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B♭ major 7 chord

B♭ major 7 Major 7 family

Soft, dreamy, a bit wistful.

Easiest shape1 of 4

Square: the root. In colour: the major 7th, which gives the chord its sound.

Change a finger and see what it becomes

Built from

B♭root
Dmajor 3rd
F5th
Amajor 7th

The major 7th sits one fret below the root an octave up, a gentle clash that sounds lush rather than tense.

Tension: Gentle

Hear it in a progression

Smooth turnaround
Jazz and neo-soul, endlessly loopable. In B♭ major.
Capo and transpose
Dreamy two-chord
Floating back and forth, no hurry. In B♭ major.
Capo and transpose

Where it goes next

Thinking in B♭ major, where it is the Imaj7 chord.

E♭maj7
IVmaj7. Lifts away from home without leaving it.
F7
V7. Builds tension that wants to come back.
Gm7
vi7. Same key, sadder colour: the relative minor.
Cm7
ii7. A gentle step up that sets up the V chord.

Sounds close

Gm7
Relative minor 7: same notes but one. Both have B♭, D and F.
Dm7
Shares 3 of its notes. Both have D, F and A.
Dm
Shares 3 of its notes. Both have D, F and A.
D
Shares 2 of its notes. Both have D and A.

Scales that fit

Notes you can play over this chord, simplest first.

Keys it lives in