7th Chords: Beyond Major and Minor
7th Chords: Beyond Major and Minor
The short answer: stack one more 3rd on top of a triad and you enter the seventh-chord family — Maj7, min7, Dom7 — the four-note chords whose richer, more ambiguous sound defines jazz, soul, gospel, and R&B. Gitori's 7th Chords course teaches how each is built, how they differ, and what each one is for.
The three characters
All sevenths share the same skeleton — a triad plus a 7th — but the choice of triad and 7th produces distinct personalities:
- Maj7 (1-3-5-7): a major triad plus the natural 7. Lush, settled, sophisticated — the sound of bossa nova and ballad openings.
- min7 (1-♭3-5-♭7): a minor triad plus the ♭7. Smooth and rounded — the default minor color of soul and jazz.
- Dom7 (1-3-5-♭7): the hybrid — major triad, flat 7. That internal clash creates tension, which is why the V7 chord pulls so hard toward home and why the blues lives on this sound.
A written companion with more depth is Seventh chords explained.
Why sevenths matter even if you don't play jazz
Because they're the vocabulary of function. Triads say major-or-minor; the 7th says where the chord is going. Once you hear the difference between a Imaj7 (home, staying) and a I7 (home, but leaving for the IV), progressions stop being sequences and start being stories.
What the course covers
Construction of each seventh type from intervals, side-by-side sound comparisons, naming conventions (why "C7" means dominant, not major 7 — a trap every beginner falls into once), and interactive checks throughout. The fretboard application lives in the Chords II course and the arpeggio courses (Maj7, min7, Dom7).
Before you start
Basic Chords — sevenths are triads plus one, so triads come first. Degrees & Intervals supplies the number language everything is written in.