What is a Dominant 7th Chord?
The dominant 7th chord is the most common type of seventh chord you will encounter in music. It is used extensively in every style Classical, blues, jazz, rock, R&B, funk you name it. If you’ve studied the major 7th chord pattern, the dominant 7th is different by only one note the 7th. The dominant 7th chord uses a flatted 7th; that is, it uses a 7th which is a half-step lower than the 7th used in the major 7th chord. It is a major triad with the addition of a flatted 7th. You should recognize this as the same 7th we used in the root-5th-flat 7th pattern in the common bass patterns category.
