Originally Posted By: Bass Thumper
... construct the tables but they don't show the 3 essential notes.
For example CMajor7 is shown as C-E-G-B. What are the 3 essential notes? I'm guessing C-E-B..

OK, now this changes the question. For a bass player, I would think the three most essential notes of a chord are the root, fifth, and seventh. To look at this another way, a keyboard player or guitarist might choose not to play the root or fifth, thinking the bass has it covered, but they will most certainly play the third to establish whether the chord is major or minor. As the seventh is either major or dominant (minor), that is a nice tone for the bass to hit once in a while. The upper extensions, like 9th, 11ths, 13ths, or flatted versions of same, are usually not played by the bass. Does that help?


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