D Dominant 7th

Fretboard

About

The D7 dominant seventh (D–F♯–A–C) is the primary tension-bearing chord in tonal harmony. Its pull toward resolution comes from the tritone between F♯ and C — these two notes want to resolve inward, landing in the V–I cadence on G. The 3rd and ♭7 are essential: they form the tritone, and they distinguish a dominant 7 from a Dm7. The fifth can be freely omitted without weakening the harmonic function. On guitar, shell voicings (1–3–♭7) are common in jazz; full voicings appear in blues and rhythm playing. Compared to DMaj7, dominant 7 is harmonically active and directional — it is a chord that moves.

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