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Keys and seventh chords
Which seventh chords can you make using a major or minor scale? In other words, which seventh chords belong to a major or minor key? In the following, we will use the keys of F major and D minor as example.
As reminder, The key of F major and D minor are related: they are built using the same tones:
F major: F - G - A - Bb - C - D - E - F
D minor: D - E - F - G - A - Bb - C - D
Also as reminder, the chord that is built on the first tone of a scale is indicated with a Roman I, the second with a Roman II, etc.
Chords in the major scale
First let's look at F major: the chords in the major scale.
I - F major 7th
II - G minor 7th
III - A minor 7th
IV - Bb major 7th
V - C (dominant) 7th
VI - D minor 7th
VII - E half diminished
Recap major chords
For any major scale - and that also means "any major key", the 7th chords are as followed:
I. major 7
ii. minor 7
iii. minor 7
IV. major 7
V. dominant 7
vi. minor 7
vii. half diminished
And this is how they sound:
Chords in the minor scale
As we saw in the section about triads, a minor scale contains the same chords as the equivalent major scale. In the minor scale, the chords are of the following type:
I. minor 7
ii. half diminished
iii. major 7
IV. minor 7
V. minor 7
vi. major 7
vii. dominant 7
For example in D minor, that results in the following chords:
I. D minor 7
II. E half diminished
III. F major7
IV. G minor 7
V. A minor 7
VI. Bb major 7
VII. C 7
This is how they sound:
On the next page we will look at two common other chords with four tones: the 6 and minor 6 chords.