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D major 7 chord

D major 7 Major 7 family

Soft, dreamy, a bit wistful.

Easiest shape1 of 2

Square: the root. In colour: the major 7th, which gives the chord its sound.

Change a finger and see what it becomes

Built from

Droot
F♯major 3rd
A5th
C♯major 7th

The major 7th sits one fret below the root an octave up, a gentle clash that sounds lush rather than tense.

Tension: Gentle

Hear it in a progression

Smooth turnaround
Jazz and neo-soul, endlessly loopable. In D major.
Capo and transpose
Dreamy two-chord
Floating back and forth, no hurry. In D major.
Capo and transpose

Where it goes next

Thinking in D major, where it is the Imaj7 chord.

Gmaj7
IVmaj7. Lifts away from home without leaving it.
A7
V7. Builds tension that wants to come back.
Bm7
vi7. Same key, sadder colour: the relative minor.
Em7
ii7. A gentle step up that sets up the V chord.

Sounds close

Bm7
Relative minor 7: same notes but one. Both have D, F♯ and A.
F♯m7
Shares 3 of its notes. Both have F♯, A and C♯.
F♯m
Shares 3 of its notes. Both have F♯, A and C♯.
F♯
Shares 2 of its notes. Both have F♯ and C♯.

Scales that fit

Notes you can play over this chord, simplest first.

Keys it lives in