F#m7 F# minor seventh chord
- Notes
- F# A C# E
- Formula
- 1 b3 5 b7
- Semitones
- 0 3 7 10 above the root
- Also written
- Gbm7 (Gb Bbb Db Fb)
- Other symbols
- F#min7, F#−7
F# to A is a minor third (3 semitones), A to C# is a major third (4 semitones), C# to E is a minor third (3 semitones). A minor triad plus a minor seventh (E). With A in the bass the same four notes are read as A6.
F#m7 on the piano
Root position from F#4: F#4, A4, C#5, E5. Middle C is C4.
F#m7 on the guitar
Standard tuning (E A D G B E). Strings run low E on the left to high e on the right, frets downwards; × is a muted string, ○ an open string, and each dot shows the note it sounds, with the root in blue-green. Every shape below has F# as its lowest note.
2 4 2 2 2 2 (low E to high e)
Sounds F#2 C#3 E3 A3 C#4 F#4
x 9 11 9 10 9 (low E to high e)
Sounds F#3 C#4 E4 A4 C#5
The E-shape and A-shape grips are movable: an E-shape chord's root is the note under your first finger on the low E string, an A-shape chord's root is the note on the A string. Slide the same grip up or down to play minor seventh chords on other roots.
F#m7 on the ukulele
Standard ukulele tuning is G C E A, drawn with the G string on the left and frets downwards, as ukulele chord charts show it. The G string is tuned higher than the C string (G4 above middle C, a fifth over C4), so the lowest note you hear is usually on the C or E string, not on the G string, and a shape can sound as an inversion even when its root is on the G string. All four strings are strummed, so every string plays a chord tone; the root is in blue-green.
2424 (G C E A)
Sounds A4 E4 F#4 C#5
Lowest note E4, so the chord finder reads it as F#m7/E (third inversion).
6600 (G C E A)
Sounds C#5 F#4 E4 A4
Lowest note E4, so the chord finder reads it as F#m7/E (third inversion).
Inversions of F#m7
An inversion puts a note other than the root in the bass. The name is what semicord's chord finder calls those notes played bottom to top; a slash name like C/E means a C chord with E in the bass.
| Position | Notes, bass first | Named | Listen |
|---|---|---|---|
| Root position | F# A C# E | F#m7 | |
| 1st inversion | A C# E F# | A6 (also read as F#m7/A) | |
| 2nd inversion | C# E F# A | F#m7/C# | |
| 3rd inversion | E F# A C# | F#m7/E |
Where F#m7 fits
F#m7 is ii7 in E major, iii7 in D major, vi7 in A major. As ii7 it is the first chord of the ii–V–I that ends countless jazz and pop phrases: F#m7 → B7 → Emaj7.