1,008 guitar chords with several shapes each, finger numbers, difficulty and real sound, in any tuning.
A♭maj7 (also written G♯maj7) is a major seventh chord made of 4 notes: A♭, C, E♭, G. It sounds dreamy, warm and a little wistful, and you hear it in ballads, bossa nova, neo-soul and lo-fi. It is the I chord of A♭ major and turns up in 3 other keys.
The library above opens on A♭maj7 with 14 shapes up and down the neck, starting with hand-checked ones. Tap a shape to hear it, or play it one string at a time.
| Note | Degree | Interval from A♭ | Semitones |
|---|---|---|---|
| A♭ | 1 | root | 0 |
| C | 3 | major third | 4 |
| E♭ | 5 | perfect fifth | 7 |
| G | 7 | major seventh | 11 |
Formula: 1 – 3 – 5 – 7. On guitar the 5th is often left out of the bigger shapes without changing the chord. With the other spelling, G♯maj7 is G♯, B♯, D♯, F𝄪: the same sounds under different names.
4x554xx(11)(13)(12)(13)(11)4310xx43x04xxxx113435xxxThe fret 11 shape is the one to learn first. Once it is easy, try the shape at the 11th fret (x(11)(13)(12)(13)(11)): the same chord, higher and brighter, handy when the chords before and after it sit up the neck.
A♭maj7 belongs to 4 keys: IV in E♭ major, I in A♭ major, VI in C minor, III in F minor. In A♭ major, try I–V–vi–IV: A♭maj7 – E♭ – Fm – D♭.
A♭, C, E♭, G: the root, major third, fifth, major seventh.
Fret 11: x(11)(13)0(13)x (low string first), rated Beginner.
A♭maj7 has G where A♭7 has G♭. A♭maj7 sounds dreamy, warm and a little wistful; A♭7 sounds restless; it wants to move on, usually to the chord a fifth below.
No. The easiest shape is rated Beginner and needs 3 fingers.