Question:
Hi -
This is something that has been bugging me and I cannot seem to find the answer to in my own research. What is the difference between a 7 chord and a maj7 chord? Example: D7 and Dmaj7.
I have been treating the fingering the same......recently discovered that that is not correct and know what the correct fingering is. However, I do not know the logic behind it.
Thanks!
Answer:
Originally Posted by Jo1967 Hi -
This is something that has been bugging me and I cannot seem to find the answer to in my own research. What is the difference between a 7 chord and a maj7 chord? Example: D7 and Dmaj7.
I have been treating the fingering the same......recently discovered that that is not correct and know what the correct fingering is. However, I do not know the logic behind it.
Thanks!
When you see just the 7, it is short for "dominant seventh," which, in turn, is short for a chord with an added seventh that is built on the dominant of whatever key you're in (though these chords sometimes appear with other notes [than the dominant, that is] as their root, and are treated as though their root was the dominant of some other key). The dominant of a key is the fifth scale degree, so, for example, in C major, G would be the dominant. A dominant seventh chord on G (ie G7) would be G-B-D plus the seventh that fell in the key of C major, which would be F... so, G-B-D-F = G7.
When you see maj7, it is short for "major seventh," which, in turn, is short for a chord with an added seventh that forms the interval of a major seventh with the root of the chord (hence the name of the chord, "major seventh"). The interval of a major seventh is only one half step smaller than an octave, so you just go down one half step from the octave root, basically, to find your added seventh. A Gmaj7, for example, would be G-B-D plus the seventh that would make the interval of a major seventh with the root note, G. To find that note, you can either go up a major seventh, or you can just go down one half step from the octave G, down to F#, the major seventh... so, G-B-D-F# = Gmaj7.
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Wow. Thanks, Nate for the explanation. That really helps!
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I'd wondered that too. But just ignored it. Cool
Answer:
Originally Posted by Nate When you see just the 7, it is short for "dominant seventh," which, in turn, is short for a chord with an added seventh that is built on the dominant of whatever key you're in (though these chords sometimes appear with other notes [than the dominant, that is] as their root, and are treated as though their root was the dominant of some other key). The dominant of a key is the fifth scale degree, so, for example, in C major, G would be the dominant. A dominant seventh chord on G (ie G7) would be G-B-D plus the seventh that fell in the key of C major, which would be F... so, G-B-D-F = G7.
When you see maj7, it is short for "major seventh," which, in turn, is short for a chord with an added seventh that forms the interval of a major seventh with the root of the chord (hence the name of the chord, "major seventh"). The interval of a major seventh is only one half step smaller than an octave, so you just go down one half step from the octave root, basically, to find your added seventh. A Gmaj7, for example, would be G-B-D plus the seventh that would make the interval of a major seventh with the root note, G. To find that note, you can either go up a major seventh, or you can just go down one half step from the octave G, down to F#, the major seventh... so, G-B-D-F# = Gmaj7.
It may not be apparent from this explanation but (if I remember my theory correctly) in a dominant 7 chord, the 7th is flatted as opposed to a maj7 which is not flatted.
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I guess thats the short version of what Nate said, right?
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Originally Posted by Funky 1 It may not be apparent from this explanation but (if I remember my theory correctly) in a dominant 7 chord, the 7th is flatted as opposed to a maj7 which is not flatted.
That's the practical explanation defining the difference between the 2 but that's not the "logic behind it".
Nate explained the "logic".
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Originally Posted by s0233425 I'd wondered that too. But just ignored it. Cool
Dang, that could prove musically disasterous.