How To Play The A7 Open Chord

The A7 chord is almost like playing an open A chord. The only difference is that you’ll play the G string open instead of fretting the G string at the 2nd fret as done when playing an open A chord. When fretting an open A chord, you’ll usually use your 1st finger to fret that 2nd fret on the G string. So, to play an A7, you’ll simply lift up your 1dy finger and let the G string ring out.

Where To Use The A7 Open Chord

Dominant 7th chords are called “dominant” because they are a common substitution for the dominant chord in a song. The dominant chord being the 5th of the tonic or V.

A dominant 7th chord creates a little tension and they sound like they want to resolve to the tonic chord creating a V-I progression.

In the key of D, the A major chord is the V chord. Try playing A7 and then go to a D chord. Can you hear how it resolves?

A7 Video Lesson

Watch the video for a breakdown of how to play the A7 chord.