Julie Swihart

Minor Seventh Chords

Let’s look at how to play an Am7 chord on the piano. We’ll also learn the pattern for building any minor seventh chord.

What Are Minor Seventh Chords?

Minor seventh chords are minor chords with an added note. The added note is the seventh note of the matching major scale, lowered 1/2 step.

So to build a minor seventh chord, we’ll start by building a minor chord. Minor chords are built using the first, third and fifth notes of the matching minor scale (learn how to build a minor scale here).

Another way to build a minor chord is to build the matching major chord, and then lower the middle note 1/2 step.

To convert the minor chord into a minor seventh chord, we’ll find the seventh note of the matching major scale and lower it 1/2 step.

Chord Types Printable

Learn to play 17 types of piano chords using 12 different root notes with this 34-page PDF! Chords are sorted both by their root note (C, D, E, etc.) and type (major, minor, augmented, diminished, etc.).

Get the Printable

How to Play an Am7 Chord

Now let’s build an Am7 chord on the piano. We’ll start by building an Am chord using the first, third and fifth notes of the A minor scale: A – C – E

Then we’ll find the seventh note of the A major scale and lower it 1/2 step: G

So to play an Am7 chord, we’ll play:

A – C – E – G

You can use this pattern to build any minor seventh chord. First build a minor chord, then find the seventh note of the matching major scale and lower it 1/2 step.

Other Chord Types

There are many other chord types you can learn. Here are some others:

Major
Minor
Augmented
Diminished
Second
Minor Second
Suspended
Fifth
Sixth
Minor Sixth
Seventh
Major Seventh
Ninth
Minor Ninth
Major Ninth

Conclusion

Now you know how to build an Am7 chord on the piano, and you can use that pattern to build any minor seventh chord.

Using patterns to build chords is a wonderful way to learn the piano!