# B♭ Major piano chord (B♭)

B♭ contains B♭, D and F. A major third with a perfect fifth above the root. B♭ is a black key; D and F are white.

- Canonical page: https://piano.org/chords/major/b-flat/
- Entity: chord:major:b-flat
- Notes: B♭ D F
- Formula: 1 3 5
- Intervals from root: P1, M3, P5
- Interval stack (semitones): 4 3
- Also written: B♭, Bb, B♭ major
- Parameters: A440, 12-TET, 165 mm octave, spans centre to centre

## Construction

| Degree | Note | Interval from root | Semitones |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | B♭ | Perfect unison | 0 |
| 3 | D | Major third | 4 |
| 5 | F | Perfect fifth | 7 |

## Fingering

Rest your right hand over the notes with finger 1 on B♭, finger 3 on D, finger 5 on F. The left hand mirrors it.
Right hand 1-3-5, left hand 5-3-1. Source: piano.org fingering method v1.

## Inversions

| Position | Bass | Notes in order | Figured bass | Span |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Root position | B♭ | B♭3 D4 F4 | 5/3 | 7 st, 96 mm |
| First inversion (B♭/D) | D | D4 F4 B♭4 | 6/3 | 8 st, 110 mm |
| Second inversion (B♭/F) | F | F4 B♭4 D5 | 6/4 | 9 st, 124 mm |

## Voicings (5)

| Voicing | Notes | Span | Relation | Omits or adds |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Close, root position | B♭3 D4 F4 | 7 st, 96 mm | identical | none |
| Close, first inversion | D4 F4 B♭4 | 8 st, 110 mm | identical | none |
| Close, second inversion | F4 B♭4 D5 | 9 st, 124 mm | identical | none |
| Open, fifth on top | B♭2 F3 D4 | 16 st, 220 mm | identical | none |
| Root and third only | B♭3 D4 | 4 st, 55 mm | subset | omits F |

## Diatonic function by key

| Key | Roman numeral | Function |
| --- | --- | --- |
| C minor | ♭VII | Subtonic |
| D minor | ♭VI | Pre-dominant color |
| E♭ major | V | Dominant, wants to resolve |
| F major | IV | Subdominant, away from home |
| G minor | ♭III | Relative-major color |
| B♭ major | I | Tonic, home |

Classification system: common-practice functional harmony.

## Progressions (7)

| Progression | Key | Role | Sequence | Voice leading |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| ♭VII, i | C minor | ♭VII | B♭ to Cm | B♭ opens the phrase |
| ♭VI, iv, i, v | D minor | ♭VI | B♭ to Gm to Dm to Am | B♭ opens the phrase |
| i, ♭VI | D minor | ♭VI | Dm to B♭ | 2 tones held from Dm |
| V, I | E♭ major | V | B♭ to E♭ | B♭ opens the phrase |
| ii, V, I | E♭ major | V | Fm to B♭ to E♭ | 1 tone held from Fm |
| IV, V, I | F major | IV | B♭ to C to F | B♭ opens the phrase |
| I, IV | F major | IV | F to B♭ | 1 tone held from F |

## One-edit neighbors

| Becomes | Edit | Changes | Common tones |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| B♭maj7 | 1 3 5 7 | adds A | 3 |
| B♭7 | 1 3 5 ♭7 | adds A♭ | 3 |
| B♭6 | 1 3 5 6 | adds G | 3 |
| B♭add9 | 1 3 5 9 | adds C | 3 |
| B♭m | 1 ♭3 5 | D becomes D♭ | 2 |
| B♭aug | 1 3 ♯5 | F becomes F♯ | 2 |
| B♭sus2 | 1 2 5 | D becomes C | 2 |
| B♭sus4 | 1 4 5 | D becomes E♭ | 2 |
| B♭m7 | 1 ♭3 5 ♭7 | D becomes D♭, A♭ | 2 |
| B♭mMaj7 | 1 ♭3 5 7 | D becomes D♭, A | 2 |
| B♭aug7 | 1 3 ♯5 ♭7 | F becomes F♯, A♭ | 2 |
| B♭7sus4 | 1 4 5 ♭7 | D becomes E♭, A♭ | 2 |

## Set theory

- Absolute pitch classes: {10, 2, 5}
- Relative pitch classes: [0, 4, 7]
- Normal order: [10, 2, 5]
- Prime form: (037)
- Forte number: 3-11
- Interval vector: <001110>

## Frequencies (close root position)

| Note | MIDI | Frequency |
| --- | --- | --- |
| B♭3 | 58 | 233.08 Hz |
| D4 | 62 | 293.66 Hz |
| F4 | 65 | 349.23 Hz |

## Questions and answers

### What notes are in B♭?

B♭ contains B♭, D and F. The formula is 1, 3, 5.

### How do you play B♭ on piano?

Play B♭, D and F together. Right hand fingers 1, 3, 5; left hand 5, 3, 1. B♭ is a black key; D and F are white.

### What are the inversions of B♭?

3 positions: root position B♭ D F, B♭/D, B♭/F.

### What keys contain B♭?

6: ♭VII in C minor, ♭VI in D minor, V in E♭ major, IV in F major, ♭III in G minor, I in B♭ major.

### What is the difference between B♭ and B♭maj7?

Adds A. 3 of the notes are shared.

### What is an easy B♭ for small hands?

The root and third only voicing, B♭3 D4, spans 4 semitones or about 55 mm.

### What are the frequencies of B♭?

From B♭3 at A440 in 12-TET: 233.08, 293.66, 349.23 Hz.

### What is the set class of B♭?

Prime form (037), Forte 3-11, interval vector &lt;001110&gt;.

### How do I transpose B♭ to another key?

Keep the 1, 3, 5 formula on the new root. C is C, E, G; C♯ is C♯, E♯, G♯.

### Is A♯ the same as B♭?

Enharmonically yes: the same piano keys and the same sound, spelled differently.

## Provenance

Every derived value above is computed by the piano.org theory kernel from the root, the quality and the stated parameters. Nothing is hand-entered per chord.

Machine record: https://piano.org/api/knowledge/v1/entities/chord:major:b-flat
Last reviewed: 2026-08-12