About B — triad voicings
B is B, D# and F#.
It sounds plain and completely at rest. The reference every other chord on this page is a modification of.
Tonic — the chord a progression stops on.
B notes and formula
| B | D# | F# |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | 5 |
Also written Bmaj, BM or B major. The same chord either way; which spelling you meet depends on who wrote the chart.
How to play B
Three notes on one string set. No seventh, so nothing is claimed about the chord beyond its quality.
Thin on their own, excellent over a bass line or against someone else’s harmony.
B has 44 of them, on the bottom three strings, the top three strings, the middle four strings, the top four strings, the low-middle three, the high-middle three, the bottom four strings, strings 6-4-3-2 and strings 5-3-2-1, from open position up to the 13th — every inversion the chord has: B in the bass, D# in the bass and F# in the bass. The one to learn first is the F# shape at the nut, which is the easiest grip here.
6 of them sit on the middle four strings, so you can run the inversions up one set without changing strings — which is the whole reason to learn them as a family rather than as separate grips.
All 6 common shapes as fret numbers, lowest string first. Hover or tap one to see it drawn.
- x24442, 2nd fret, B, root position, top note F#, barred
- 764447, 4th fret, B, root position, top note B, barred
- xx4447, 4th fret, F#, 2nd inversion, top note B, barred
- 799877, 7th fret, B, root position, top note B, barred
- x-x-9-11-12-11, 9th fret, B, root position, top note D#, all fretted
- x-14-13-11-12-11, 11th fret, B, root position, top note D#, all fretted
How to use B
How you get to it. The turn that lands on B is C#m7 to F#7 — the ii and the V of B — and F#7 shares its third and seventh with C#m7, so the hand barely moves between them.
In which keys. Every note of B belongs to C# minor (the ♭VII), Eb minor (the ♭VI), E major (the V), F# major (the IV), Ab minor (the ♭III) and B major (the I).
What to play over B
Every note of B is in B major pentatonic, B major, B lydian, B mixolydian and B lydian dominant.
Chords near B
Change one note of B and you have Bm (the major third becomes the minor third), Bsus2 (the major third becomes the second), Bsus4 (the major third becomes the fourth), Bmaj7 (add the major seventh), Badd9 (add the ninth) or B5 (drop the major third).
B is a major chord — root, major third, fifth. Major chords on every root.
The common shapes and the derived voicings come from different places, and both are explained in how this site is built.