Piano Chord Library
Build D minor seventh
Start with D, then find the third, fifth and seventh. Dm7 contains D, F, A and C. Its formula is 1 · ♭3 · 5 · ♭7, measured against a major scale on the same root. A seventh chord has four different notes, not seven.
Keep similar symbols separate
Dm7 is D–F–A–C. D7 raises F to F-sharp, while Dmaj7 raises both F and C to F-sharp and C-sharp. The m describes the minor triad; the plain 7 supplies the minor seventh.
Try a controlled listening comparison
Begin with D–F–A, then add C above A. Rotate the notes into F–A–C–D, A–C–D–F and C–D–F–A. The last position has C in the bass; D remains the root even though it is no longer the bottom note.
Use the chord in an original practice move
Try Dm7 → G7 → Cmaj7 using D–F–A–C, D–F–G–B, then C–E–G–B. D and F stay between the first two chords; G and B stay between the last two. Move slowly enough to hear those common tones rather than jumping to three unrelated hand shapes.
Sound the notes separately before playing them together. Split a wide shape between two hands or choose a closer position; the reference does not require a fixed fingering. Stop if a stretch is uncomfortable. Playback is synthesized and begins only when you press Play.
Check your result
- Say the four note names before pressing the keys.
- Identify the lowest note and match it to the table.
- Listen once together, then one note at a time. An inversion should keep the same four pitch classes.
Start with the D minor triad · Explore every root and seventh quality
Chord terminology checked against Music Theory for the 21st-Century Classroom: seventh chords. Diagrams and practice sequences are original.