Bbmaj7 Bb major seventh chord
- Notes
- Bb D F A
- Formula
- 1 3 5 7
- Semitones
- 0 4 7 11 above the root
- Also written
- A#maj7 (A# C## E# G##)
- Other symbols
- BbM7, BbΔ7
Bb to D is a major third (4 semitones), D to F is a minor third (3 semitones), F to A is a major third (4 semitones). A major triad plus the note a half step below the root (A). It has no tritone, so it sounds settled and soft rather than restless like Bb7.
Bbmaj7 on the piano
Root position from Bb4: Bb4, D5, F5, A5. Middle C is C4.
Bbmaj7 on the guitar
Standard tuning (E A D G B E). Strings run low E on the left to high e on the right, frets downwards; × is a muted string, ○ an open string, and each dot shows the note it sounds, with the root in blue-green. Every shape below has Bb as its lowest note.
x 1 3 2 3 1 (low E to high e)
Sounds Bb2 F3 A3 D4 F4
6 x 7 7 6 x (low E to high e)
Sounds Bb2 A3 D4 F4
The E-shape and A-shape grips are movable: an E-shape chord's root is the note under your first finger on the low E string, an A-shape chord's root is the note on the A string. Slide the same grip up or down to play major seventh chords on other roots.
Bbmaj7 on the ukulele
Standard ukulele tuning is G C E A, drawn with the G string on the left and frets downwards, as ukulele chord charts show it. The G string is tuned higher than the C string (G4 above middle C, a fifth over C4), so the lowest note you hear is usually on the C or E string, not on the G string, and a shape can sound as an inversion even when its root is on the G string. All four strings are strummed, so every string plays a chord tone; the root is in blue-green.
2211 (G C E A)
Sounds A4 D4 F4 Bb4
Lowest note D4, so the chord finder reads it as Bbmaj7/D (first inversion).
3555 (G C E A)
Sounds Bb4 F4 A4 D5
Lowest note F4, so the chord finder reads it as Bbmaj7/F (second inversion).
Inversions of Bbmaj7
An inversion puts a note other than the root in the bass. The name is what semicord's chord finder calls those notes played bottom to top; a slash name like C/E means a C chord with E in the bass.
| Position | Notes, bass first | Named | Listen |
|---|---|---|---|
| Root position | Bb D F A | Bbmaj7 | |
| 1st inversion | D F A Bb | Bbmaj7/D | |
| 2nd inversion | F A Bb D | Bbmaj7/F | |
| 3rd inversion | A Bb D F | Bb/A (also read as Bbmaj7/A) |