Bb Major guitar chord
- Tap a note to hear it
- Arrows change position
- Fingers, notes or intervals
- Play the chord
About Bb — 2nd inversion
Bb is Bb, 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.
Bb notes and formula
| Bb | D | F |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | 5 |
Also written Bbmaj, BbM or Bb major. The same chord either way; which spelling you meet depends on who wrote the chart.
How to play Bb
Bb in 2nd inversion puts F in the bass instead of Bb, the 5th of the chord. The notes are the same; what changes is what the bass line does, which is most of why you would reach for it — it lets the lowest voice move by step where the root would have jumped.
One of Bb’s 7 common shapes does this:xx3336
All 7 common shapes as fret numbers, lowest string first. Hover or tap one to see it drawn.
- x13331, 1st fret, Bb, root position, top note F, barred
- 653336, 3rd fret, Bb, root position, top note Bb, barred
- xx3336, 3rd fret, F, 2nd inversion, top note Bb, barred
- 688766, 6th fret, Bb, root position, top note Bb, barred
- x-x-8-10-11-10, 8th fret, Bb, root position, top note D, all fretted
- x-13-12-10-11-10, 10th fret, Bb, root position, top note D, all fretted
- x-13-15-15-15-13, 13th fret, Bb, root position, top note F, barred
How to use Bb
How you get to it. The turn that lands on Bb is Cm7 to F7 — the ii and the V of Bb — and F7 shares its third and seventh with Cm7, so the hand barely moves between them.
In which keys. Every note of Bb belongs to C minor (the ♭VII), D minor (the ♭VI), Eb major (the V), F major (the IV), G minor (the ♭III) and Bb major (the I).
What to play over Bb
Every note of Bb is in Bb major pentatonic, Bb major, Bb lydian, Bb mixolydian and Bb lydian dominant.
Chords near Bb
Change one note of Bb and you have Bbm (the major third becomes the minor third), Bbsus2 (the major third becomes the second), Bbsus4 (the major third becomes the fourth), Bbmaj7 (add the major seventh), Bbadd9 (add the ninth) or Bb5 (drop the major third).
Bb 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.