Chords
C# Minor seventh
C# · E · G# · B
The minor seventh chord — a minor triad with a minor seventh. The most useful chord in jazz and soul.
Also written C#min7 · C#mi7 · C#-7
C# Minor seventh
C# · E · G# · B
Voicings on the piano
| Voicing | Notes | Play it on your instrument |
|---|---|---|
| Closed, root position | C#3 · E3 · G#3 · B3 | |
| Open (drop 2) | G#2 · C#3 · E3 · B3 | |
| Shell | C#3 · E3 · B3 | |
| Rootless | E3 · G#3 · B3 · D#4 |
Tap a key or a fret to hear it.
Anatomy
C# Minor seventh (C#m7) contains the notes C# · E · G# · B, each with a role measured as an interval from the root.
Read on: how triads are built · seventh chords
Inversions
An inversion of C# Minor seventh puts a chord tone other than C# in the bass; the name after the slash is that bass note.
Where it lives
The keys and the scales C# Minor seventh belongs to.
In which keys
C# Minor seventh is diatonic to 6 keys; the numeral is its degree and the label its harmonic function.
Scales that contain it
C# Minor seventh fits inside these scales, each built on C#.
- C# Minor PentatonicC# · E · F# · G# · B
- C# Minor BluesC# · E · F# · G · G# · B
- C# MinorC# · D# · E · F# · G# · A · B
- C# DorianC# · D# · E · F# · G# · A# · B
- C# PhrygianC# · D · E · F# · G# · A · B
- C# Dorian b2C# · D · E · F# · G# · A# · B
- C# Spanish HeptatonicC# · D · E · E# · F# · G# · A · B
- C# Bebop MinorC# · D# · E · E# · F# · G# · A# · B
Understanding the C# Minor seventh chord
Names and symbols
C#m7 is the chord symbol for C# Minor seventh; it is also written C#min7, C#mi7, C#-7.
C# Minor seventh and Db Minor seventh are the same sound spelled two ways; both have a page here, and each links to the other. Db Minor seventh
How it is built
On C# it is C# · E · G# · B, stacking 1P · 3m · 5P · 7m. Both added intervals are minor, which keeps the chord dark but soft — there is no tritone inside it, so it carries no obligation to move.
How it is used
It is the ii of a major key and therefore the opening chord of the ii–V–I, the single most common progression in jazz. It is also the i of a modal minor vamp, where its lack of tension is exactly what lets a groove sit still for eight bars.
Soul, R&B and neo-soul lean on it for the same reason: it is rich enough to be interesting and stable enough to loop.
Learn this properly
Chapter 10: Chords: Triads and SeventhsCommon questions
- What notes are in C#m7?
- C#m7 contains C# · E · G# · B. Name any set of notes with the chord identifier.
- What is the difference between m7 and m/maj7?
- The seventh. A minor seventh chord uses a minor seventh; a minor-major seventh raises it to a major seventh, which makes the chord far more tense.
- Where is a minor seventh chord used?
- As the ii of a ii–V–I, as the tonic of a modal minor vamp, and throughout soul and R&B where its stability suits looping.
- What notes are in the C# Minor seventh chord?
- The C# Minor seventh chord contains the notes C# · E · G# · B: the root C# with the intervals 1P, 3m, 5P, 7m stacked above it. Play them together for the chord or one after another for an arpeggio. The lowest note is normally C#, but any chord tone can take the bass in an inversion.
- What intervals make up the C# Minor seventh chord?
- Measured from C#, the C# Minor seventh chord stacks the intervals 1P, 3m, 5P, 7m. The quality of the third and of the seventh, if there is one, is what gives the chord its character; the rest of the notes colour it. Every interval in the formula links to its own page, with its sound.