The B flat minor 7 chord is an open version of Bm7 chord with a lower fifth note, used frequently in holiday classics by Gene Autry such as Frosty the Snowman.
Each lesson step in this course will introduce the construction of a 7th chord using only the first, third, fifth and seventh notes from the Bb natural minor scale. Note intervals will then be calculated to ascertain its quality (see Scale Chord Quality).
1. Open Position
B flat minor 7 is one of the most versatile minor seventh chords. It can be used to create major sounding power chords in minor keys or played open in higher registers of guitar neck. B flat minor 7 can also serve as an excellent replacement for dominant 7 chords in blues and jazz music or act as a bridge between sections of songs.
Before building a b flat minor 7, you need to understand its structure. A minor seventh chord comprises three triads – a minor third, perfect fifth and minor seventh – each built using an interval from any minor scale degree interval, which defines its specific triad quality and name. If you want to further your study of scale theory this method of identifying 7th chord quality will serve you well!
An open b flat minor 7 chord is very similar to its major seventh equivalent; the only real distinction being its augmented formula, 1-b3-#5-b7. To play one, simply place one finger on the second string second fret and another finger on fifth string seventh fret while letting any open strings ring free; this chord has an amazing sound when played up the neck! Open strings give this chord an exceptional chime.
This chord can be particularly useful when exploring scales and hearing how various minor and major seventh chords sound together. Additionally, its use can add melodic flair as its open b flat minor 7 is very easy to play and sounds fantastic when combined with simple bass lines – you can hear this combination on several songs by Butch Walker (former lead singer of The Pretenders prior to Chrissie Hynde’s departure); for instance “My Own Worst Enemy”.
2. 2nd Position
B flat minor 7 is a ubiquitous chord found across genres of music. This chord has an audible “chipper” sound that can be heard in numerous songs. You can play this chord either open position or second position barre chord; though playing barre chord is trickier because you must avoid accidentally muzzling any strings that should be playing; blues and jazz songs often utilize this chord type.
The Bbm7 chord, also referred to as the B flat minor 7 chord in second position, is a commonly found chord shape in Bb. This chord can either be played as a root 5 bar chord or root 6 bar chord – often found in blues, jazz and some pop/rock music genres.
To play this chord, start by strumming the top three strings (Bb, Db and F). Next, place your left hand on the fifth string so that it can fret it with its index finger; finally use your right hand to fret the sixth string with its middle finger; once these notes have been fretted you can strum the entire chord.
As with other chords in this lesson, it’s crucial that when playing a b flat minor 7, particularly its barre chord form, proper fretting technique is utilized. Take care not to press too hard against it as doing so may cause its strings to break or bend; additionally leave some distance between fretted notes and nearby strings for optimal playing results.
A Bb minor 7 chord in the second position is an excellent way to practice playing barre chords, providing practice in developing correct fingerings for them as well as giving you a feel for where to place them on your neck. Over time, with practice you will soon be playing this chord quickly and accurately!
3. 1st Inversion
B flat minor 7 is a four note chord made up of Bb, Db, F and Ab. As part of your basic chord repertoire, it should be an essential one to master. In this article there are 16 different voicings of this chord so you can play any fret with left hand and fingers; they even allow you to switch out lowest/highest note combinations, increasing its versatility!
The most frequently employed inversion for b flat minor 7 chords is the first inversion; this allows for more stable foundation than its open position and it is much simpler to move the chord around on neck with this inversion than second or third inversions.
To grasp how this chord was formed, we must examine the Bb natural minor scale. The table below contains all of the notes which make up this scale and their number of semitones or half-tones between each note; these note intervals were then used to create the 1st inversion of this chord with Ab, C, Eb, Gb as its subtonic components; this chord quality being defined as subtonic as these are found at the base of both scale and its equivalent major key of Db Major with five flats in Db Major which also contains five flats.
To write the chord on a staff diagram, the figured bass symbol should be placed before and after the Roman numeral followed by its inversion letter; so VII7 could be written as Ab dom 7 to indicate its status as dominant seventh chord in Bb minor scale.
The Bb Minor Scale is an altered scale which features five flats instead of 12 sharps and black keys, providing more options when applied as minor key chord scale. It is closely related to Db Major Scale which also contains five flats as a relative minor scale of Bb Major.
4. 2nd Inversion
The second inversion of b flat minor 7 chord features all of its notes from its root position shifted up by one octave from bottom to top. This chord type is frequently seen in major scales and makes playing piano much simpler; we have made this even simpler by shifting some lower voicing notes down by an octave; see diagram below for reference.
The third inversion of b flat minor 7 is similar to its second counterpart and can often be found within major scales. As it produces the same sound as major seventh chords, it makes for an effective transition to V. The sixth inversion also can act as a lead-in chord; however, this variant occurs much less frequently.
Sometimes the supertonic seventh chord will appear in root position as well, though less frequently. Still, this chord is an effective lead-in to dominant harmony; when it does happen it tends to be subtler.
Note that the b flat minor 7 chord is a triad with the interval structure 1 m3 5 b7; this signifies it contains both a minor seventh and diminished triad to provide strong resolution from dominant tonic triads, something common in classical music.
Modern music typically utilizes figured bass notation. This form uses modified slash notation with inversion symbols placed immediately before Roman numerals and after chord numbers to quickly identify which inversion of any given chord you are playing, along with using chord symbols as indicators that the seventh is flat – an extremely helpful convention used across triad chords that makes reading music notation simpler for beginners.