Bb chords can be one of the more complex barre chords for beginners, requiring significant finger pressure from beginners. As with the A shape on this page, Bb chords require lots of force from fingers when trying them for the first time.
Although lacking a bass note – essential for creating a full sound – the chord has still found widespread usage across a wide variety of music genres from ’80s new wave and classic rock to metal.
Major
As this tutorial series will demonstrate, chords are central to playing guitar. One common B flat chord found in songs written for major keys (C, G and D) is B flat triad chord.
This triad has a minor interval which gives it its signature melancholic sound and makes it much more stable than other triads with perfect fifths that may become dissonant or tension-inducing.
C and G forms follow an identical interval pattern (R–5-(3)-(R). They start on different strings.
These barre chord shapes can be moved up and down the fretboard to form new triads, or more tones added for greater fullness. If you’re new to intervals, I highly suggest checking out my tutorial on intervals first – it will help clarify many triad concepts you play as well as provide insight into creating chords on your own.
Minor
Switching just one note from a major chord to minor can transform the sound entirely, as minor chords contain a flat third while majors feature a perfect fifth.
An E major chord can help you become acquainted with finger placement. Begin with placing your first finger at the barre chord on string one; next move onto frets two and three with successively more fingers until your third finger reaches fourth fret and strumming all strings simultaneously.
Bb minor chords can often be found in songs in keys of C, G and D as filler chords or filler between more dominant ones. Bb minors are particularly common in blues music where their sharp third is integral to its soundscape. Furthermore, these chords can act as the basis for half-diminished 7th chords known as m7b5 or m7(flat) chords which contain all five notes from a major scale and more specifically its first, second flat third and fifth notes from that scale.
Barre
Utilizing barre chords can be an effective way of learning chords more quickly while honing your ear for pitch. One key consideration when using barre chords is that open strings may ring when playing them – this may suit certain genres better, though it’s best not to overdo it as too often this could create feedback and render the guitar unusable.
One common way of playing a Bb major barre chord is on the first fret; beginners may also try it on the sixth string, though that might prove more challenging. To achieve an ideal sound from these barre chords, make sure that your fingers have good control and that string tension doesn’t exceed safe levels – use ChordBank app as real-time feedback can assist with this!
Scale
The Bb major chord contains three notes – B-flat (also written as B), D and F – as well as an optional G to give it a different sound. A scale consists of a series of intervals connected by its tonic note; thus the Bb major chord can be considered D major with an extra G (known as slash chord).
These barre chord shapes on this page are known as movable chords as they can be moved up or down one fret to create different major chords. For instance, you could easily play the second one as a C chord by moving your index finger up two frets.
Beginners may find the chord to be difficult at first, particularly the initial shape which requires compressing three fingers on the 3rd freet and may mute your high E string. But using concepts outlined here regarding hand and wrist positioning it shouldn’t pose too many problems.