C#m7 Chord
The C#m7 chord contains C sharp, E, G sharp, B. Start with the C sharp minor triad, then add B as a minor seventh. The four notes make a useful bridge into a longer progression: in B major, C#m7 can lead to F#7 and then Bmaj7.
- Notes: C sharp-E-G sharp-B
- Formula: 1-flat 3-5-flat 7
- ii7 in B major
What notes are in C#m7?
The minor triad is C sharp-E-G sharp. Add B a minor seventh above C sharp to get C sharp-E-G sharp-B. The formula is 1-flat 3-5-flat 7: a minor third and a minor seventh around an unchanged perfect fifth. The flats in this formula refer to scale-degree distances. They do not require a flat sign in every chord spelling.
C sharp and G sharp are black keys, while E and B are white. E natural is the minor third even though it has no flat sign.
How can you play its inversions?
Keep all four note names and lift the lowest note by an octave to get each new position:
- Root position: C sharp-E-G sharp-B, C sharp lowest.
- First inversion: E-G sharp-B-C sharp, E lowest.
- Second inversion: G sharp-B-C sharp-E, G sharp lowest.
- Third inversion: B-C sharp-E-G sharp, B lowest.
The letter after the slash in a chord symbol tells a player which note belongs in the bass, if a particular bass is required. A bass instrument can change the overall lowest note while the keyboard hand keeps the same shape. Read Chord Inversions for that distinction.
Where does C#m7 fit in B major?
It is the ii7 chord in B major. Play C#m7-F#7-Bmaj7 slowly and listen to how the middle chord makes the last chord feel like an arrival. You can play the same notes of C#m7 in other keys or styles; the ii label applies only when B is the tonal center. The chord notes alone do not tell you which key a whole song is in.
How is C#m7 different from C#7?
Keep C sharp, G sharp and B; raise only the minor third E by one semitone to E sharp. That creates C#7, a dominant-seventh chord. Play both at the same volume and listen to the changed third before deciding which feels more tense. The two symbols are easy to confuse in print: the m in C#m7 changes the triad, while a plain 7 leaves the triad major. Minor Seventh Chord shows the formula across other roots.
One-minute practice
Play the minor triad, add B, then remove it again. Sing that changing note while the other three keys stay down. Next, play the progression C#m7-F#7-Bmaj7 with the chord roots in your left hand and compact right-hand shapes. Slow, audible changes teach you more than repeating the names from memory.