B Diminished Guitar Chord | All You Need To Know
Welcome to our tutorial on the B dim chord, a member of the intriguing Diminished Chords family. This chord is composed of the notes B, D, and F, giving it a unique and distinct sound. The intervals that build this chord are the 1 (Root), b3 (Minor Third), and b5 (Diminished Fifth). These intervals are what give the B dim chord its characteristic tone.
Understanding how these intervals work is essential to mastering the B dim chord and other complex chords. Our guitar music theory tutorial can provide a deeper understanding of how chords are built by stacking intervals.
For those who are new to the world of diminished chords, you might find our diminished guitar chords tutorial helpful. This guide will walk you through the basics of diminished chords, setting a strong foundation for you to master the B dim chord.
If you're interested in exploring the relationship between notes on the fretboard, our fretboard intervals tutorial is a great resource. This tutorial will help you understand how to identify and play intervals on the guitar fretboard, a key skill when learning new chords like the B dim.
Once you've mastered the B dim chord, you might be interested in learning how to denote chords depending on the intervals that compose them. Our guitar chords notation tutorial is an excellent guide for this. It will help you understand how to write and read chord notation, a valuable skill for any guitarist.
Let's dive in and start learning the B dim chord, its unique sound, and its place in the world of guitar music. Happy playing!
Notes of the B dim chord:
BDF
How to create the Diminished chord:
Interactive Tool To Explore The B Dim Chord
Explore the different shapes for the B dim chord with this tool:
Keys With The B Diminished Chord
The most common place in which you'll find the B diminished chord is the 7th degree of the C major key:
| Key | I | ii | iii | IV | V | vi | vii |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | C | Dm | Em | F | G | Am | B dim |
Of course, B dim is also present in the relative minor key, A minor:
| Key | i | ii | III | iv | v | VI | VII |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | Am | B dim | C | Dm | Em | F | G |
Scales To Play Over a B Diminished Chord
The b3 and b5 in this chord make the locrian scale a great match, even if the overall sound will be a bit dissonant.
Other great matches are:
- B Minor Blues Scale (the b5 is the Blue Note!)
- B Dorian #4 Scale
- B Whole Tone Scale
You can find a complete analysis of scales and chords relationship on my ebook Scales Over Chords | Learn How To Play The Right Scales Over Any Chord
How To Play The Bdim Chord
Chord boxes are sorted from the easiest to the hardest. Learn how to read chord diagrams.
If you have difficulties with bar chord shapes, check the Bar Chords Tips tutorial.
You can also use this accessible chords page with written diagrams instruction.
Position 1
Movable
Position 2
Movable
Position 3
Movable
Position 4
Movable
Position 5
Movable
You can find more shapes in our all guitar chords online library. If you prefer a printable pdf, download
the Free Guitar Chords Chart Pdf
Play This Chord With Other Roots
C dim | D dim | E dim | F dim | G dim | A dim | B dim | C#dim | D#dim | F#dim | G#dim | A#dim | Abdim | Bbdim | Dbdim | Ebdim | Gbdim
Chord tones in the B dim chord
This fretboard map shows you the tones in the chord all along the neck. You can play this chord by choosing some of the chord tones.