Bmaj7 B major seventh chord
- Notes
- B D# F# A#
- Formula
- 1 3 5 7
- Semitones
- 0 4 7 11 above the root
- Other symbols
- BM7, BΔ7
B 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 B7.
Bmaj7 on the piano
Root position from B4: B4, D#5, F#5, A#5. Middle C is C4.
Bmaj7 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 B as its lowest note.
x 2 4 3 4 2 (low E to high e)
Sounds B2 F#3 A#3 D#4 F#4
7 x 8 8 7 x (low E to high e)
Sounds B2 A#3 D#4 F#4
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.
Bmaj7 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.
3322 (G C E A)
Sounds A#4 D#4 F#4 B4
Lowest note D#4, so the chord finder reads it as Bmaj7/D# (first inversion).
4666 (G C E A)
Sounds B4 F#4 A#4 D#5
Lowest note F#4, so the chord finder reads it as Bmaj7/F# (second inversion).
Inversions of Bmaj7
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 | B D# F# A# | Bmaj7 | |
| 1st inversion | D# F# A# B | Bmaj7/D# | |
| 2nd inversion | F# A# B D# | Bmaj7/F# | |
| 3rd inversion | A# B D# F# | B/A# (also read as Bmaj7/A#) |