B B major chord
- Notes
- B D# F#
- Formula
- 1 3 5
- Semitones
- 0 4 7 above the root
- Other symbols
- BM, Bmaj
B to D# is a major third (4 semitones), D# to F# is a minor third (3 semitones). The major triad: a major third with a minor third on top, the tonic chord of the key of B major.
B on the piano
Root position from B4: B4, D#5, F#5. Middle C is C4.
B 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 4 4 2 (low E to high e)
Sounds B2 F#3 B3 D#4 F#4
7 9 9 8 7 7 (low E to high e)
Sounds B2 F#3 B3 D#4 F#4 B4
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 chords on other roots.
B 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.
4322 (G C E A)
Sounds B4 D#4 F#4 B4
Lowest note D#4, so the chord finder reads it as B/D# (first inversion).
4676 (G C E A)
Sounds B4 F#4 B4 D#5
Lowest note F#4, so the chord finder reads it as B/F# (second inversion).
Inversions of B
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# | B | |
| 1st inversion | D# F# B | B/D# | |
| 2nd inversion | F# B D# | B/F# |
Where B fits
B is I in B major, IV in F# major, V in E major, V in E minor. As V in a minor key it comes from the harmonic minor scale, whose raised seventh degree is this chord's third, D#.