Arpeggio
C maj7
Major
- Formula
- 1 3 5 7
- Notes
- C E G B
Notation
Fretboard — frets 0–24
Degrees
| Degree | Note | Interval | Semitones | Role |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | C | perfect unison | 0 | The root — the tonal centre every other note is heard against; land on it and the sound resolves. |
| 3 | E | major third | 4 | The major third — the bright note that makes a quality major; it defines the chord's colour and pulls gently toward the root. |
| 5 | G | perfect fifth | 7 | The perfect fifth — the root's strongest companion; it anchors every triad and stacked-seventh quality. |
| 7 | B | major seventh | 11 | The major seventh — the leading tone a half-step under the root; in maj7 it glows, in harmonic minor it sharpens the pull home. |
About this arpeggio
The major seventh chord adds a major seventh to the major triad, placing a leading tone a half-step below the root. That close interval is the whole personality of the sound: glowing and wistful in ballads, cool and glassy in bossa nova, slightly aching when the melody lingers on it. The third and the seventh form a wide major-seventh span that wants to rise to the root, so the chord feels like an arrival rather than a question. It is the tonic quality of the major scale's first degree and the target of countless ii–V–I cadences. Listen for the friction between the seventh and the root when both are sounding.
How to practise this arpeggio
- Hold the seventh against the root and listen for the half-step friction.
- Resolve the seventh up to the root and feel the chord land.
- Play it as the final chord of a ii–V–I and let the seventh ring.
- Arpeggiate it from the third instead of the root to hear a different shape.