21.1 · Sevenths & Jazz

The four 7th qualities

A seventh chord is a triad plus one more third: four notes. Jazz lives here, but so do soul, R&B, bossa, and half the film music you know.

One more skip

Same formula as ever: root, skip, skip. Then skip once more. Hear the triad grow a 7th.

The four qualities on C

The bottom two thirds make the triad; the third you add on top picks which of the four qualities you get. Play all four on the same C root and compare.

Cmaj7: Major triad + major 3rd on top. Soft, wistful. Bossa nova, neo-soul, dreamy intros.

C7: Major triad + minor 3rd. The pushy one. It leans hard toward a chord a fifth below.

Cm7: Minor triad + minor 3rd. Minor with the edges rounded off. Smooth, mellow, lo-fi.

Cø7: Diminished triad + major 3rd. Unsettled, neither resting nor pushing. Jazz uses it to start minor landings.

Hear the pull

C7 pulls toward F, a fifth below. Hear it alone, then hear it land.

Game · Name the 7th quality

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One of the four 7th chords, always on C. Which quality is it?

Listen first. Then answer.

Quiz

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A seventh chord is…

Score 100% on every quiz and game to complete this lesson. A perfect run sticks: a later miss never undoes it.A 7th on every step →