The seventh is the top note of your chord before it reaches the octave. If it touches the top of the octave, meet the martini chord. Not to be confused with this chord, which is a pint of beer, the martini chord is a major seventh, and you can recognize it because it is filled up all the way to the top.
The major seventh creates a distinctive rub at the top of the chord, unlike what we hear with the flatted seventh. And while both can sound a little dissonant, the extra cushioning is like a head of foam. The seventh of a chord is like the top floor, and it can be described as either major or minor, regardless of whether the chord quality is major or minor.
A major chord with a flatted seventh is also just called a seventh chord, or a dominant chord. But the martini chord, the major seventh, is more commonly seen in a chord with major quality. But don’t be surprised if you find one with a minor chord, and unsurprisingly, this is called a minor major seventh chord.
Or in Beat Kitchen Speak, the martini chord. Learn it, and share it with someone who belongs in a Beat Kitchen class.
