How to Play Lofi Chords on iPhone Without Music Theory

Lofi chords sound warm because they're a little more than a plain triad. A major 7th, a minor 7th, an added 9th: one extra note that softens the chord and makes it float. You don't need theory to use them. You need a way to pick the colour by ear.

• M7, major 7th: dreamy and floating. The sound of city pop and a lot of lofi.
• m7, minor 7th: soft tension. Soul, R&B and jazz live here.
• 9, added 9th: lush and modern, the neo-soul colour.
• 6, added 6th: a vintage swing, bossa and golden-era pop.

Plain major and minor chords sound stable and bright. Swap one for a 7th or a 9th and the same progression starts to feel late-night.

Matcha splits a chord into three small choices:

1. The key you press sets the root. Press A and you're playing an A chord.
2. The top row sets the type: dim, min, maj or sus.
3. The bottom row adds the colour: 6, m7, M7 or 9.

So A with min and m7 gives you Am7. Change any of the three and the chord updates while it plays.

When you press a key, Matcha picks the type and colour for you so the chord fits the pack's key. That means you can tap around the keyboard and it still sounds like a song. When you want something specific, the buttons recolour the chord, and that choice holds until the next key.

Voice leading is built in, so going from one chord to the next stays smooth. The voicing slider opens the chord up or draws it in: the notes stay the same, but which one sits at the bottom changes, and that's what makes changes glide.

Pick a pack, then play four chords, one bar each, and let Matcha choose the colours. Then go back and try M7 on the first chord and 9 on the last. Small changes, big difference.

Playing, the packs and live MIDI are free. Matcha Studio, a one-time unlock, adds recording, Song Mode to arrange your loops, Matcha Magic to grow four bars into a whole song, MIDI and stem export, and the AUv3 plugin for your DAW. The Matcha manual has the full chord chapter.