Augmented seventh chord explained

Chord Name:	augmented seventh chord
First Interval:	root
Second Interval:	major third
Third Interval:	augmented fifth
Fourth Interval:	minor seventh
Tuning:	80:100:125:144
Forte Number:	4-24
Complement:	8-24

The augmented seventh chord, or seventh augmented fifth chord,^[1] or seventh sharp five chord is a seventh chord composed of a root, major third, augmented fifth, and minor seventh (1, 3, 5, 7).^[2] It can be viewed as an augmented triad with a minor seventh.^[3] When using popular-music symbols, it is denoted by +⁷, aug⁷,^[2] or ⁷⁵. For example, the augmented seventh chord built on A, written as A+⁷, has pitches A-C-E-G:

The chord can be represented by the integer notation .

Use

The root is the only optional note in an augmented seventh chord, the fifth being required because it is raised.^[4] This alteration is useful in the major mode because the raised 5th creates a leading tone to the 3rd of the tonic triad. See also dominant.

In rock parlance, the term augmented seventh chord is sometimes confusingly and erroneously used to refer to the so-called "Hendrix chord", a 79 chord which contains the interval of an augmented ninth but not an augmented fifth.^[5] The augmented minor seventh chord may be considered an altered dominant seventh and may use the whole tone scale, as may the dominant seventh flat five chord.^[6] See chord-scale system.

The augmented seventh chord normally resolves to the chord a perfect fifth below.^[7] Thus, G aug⁷ resolves to a C major or minor chord, for example.

Augmented seventh chord table

Chord	Root	Major third	Augmented fifth	Minor seventh
Caug^7	C	E	G	B
Caug^7	C	E (F)	G (A)	B
Daug^7	D	F	A	C (B)
Daug^7	D	F	A	C
Daug^7	D	F (G)	A (B)	C
Eaug^7	E	G	B	D
Eaug^7	E	G	B (C)	D
Faug^7	F	A	C	E
Faug^7	F	A	C (D)	E
Gaug^7	G	B	D	F (E)
Gaug^7	G	B	D	F
Gaug^7	G	B (C)	D (E)	F
Aaug^7	A	C	E	G
Aaug^7	A	C	E (F)	G
Aaug^7	A	C (D)	E (F)	G
Baug^7	B	D	F	A
Baug^7	B	D	F (G)	A

See also

• Augmentation (music)

Notes and References

1. Kroepel, Bob (1993). Mel Bay Creative Keyboard's Deluxe Encyclopedia of Piano Chords: A Complete Study of Chords and How to Use Them, p. 15. .
2. Garner, Robert (2007). Mel Bay Presents Essential Music Theory for Electric Bass, p. 69. .
3. Book: Kostka. Stefan. Stefan Kostka. Payne. Dorothy. The Dominant with a Raised 5th. 2004. Tonal Harmony with an Introduction to Twentieth-Century Music. 6th. 446–447. New York. 978-0-07-332713-6.
4. Latarski, Don (1991). An Introduction to Chord Theory, p. 29. .
5. http://www.spectator.co.uk/the-magazine/arts/365466/shiver-down-the-backbone.thtml Radio: "Shiver down the backbone – Jimi Hendrix comes to Radio 3"
6. Berle, Annie (1996). Contemporary Theory and Harmony, p. 100. .
7. Bay, William (1994). Mel Bay Complete Jazz Sax Book, p. 64. .