Drop 2 and 4 Chords

If you’ve already got a handle on Drop 3 and Drop 2 Chords, then you are probably wondering where to go next in your quest to get new and cool jazz chords under your fingers. There are many options on the table, including the finger-stretching Closed Position Chords, but there is another, easier on your hands option, Drop 2 and 4 Chords. These chords are great because they cover a wide range of the instrument, but don’t require a large stretch from your fretting hand.

Drop 2 and 4 Chords are built by stacking four notes together, containing one string skip, with the following interval patterns:

• Root Position: R-5th-3rd-7th
• 1st Inversion: 3rd-7th-5th-Root
• 2nd Inversion: 5th-Root-7th-3rd
• 3rd Inversion: 7th-3rd-Root-5th

Notice how the 3rd and 7th, as well as the Root and 5th, are always next to each other in these voicings. This knowledge will help you memorize Drop 2 and 4 Chords, as well as understand the theory behind how they are built.

Feel free to use this page as a reference point for Drop 2 and 4 Chords, rather than memorize them all at once.

The following chord dictionary contains Drop 2 and 4 voicings for:

• Major 7
• Dominant 7
• Minor 7
• Half Diminished
• Diminished
• Minor Major 7

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Drop 2 and 4 Major 7

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Drop 2 and 4 Dominant 7

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Drop 2 and 4 Minor 7

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Drop 2 and 4 Half Diminished

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Drop 2 and 4 Diminished

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Drop 2 and 4 Minor Major 7