B major scale on piano
B major has 7 notes: B C♯ D♯ E F♯ G♯ A♯. Degrees: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7. Formula: W W H W W W H.
What notes are in the B major scale?
B, C♯, D♯, E, F♯, G♯ and A♯. It has 7 notes; its formula in whole and half steps is W W H W W W H.
What does B major sound like, and when do you use it?
Bright, stable and resolved: the starting point of Western harmony. Use it over maj7 · the I of a major key (careful with the 4th over the chord: it's the avoid note).
To hear it: Let It Be — The Beatles.
Chords in B major
| Degree | Triad | Seventh chord |
|---|---|---|
| I | B | Bmaj7 |
| ii | C♯m | C♯m7 |
| iii | D♯m | D♯m7 |
| IV | E | Emaj7 |
| V | F♯ | F♯7 |
| vi | G♯m | G♯m7 |
| vii° | A♯° | A♯m7♭5 |
Chord progressions to improvise with B major
In Jam mode (the Jam button above) a band of grand piano, upright bass and drums (recorded instruments) plays these progressions as swing, bossa, groove or ballad, and the keyboard lights up the notes of each chord as it plays. It's a backing track made for this scale in B:
- The turnaround (Imaj7–vi7–ii7–V7): Bmaj7 | G♯m7 | C♯m7 | F♯7. The jazz and pop turnaround, one chord per bar. The V7 pulls back to the I: resolve to D♯.
- ii–V–I (ii7–V7–Imaj7): C♯m7 | F♯7 | Bmaj7 | Bmaj7. The jazz cadence: tension on the V7, arrival on the I. End your phrases on D♯ or A♯.
- Pop (I–V–vi–IV): B | F♯ | G♯m | E. The progression of a thousand songs. Simple melodies resting on the highlighted notes.
B major on the keyboard
It uses 5 black keys: C♯, D♯, F♯, G♯ and A♯. On the interactive keyboard above you can hear it, show its degrees or intervals and practice its chords.
Same notes as
G♯ natural minor · B Ionian · C♯ Dorian · D♯ Phrygian · E Lydian · F♯ Mixolydian · G♯ Aeolian · A♯ Locrian