Major Seventh Chord
A major triad with the note one half step below the octave on top: C, E, G and B. It is the chord that has nowhere to go, which is exactly what makes it useful as a place to stay.
- 4 notes
- 1 3 5 7
- stable
which styles use it
- Soul & R&B
- Deep house
- Film music
- Singer-songwriter
Which notes are in a major seventh chord?
A major triad with a fourth note eleven half steps above the root. In C: C, E, G and B.
- C, the root
- E, the major third
- G, the fifth
- B, the major seventh
That B sits one half step under the C an octave up. It is the closest possible clash inside a chord, and it is the entire character of the sound.
Why is it harsh in one voicing and dreamy in another?
Play the four notes with your fingers side by side and you hear the B and the C pinch against each other. Now put the C low in the bass and E, G and B an octave higher, and the same clash turns into shine.
Nothing changed except the distance between the two notes doing the clashing. This is why voicing matters far more on four note chords than on triads, and why a maj7 played badly sounds like a mistake while the same chord spread out sounds like bossa nova.
Where do you find it in a key?
Stack four thirds on every degree of a major scale and you get: Cmaj7, Dm7, Em7, Fmaj7, G7, Am7 and Bm7b5. Two of the seven are major sevenths, on the first and the fourth degree.
Note what is not there: only one dominant seventh in the whole row, on the fifth. That is why a maj7 sounds like home and a 7 sounds like a signpost, even when you play them on their own.
maj7 or 6, if you just want to stop?
Both are resting chords and they do not rest equally.
- Cmaj7 (C E G B) - Still has that half step between the seventh and the root, so it keeps a faint shimmer. A rest with the lights left on.
- C6 (C E G A) - No half step anywhere. It comes to a complete stop, which is why jazz before bebop ended on the 6 rather than the maj7.
- C (C E G) - The plain triad, which stops just as firmly but with no colour on top.
How do you name one by ear?
Sing the root, then sing the top note of the chord. Land a half step under your own octave and it is a major seventh, so the chord is maj7, mMaj7 or maj7 sharp 5. Land a whole step under it and it is a flattened seventh, so you are in the 7, m7, m7b5 or 7 sharp 5 family. Work out whether the triad underneath is major or minor and you have the chord.
Common mistakes
- Using it as the fifth chord
A maj7 on the fifth degree has no tritone in it, so the pull home disappears. If you want the lean, you want a dominant seventh.
- Playing it in a low close voicing
Below middle C, the seventh and the root turn into mud. Spread them out or leave the seventh off.