Other seventh chords

Tell the major seventh, minor seventh, half-diminished and diminished seventh chords apart and build them.

Five kinds

A seventh chord is described by two things: the triad at its base and the quality of its seventh (major or minor).

Chord Triad Seventh

dominant seventh chord major minor major seventh chord major major minor seventh chord minor minor half-diminished seventh chord diminished minor diminished seventh chord diminished diminished

Five seventh chords on C4: dominant, major, minor, half-diminished, diminished

Practice: Name the seventh chord (1)

Practice: Name the seventh chord (2)

Practice: Name the seventh chord (3)

Practice: Name the seventh chord (4)

Practice: Build seventh chords

Seventh chords in major

When you build seventh chords on the degrees of a major scale from its own notes, the degree decides the kind:

I and IV: major seventh chord;
ii, iii and vi: minor seventh chord;
V: dominant seventh chord;
vii: half-diminished seventh chord, called the leading-note seventh.

The diminished seventh chord does not occur in natural major: it is built on degree VII of harmonic minor (or harmonic major).

C major: the seventh chords on I, ii, V and vii

Identify a seventh chord step by step: first the triad at the bottom (major, minor, diminished), then the seventh above the root (major, minor, diminished).