminished 7th. Formula: 3 semitones-3-semitones-3 semitones
5. To construct a half-diminished 7th (Cm7b5), play a diminished chord and add the minor 7th. Formula: 3 semitones-3-semitones-4 semitones
6. To construct a dominant 7th sus4 (C7sus4), play a sus4 chord and add the minor 7th. Formula: 5 semitones-2-semitones-3 semitones
7. To construct a minor+major 7th (CmMAJ7), play a minor chord and add the major 7th. Formula: 3 semitones-4-semitones-4 semitones
