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Hey folks!
Hope you’re all doing well! Rodrigo here again and this is the continuation of my article on Drop-2 chords. If this is your first time reading this blog, I strongly recommend that you start reading it from the first article “Simple Intervals” and follow the chronological order all the way here. I have been posting all of them in the way I believe it’s the most efficient and practical way to learn music theory.
Simples Intervals -> Compound Intervals -> Triads -> Drop-2 Chords -> Drop-3 Chords -> Shell Chords & Extensions -> Triads & Extensions -> Chord Melody -> Guitar Arpeggios -> Guitar Scales -> Major Keys -> Minor Keys -> Harmonic Minor Keys -> Melodic Minor Keys -> Greek Modes -> Chord Progressions
In this article, we’ll be working on Drop-3 chords and the procedure is exactly the same as we applied to the Drop-2 ones, the only difference is that we are going to drop the third highest note one octave down instead of the second. The whole theory behind this process is exactly the same as the Drop-2 and that’s the reason most of the following text is repeated from the previous article. I still recommend that you read it all the way through to the end and carefully because all the information was adapted to the new format, and some of them might be slightly different.
WHAT ARE 7TH-CHORDS?
7th-chords are the same triads we have worked on, but now with an extra chord tone added to them, the “seventh”. Remember, chord tones are the notes we use in the formation of chords, so generally speaking, the root, the third, the fifth, and the seventh are chord tones. Any extra notes added to the chords such as: add9, add13, add11, are considered tensions, although there might be a few exceptions and we are going to see some of them by the end of this article. If you take a look at the table of simple intervals from the first article, you’ll see that we have three different types of seventh intervals: the major seventh, the minor seventh, and the diminished seventh, and by combining them to the different triads, we will get 13 different 7th-chords: major 7th, minor 7th, dominant 7th, half-diminished, diminished 7th, minor major 7th, dominant seventh suspended 4th, major 7th (#5), major 7th (b5), dominant 7th (#5), dominant 7th (b5), major 6th, and minor 6th.
4-WAY CLOSE CHORDS
4-way close chords are ones where all the chord tones are placed within the range of one octave. Before showing you a 4-way close chord on the fretboard, let’s break down the Cmaj7 chord to use it as an example. The Cmaj7 chord is a major triad with a major seventh interval above the root, or it could be described as Root 3, 5, 7 with C as the root, E as the major third, G as the perfect 5th, and B as the major seventh (if you don’t understand what these intervals mean, read the “Simple Intervals” article). The following two examples show how this chord can be played either on the higher set of strings or on the middle set of strings:
[Cmaj7 in 4-way close on the higher strings]
[Cmaj7 in 4-way close on the middle strings]
Of course, if you measure the distance between the lowest note C and the highest note B, we’ll have the maximum of a major seventh interval, which is less than one octave, so we consider them as being in the 4-way close format.
PROBLEMS WITH 4-WAY CLOSE CHORDS
The main problem with 4-way close chords is that their inversion can’t easily be played on any set of strings, not to mention that even the root-position would be quite challenging to be played on the lower set of strings:
[Cmaj7/E in 4-way close on the higher strings]
[Cmaj7/E in 4-way close on the middle strings]
[Cmaj7 in 4-way close on the lower strings]
These chords are commonly played on the piano, but given the limitations of our instrument, guitarists had to come up with new ways to reorganize these chords. Remember, if we speak in different ways or in different orders to play the same notes, we are speaking of voicings. Both 4-way close chords and Drop-3 chords are different voicings to play the same chords, and any of the following formats that we might end up studying here are considered voicings too: closed triads; open triads; 4-way close; Drop-2; Drop-3; Drop-2 & 3; Drop-2 & 4; double Drop-2 Drop-3; triad over bass note I; and triad over bass note II.
Before I explain to you what Drop-3 chords are, I wanted to show you how to find the inversions of any 4-way close chords. Since we already established that the chord tones of Cmaj7 are C, E, G, and B, I'm going to keep using the same chord as an example. As we learned in the "Triads" article, when the lowest note of a chord is the root itself, we say that the chord is in the root-position. Then, C, E, G, and B, played in this specific order is considered root-position and the chord should be written like "Cmaj7" (for the sake of all these articles, the first note of the left will always be the lowest one, and the last on the right will be the highest). Then, in order to find the first inversion, all we have to do is to move that C, all the way to the end, making it the highest note now. So, now we have E, G, B, and C, and the correct notation of this chord will be "Cmaj7/E". For the next two inversions, we just need to keep repeating the same process with the previous inversion. So, now that we have the first inversion E, G, B, C, all we have to do is to move that E all the way to the right. Then, we'll have the second inversion of the chord: G, B, C, E, and its correct notation is "Cmaj7/G". For the last inversion, we just repeat the same process, now take the second inversion configuration and move the first note on the left to the right. Then, for the 3rd-inversion we have B, C, E, G, and it's written like "Cmaj7/B". In case you're having problems with the concept of inversions, please read the "Triads" article. And if you feel like you got it right, keep these inversions in mind because they'll be needed to understand how to get to the Drop-3 chords.
WHAT ARE DROP-3 CHORDS?
A Drop-3 chord is formed by taking the third highest note of a 4-way close chord and dropping it one octave down. The following image shows the same Cmaj7 chord from the beginning of this article in the 4-way close voicing on the higher strings, and the second one shows the same chord dropping the third highest note, which in this case is E.
[Cmaj7 in 4-way close on the higher strings]
[Cmaj7 dropping the third highest note]
Notice that I didn’t call the second chord “Drop-3” yet, and that’s because the goal of playing Drop–3 is to find practical ways to play any of these chords and its inversions, making them very easily-moved chords. Then, those two top notes, G and B, will be transferred to the second and third strings respectively. Transferring the notes doesn’t mean that we are moving the notes one octave above or down because the pitches are still the same, but we’re just looking to relocate those note in order to find an easier way to play that chord.
[Cmaj7/E in Drop-3 on the lower strings]
In this case the E became the lowest note, so the correct way to name it is Cmaj7/E (read “Root-position vs. Inversions” from the “Triads” article).
Of course, as we become more proficient, we end up memorizing each chord’s shape and their inversions too. But here is a comparison of how 4-way close chord voicings become Drop-3 chords.
4-way close | | Drop-3 |
root position = C E G B | Drops the E and becomes | Cmaj7/E = E C G B |
1st-inversion = E G B C | Drops the G and becomes | Cmaj7/G = G E B C |
2nd-inversion = G B C E | Drops the B and becomes | Cmaj7/B = B G C E |
3rd-inversion = B C E G | Drops the C and becomes | Cmaj7 = C B E G |
All the Drop-3 voicings we found for the Cmaj7 chord are playable on any set of strings and will be very useful when we finally get to arrange melodies. Here are the chords played on the lower set:
[Cmaj7 in Drop-3 on the lower strings]
[Cmaj7/E in Drop-3 on the lower strings]
[Cmaj7/G in Drop-3 on the lower strings]
[Cmaj7/B in Drop-3 on the lower strings]
You might have noticed that the 7th-chords have one more inversion when compared to the triads, and the reason is very simple. Since we have one extra chord tone, it’ll generate new combinations of notes where that extra note will be the lowest one.
Also, there are only two possible sets of strings to play Drop-3 chords: the higher set and the lower set. Being the higher set the A, G, B, and e strings; and being the lower set E, D, G, B. The Drop-3 chords will have this format, the lowest note separated from the other three by skipping one string. While the Drop-2 chords, previously studied, will always be played in 4 adjacent strings.
Before continuing, try to apply the same process to all the other 11 major seventh chords (Dbmaj7, Dmaj7, Ebmaj7, Emaj7, Fmaj7, Gbmaj7, Gmaj7, Abmaj7, Amaj7, Bbmaj7, and Bmaj7). First, find all the notes belonging to the given chord, i.e., for the Fmaj7 chord, the root is F, the major third is A, the perfect fifth is C, and the major seventh is E. Second, write down all the 4-way close voicings for that chord. The root-position is literally their natural order from the root to the seventh:
F A C E = Fmaj7
To find the first inversion, just move the first note to the last position:
A C E F = Fmaj7/A
To find the second inversion, just move the first note to the last position one more time:
C E F A = Fmaj7/C
To find the third inversion, move the first note to the last position one last time:
E F A C = Fmaj7/E
Now that you have all the 4-ways close voicings for the Fmaj7 chord, apply the same process to find its Drop-3 voicings.
4-way close | | Drop-3 |
root-position = F A C E | Drops the A and becomes | Fmaj7/A = A F C E |
1st-inversion = A C E F | Drops the C and becomes | Fmaj7/C = C A E F |
2nd-inversion = C E F A | Drops the E and becomes | Fmaj7/E = E C F A |
3rd-inversion = E F A C | Drops the F and becomes | Fmaj7 = F E A C |
After you find all the new voicings, try to play them on the higher strings and the lower strings, always on the same format (lowest note separated from the other by skipping one string). When you feel comfortable with this concept, try to apply the same process to all the following 7th-chord types!
TABLE OF 7th-CHORDS
ALL TYPES OF 7TH-CHORDS IN DROP-3 CHORDS FORMAT
All the following examples will be given in the key of C and will always use the lower set of strings.
MAJOR 7th IN DROP-3
Root-position: C B E G [R 7 3 5]
1st-inversion: E C G B [3 R 5 7]
2nd-inversion: G E B C [5 3 7 R]
3rd-inversion: B G C E [7 5 R 3]
MINOR 7th IN DROP-3
Root-position: C Bb Eb G [R b7 b3 5]
1st-inversion: Eb C G Bb [b3 R 5 b7]
2nd-inversion: G Eb Bb C [5 b3 b7 R]
3rd-inversion: Bb G C Eb [b7 5 R b3]
DOMINANT 7th IN DROP-3
Root-position: C Bb E G [R b7 3 5]
1st-inversion: E C G Bb [3 R 5 b7]
2nd-inversion: G E Bb C [5 3 b7 R]
3rd-inversion: Bb G C E [b7 5 R 3]
HALF-DIMINISHED AKA MINOR 7th (b5) IN DROP-3
Root-position: C Bb Eb Gb [R b7 b3 b5]
1st-inversion: Eb C Gb Bb [b3 R b5 b7]
2nd-inversion: Gb Eb Bb C [b5 b3 b7 R]
3rd-inversion: Bb Gb C Eb [b7 b5 R b3]
DIMINISHED 7th IN DROP-3
Root-position: C Bbb Eb Gb [R bb7 b3 b5]
1st-inversion: Eb C Gb Bbb [b3 R b5 bb7]
2nd-inversion: Gb Eb Bbb C [b5 b3 bb7 R]
3rd-inversion: Bbb Gb C Eb [bb7 b5 R b3]
MINOR MAJOR 7th IN DROP-3
Root-position: C B Eb G [R 7 b3 5]
1st-inversion: Eb C G B [b3 R 5 7]
2nd-inversion: G Eb B C [5 b3 7 R]
3rd-inversion: B G C Eb [7 5 R b3]
7th SUSPENDED 4th IN DROP-3
Root-position: C Bb F G [R b7 4 5]
1st-inversion: F C G Bb [4 R 5 b7]
2nd-inversion: G F Bb C [5 4 b7 R]
3rd-inversion: Bb G C F [b7 5 R 4]
MAJOR 7th (#5) AKA AUGMENTED MAJOR 7th IN DROP-3
Root-position: C B E G# [R 7 3 #5]
1st-inversion: E C G# B [3 R #5 7]
2nd-inversion: G# E B C [#5 3 7 R]
3rd-inversion: B G# C E [7 #5 R 3]
MAJOR 7th (b5) IN DROP-3
Root-position: C B E Gb [R 7 3 b5]
1st-inversion: E C Gb B [3 R b5 7]
2nd-inversion: Gb E B C [b5 3 7 R]
3rd-inversion: B Gb C E [7 b5 R 3]
DOMINANT 7th (#5) AKA AUGMENTED DOMINANT IN DROP-3
Root-position: C Bb E G# [R b7 3 #5]
1st-inversion: E C G# Bb [3 R #5 b7]
2nd-inversion: G# E Bb C [#5 3 b7 R]
3rd-inversion: Bb G# C E [b7 #5 R 3]
DOMINANT 7th (b5) IN DROP-3
Root-position: C Bb E Gb [R b7 3 b5]
1st-inversion: E C Gb Bb [3 R b5 b7]
2nd-inversion: Gb E Bb C [b5 3 b7 R]
3rd-inversion: Bb Gb C E [b7 b5 R 3]
The major 6th and minor 6th chords are not usually taught as part of the 7th-chords. The truth is that major 6th chords are inversions of minor 7th chords, and the minor 6th chords are inversions of half-diminished chords. Check it out right now! i.e., C6 is the 1st-inversion of Am7, the same way that Cm6 is the 1st-inversion of Amin7(b5). However, I think it’s important to work on them separately, because they are used in different situations (i.e., major 6th chords are very often used as the last chord of a song).
MAJOR 6th IN DROP-3
Root-position: C B E A [R 6 3 5]
1st-inversion: E C A B [3 R 5 6]
2nd-inversion: G E A C [5 3 6 R]
3rd-inversion: A G C E [6 5 R 3]
MINOR 6th IN DROP-3
Root-position: C B Eb A [R 6 b3 5]
1st-inversion: Eb C A B [b3 R 5 6]
2nd-inversion: G Eb A C [5 b3 6 R]
3rd-inversion: A G C Eb [6 5 R b3]
HOW TO PRACTICE DROP-3 CHORDS?
The Drop-3 chords work in conjunction with the Drop-2 chords, triads, and 4-way close chords when arranging songs and comping for other musicians. Each one of them will fit a specific situation so it’s very important to have them well memorized, or “underneath our fingers” as we musicians say. I’m going to write not one, but many articles exclusively on how to arrange songs, so you’ll have the chance to see how to use all of them. My article on how to arrange song specifically with Drop-2 chords will be coming out in a few weeks, but meanwhile I’d like you to work on the Drop-3 and Drop-2 chords the same way we did with the triads in order to enhance your fluency with this type of voicing and ultimately be able to find them on any part of the fretboard.
1) Try to choose a different chord quality every day and ask yourself: Can I find the Cmin7 chord on the higher strings? On the lower strings? Can I play the minor seventh chord in all the 12 keys (C, Db, D, Eb, E, F, Gb, G, Ab, A, Bb, B)? How about the other 7th-chord types? All these exercises help you to develop fluency at your instrument.
2) Practice the 7th-chords horizontally. Choose any set of strings and try to find, let’s say, the C7 chord in the root-position, in the 1st- inversion, in the 2nd-inversion, and in the 3rd inversion. Play them back and forth for a few minutes and repeat the same exercise on a different set of strings.
[C7 in all positions of the higher set of strings]
3) Practice the 7th-chords vertically but establish a limit for yourself. For example, can you play the C7 chord and its inversions between the open strings (fret zero) and the eight fret? How about from the third fret to the twelfth? Of course, in this case you would have to change the set of strings for every position.
[C7 in all positions between the open string and the eight fret]
4) Even if you're not a beginner, I still think you can benefit from the previous exercises. You might not see a lot of applications for them now, but even just as exercises, they’ll help you a lot to visualize scales and arpeggios when soloing. The goal here is to become fluent at your fretboard and know where every single note is, and this is one of the most important exercises to achieve that type of proficiency. If you feel like taking this to the next level, you should look for Mick Goodrick’s books: Almanac of Guitar Voice-Leading vol. 1 and 2 and practice all the Cycles exercises in it (which will take years, by the way). I’m not going to discuss those books deeply now, but I’m planning on writing a whole article about them in the future.
5) Find different ways to play songs that you already know. The same chords can be found in other regions of your instrument, and you can create a much more interesting motion of the chords. There is no “correct” way to choose what voicings to play, any combinations that you find interesting are valid. At the end of the day, it’s your arrangement, your song, your voicings.
The following images show the Drop-3 chords applied to the four first measures of Autumn Leaves: (Cmin7 | F7 | Bbmaj7 | Ebmaj7).
[Four first measures of Autumn Leaves in drop-3 on the higher strings]
[Four first measures of Autumn Leaves in drop-3 on the lower strings]
HELP ME CREATE THE BEST GUITAR METHOD IN THE WORLD!
As a thank you for reading this far, I’m excited to introduce my latest release, Book of Chords. This book shows you how to take the chord concepts from this website (Triads, Drop-2 chords, Drop-3 chords, Shell Chords & Extensions, Triads & Extensions, Arranging Songs) and use them to create new voicings, arrange songs, build fresh lines for your solos, and expand your rhythmic vocabulary. The original price was $50, but I’ve lowered it to make it easier for more people to grab a copy.
All I ask in return is a little feedback. Let me know what you think—whether anything was tricky to understand, if there’s something I should add, or if you’ve got any other thoughts. I update my books all the time, and you’ll get every new version with everyone’s suggestions. Hopefully, one day this site will be a full platform for guitar theory courses with your help!
Shoot me your questions or thoughts at info@guitartheorylessons.com, and I’ll get back to you in a few days.
Digital Download
PDF Sheet Music + TAB (228 pages)
This book uses the Triads & Extensions topic to demonstrate all the exercises, but the concepts can be applied just as effectively to Triads, Drop-2, Drop-3, Shell Chords, Extensions, and even song arrangements.
What's Included?
Instructions
Appendix of Triads & Extensions
Harmonizing (Creating interesting voicings to comp and arrange)
Arpeggios Drills (Economic picking exercises + Creating new arpeggios using different voicings)
Chromatic Approaches (Bebop style technique)
Rhythmic Vocabulary
All types of triads with extensions in all 12 keys!
Triads included:
major triads
minor triads
major triads w/ dominant function
diminished triads
suspended 4th triads
augmented triads
Lydian triads
augmented triads w/ dominant function
Lydian triads w/ dominant function
Extensions included:
If you're looking for something simpler, you can find the Appendix of Drop-3 Chords in all 12 keys, plus other topics like Intervals, Drop-2 chords, Shell Chords & Extensions, Triads & Extensions, and Scales & Modes, in the STORE section or by clicking the link below:
All of these theory concepts are available for free on my blog to anyone interested in learning more about music. However, producing this content is time-consuming, so if you found this article helpful, please leave a comment and hit the like button at the bottom of this page! Thank you for everything!
All my best,
Rodrigo Moreira
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