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B major: scale and chords
The B major scale, its seven chords and the keys that mix with it, with a loop in B major that plays right here. Move it a semitone, then hum over it.
In B major a guitar rings 3 of its six open strings. Mika counted them.Four chords of B major over drums and bass, 123 BPM.
The B major scale
B C♯ D♯ E F♯ G♯ A♯
Five sharps: C♯ D♯ F♯ G♯ A♯; five black keys on a piano (C♯ D♯ F♯ G♯ A♯). Also written as C♭ major, with seven flats. Whole and half steps: W W H W W W H.
The chord on the fifth degree, F♯7, pulls back to B.
In Hz, from the keynote in octave 4: B4 493.9 · C♯5 554.4 · D♯5 622.3 · E5 659.3 · F♯5 740.0 · G♯5 830.6 · A♯5 932.3
The chords in B major
Tap a chord to hear it.
| Degree | Chord | Notes | Seventh | Bass, Hz |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | B D♯ F♯ | Bmaj7 | B2 123.5 | |
| ii | C♯ E G♯ | C♯m7 | C♯2 69.3 | |
| iii | D♯ F♯ A♯ | D♯m7 | D♯2 77.8 | |
| IV | E G♯ B | Emaj7 | E2 82.4 | |
| V | F♯ A♯ C♯ | F♯7 | F♯2 92.5 | |
| vi | G♯ B D♯ | G♯m7 | G♯2 103.8 | |
| vii° | A♯ C♯ E | A♯m7♭5 | A♯2 116.5 |
The loop plays I–V–vi–IV: B F♯ G♯m E.
Keys that mix with B major
On the Camelot wheel B major is 1B (Open Key 6d). Tracks in these keys mix without a clash:
- 1A G♯ minor relative minor, the same seven notes
- 12B E major one step down
- 2B F♯ major one step up
- 3B D♭ major two steps up, the energy boost
Same keynote, the other mode: B minor (10A), three notes apart.
Where B major sits
| Open strings | In B major | Keynote on an open string |
|---|---|---|
| Guitar E A D G B E | 3 of 6 | 2nd |
| Bass E A D G | 1 of 4 | – |
| Violin G D A E | 1 of 4 | – |
| Viola C G D A | 0 of 4 | – |
| Cello C G D A | 0 of 4 | – |
| Ukulele G C E A | 1 of 4 | – |
Choir parts (soprano C4–G5, alto G3–D5, tenor C3–G4, bass F2–D4, where two part-writing guides agree): B3–B4 fits the alto part; B2–B3 fits the bass part; no whole B-to-B octave fits the soprano or tenor parts. Find your own range.
As a sub or an 808, the keynote is B1 at 61.7 Hz, or B2 at 123.5 Hz an octave up. Tune an 808 to B.
What plays
Drums, an organ bass and a pluck, the Brumm app's own sounds, four bars at 123 BPM, one chord per bar. The arrows move bass and chords a semitone; the drums stay.
Then hum over it
The hum button opens Brumm with a short line in the key over a beat. Hum yours and it becomes an instrument. No account, no upload.
Sources
Scales and chords: Open Music Theory, musictheory.net. Camelot, Open Key: Mixed In Key, Mixgraph. Open strings: Wikipedia. Choir parts: Open Music Theory, Geneseo. Hz: A4 = 440 Hz, ISO 16.
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