Chords
F# Minor seventh
F# · A · C# · E
The minor seventh chord — a minor triad with a minor seventh. The most useful chord in jazz and soul.
Also written F#min7 · F#mi7 · F#-7
F# Minor seventh
F# · A · C# · E
Voicings on the piano
| Voicing | Notes | Play it on your instrument |
|---|---|---|
| Closed, root position | F#3 · A3 · C#4 · E4 | |
| Open (drop 2) | C#3 · F#3 · A3 · E4 | |
| Shell | F#3 · A3 · E4 | |
| Rootless | A3 · C#4 · E4 · G#4 |
Tap a key or a fret to hear it.
Anatomy
F# Minor seventh (F#m7) contains the notes F# · A · C# · E, each with a role measured as an interval from the root.
Read on: how triads are built · seventh chords
Inversions
An inversion of F# Minor seventh puts a chord tone other than F# in the bass; the name after the slash is that bass note.
Where it lives
The keys and the scales F# Minor seventh belongs to.
In which keys
F# Minor seventh is diatonic to 6 keys; the numeral is its degree and the label its harmonic function.
Scales that contain it
F# Minor seventh fits inside these scales, each built on F#.
- F# Minor PentatonicF# · A · B · C# · E
- F# Minor BluesF# · A · B · C · C# · E
- F# MinorF# · G# · A · B · C# · D · E
- F# DorianF# · G# · A · B · C# · D# · E
- F# PhrygianF# · G · A · B · C# · D · E
- F# Half-Whole DiminishedF# · G · A · A# · B# · C# · D# · E
- F# Dorian b2F# · G · A · B · C# · D# · E
- F# Dorian #4F# · G# · A · B# · C# · D# · E
Understanding the F# Minor seventh chord
Names and symbols
F#m7 is the chord symbol for F# Minor seventh; it is also written F#min7, F#mi7, F#-7.
How it is built
On F# it is F# · A · C# · E, 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 F#m7?
- F#m7 contains F# · A · C# · E. 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 F# Minor seventh chord?
- The F# Minor seventh chord contains the notes F# · A · C# · E: the root F# 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 F#, but any chord tone can take the bass in an inversion.
- What intervals make up the F# Minor seventh chord?
- Measured from F#, the F# 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.