Major seventh
Encyclopedia
In classical music
from Western culture
, a seventh is a musical interval encompassing seven staff positions (see Interval (music)#Number for more details), and the major seventh is one of two commonly occurring sevenths. It is qualified as major because it is the larger of the two. The major seventh spans eleven semitones, its smaller counterpart being the minor seventh
, spanning ten semitones. For example, the interval from C to B is a major seventh, as the note B lies eleven semitones above C, and there are seven staff positions from C to B. Diminished
and augmented seventh
s span the same number of staff positions, but consist of a different number of semitones (nine and twelve).
The easiest way to locate and identify the major seventh is from the octave rather than the unison, and it is suggested that one sings the octave first. For example, the most commonly cited example of a melody featuring a major seventh is the tonic-octave-major seventh of the opening to "(Somewhere) Over the Rainbow
". "Not many songwriters begin a melody with a major seventh interval; perhaps that's why there are few memorable examples."
The major seventh occurs most commonly built on the root of major triads, resulting in the chord type also known as major seventh chord
or major-major seventh chord: including I7 and IV7 in major. "Major seven chords add jazziness to a musical passage. Alone, a major seventh interval can sound ugly."
A major seventh in just intonation
most often corresponds to a pitch ratio of 15:8 ; in 12-tone equal temperament
, a major seventh is equal to eleven semitone
s, or 1100 cents, about 12 cents wider than the 15:8 major seventh. In 24-tone equal temperament
a supermajor seventh, semiaugmented seventh or, semidiminished octave, 23 quarter-tones, is 1150 cents . The small major seventh is a ratio of 9:5, now identified as a just minor seventh
. 35:18, or 1151.23 cents, is the ratio of the septimal semi-diminished octave.
The major seventh interval is considered one of the most dissonant
intervals after its inversion the minor second
. For this reason, its melodic use is infrequent in classical music. One piece that makes use of the major seventh is "The Hut on Fowl's Legs" from Mussorgsky's
Pictures at an Exhibition
; another is the closing duet from Aida
, "O terra addio."
Under equal temperament this interval is enharmonic
ally equivalent to a diminished octave
(which has a similar musical use to the augmented unison
).
The major seventh chord is however very common in jazz, especially 'cool' jazz, and has a characteristically soft and sweet sound: think of the final chord in The Girl from Ipanema
. The major seventh chord consists of the first, third, fifth and seventh degrees (notes) of the major scale. In the key of C, it comprises the notes C E G and B.
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
from Western culture
Western culture
Western culture, sometimes equated with Western civilization or European civilization, refers to cultures of European origin and is used very broadly to refer to a heritage of social norms, ethical values, traditional customs, religious beliefs, political systems, and specific artifacts and...
, a seventh is a musical interval encompassing seven staff positions (see Interval (music)#Number for more details), and the major seventh is one of two commonly occurring sevenths. It is qualified as major because it is the larger of the two. The major seventh spans eleven semitones, its smaller counterpart being the minor seventh
Minor seventh
In classical music from Western culture, a seventh is a musical interval encompassing seven staff positions , and the minor seventh is one of two commonly occurring sevenths. The minor quality specification identifies it as being the smallest of the two: the minor seventh spans ten semitones, the...
, spanning ten semitones. For example, the interval from C to B is a major seventh, as the note B lies eleven semitones above C, and there are seven staff positions from C to B. Diminished
Diminished seventh
In classical music from Western culture, a diminished seventh is an interval produced by narrowing a minor seventh by a chromatic semitone. For instance, the interval from A to G is a minor seventh, ten semitones wide, and both the intervals from A to G, and from A to G are diminished sevenths,...
and augmented seventh
Augmented seventh
In classical music from Western culture, an augmented seventh is an interval produced by widening a major seventh by a chromatic semitone. For instance, the interval from C to B is a major seventh, eleven semitones wide, and both the intervals from C to B, and from C to B are augmented sevenths,...
s span the same number of staff positions, but consist of a different number of semitones (nine and twelve).
The easiest way to locate and identify the major seventh is from the octave rather than the unison, and it is suggested that one sings the octave first. For example, the most commonly cited example of a melody featuring a major seventh is the tonic-octave-major seventh of the opening to "(Somewhere) Over the Rainbow
Over the Rainbow
"Over the Rainbow" is a classic Academy Award-winning ballad song with music by Harold Arlen and lyrics by E.Y. Harburg. It was written for the movie The Wizard of Oz, and was sung by Judy Garland in the movie...
". "Not many songwriters begin a melody with a major seventh interval; perhaps that's why there are few memorable examples."
The major seventh occurs most commonly built on the root of major triads, resulting in the chord type also known as major seventh chord
Major seventh chord
In music, a major seventh chord is any nondominant seventh chord where the "third" note is a major third above the root.Most typically, major seventh chord refers to where the "seventh" note is a major seventh above the root . This is more precisely known as the major/major seventh chord, and it...
or major-major seventh chord: including I7 and IV7 in major. "Major seven chords add jazziness to a musical passage. Alone, a major seventh interval can sound ugly."
A major seventh in just intonation
Just intonation
In music, just intonation is any musical tuning in which the frequencies of notes are related by ratios of small whole numbers. Any interval tuned in this way is called a just interval. The two notes in any just interval are members of the same harmonic series...
most often corresponds to a pitch ratio of 15:8 ; in 12-tone equal temperament
Equal temperament
An equal temperament is a musical temperament, or a system of tuning, in which every pair of adjacent notes has an identical frequency ratio. As pitch is perceived roughly as the logarithm of frequency, this means that the perceived "distance" from every note to its nearest neighbor is the same for...
, a major seventh is equal to eleven semitone
Semitone
A semitone, also called a half step or a half tone, is the smallest musical interval commonly used in Western tonal music, and it is considered the most dissonant when sounded harmonically....
s, or 1100 cents, about 12 cents wider than the 15:8 major seventh. In 24-tone equal temperament
Quarter tone
A quarter tone , is a pitch halfway between the usual notes of a chromatic scale, an interval about half as wide as a semitone, which is half a whole tone....
a supermajor seventh, semiaugmented seventh or, semidiminished octave, 23 quarter-tones, is 1150 cents . The small major seventh is a ratio of 9:5, now identified as a just minor seventh
Minor seventh
In classical music from Western culture, a seventh is a musical interval encompassing seven staff positions , and the minor seventh is one of two commonly occurring sevenths. The minor quality specification identifies it as being the smallest of the two: the minor seventh spans ten semitones, the...
. 35:18, or 1151.23 cents, is the ratio of the septimal semi-diminished octave.
The major seventh interval is considered one of the most dissonant
Consonance and dissonance
In music, a consonance is a harmony, chord, or interval considered stable, as opposed to a dissonance , which is considered to be unstable...
intervals after its inversion the minor second
Minor second
In modern Western tonal music theory a minor second is the interval between two notes on adjacent staff positions, or having adjacent note letters, whose alterations cause them to be one semitone or half-step apart, such as B and C or C and D....
. For this reason, its melodic use is infrequent in classical music. One piece that makes use of the major seventh is "The Hut on Fowl's Legs" from Mussorgsky's
Modest Mussorgsky
Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky was a Russian composer, one of the group known as 'The Five'. He was an innovator of Russian music in the romantic period...
Pictures at an Exhibition
Pictures at an Exhibition
Pictures at an Exhibition is a suite in ten movements composed for piano by Russian composer Modest Mussorgsky in 1874.The suite is Mussorgsky's most famous piano composition, and has become a showpiece for virtuoso pianists...
; another is the closing duet from Aida
Aida
Aida sometimes spelled Aïda, is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni, based on a scenario written by French Egyptologist Auguste Mariette...
, "O terra addio."
Under equal temperament this interval is enharmonic
Enharmonic
In modern musical notation and tuning, an enharmonic equivalent is a note , interval , or key signature which is equivalent to some other note, interval, or key signature, but "spelled", or named, differently...
ally equivalent to a diminished octave
Diminished octave
In classical music from Western culture, a diminished octave is an interval produced by narrowing a perfect octave by a chromatic semitone. As such, the two notes are denoted by the same letter but have different accidentals...
(which has a similar musical use to the augmented unison
Augmented unison
In modern Western tonal music theory an augmented unison is the interval between two notes on the same staff position, or having the same note letter, whose alterations cause them, in ordinary equal temperament, to be one semitone apart. In other words, it is a unison where one note has been raised...
).
The major seventh chord is however very common in jazz, especially 'cool' jazz, and has a characteristically soft and sweet sound: think of the final chord in The Girl from Ipanema
The Girl from Ipanema
"Garota de Ipanema" is a well-known bossa nova song, a worldwide hit in the mid-1960s that won a Grammy for Record of the Year in 1965. It was written in 1962, with music by Antonio Carlos Jobim and Portuguese lyrics by Vinicius de Moraes. English lyrics were written later by Norman Gimbel.The...
. The major seventh chord consists of the first, third, fifth and seventh degrees (notes) of the major scale. In the key of C, it comprises the notes C E G and B.
See also
- List of meantone intervals
- Major seventh chordMajor seventh chordIn music, a major seventh chord is any nondominant seventh chord where the "third" note is a major third above the root.Most typically, major seventh chord refers to where the "seventh" note is a major seventh above the root . This is more precisely known as the major/major seventh chord, and it...
- Minor seventhMinor seventhIn classical music from Western culture, a seventh is a musical interval encompassing seven staff positions , and the minor seventh is one of two commonly occurring sevenths. The minor quality specification identifies it as being the smallest of the two: the minor seventh spans ten semitones, the...
- Musical tuningMusical tuningIn music, there are two common meanings for tuning:* Tuning practice, the act of tuning an instrument or voice.* Tuning systems, the various systems of pitches used to tune an instrument, and their theoretical bases.-Tuning practice:...