Bb Guitar Chord | 10 Best Ways to Play (with Charts)
Bb Guitar Chord: Everything You Need to Know
The Bb Major chord, consisting of the notes "Bb," "D," and "F" is one you'll also heard referred to as A# Major from time to time. They're the same notes, just written differently in different situations for music theory's sake. When it comes to playing this particular chord on the guitar, you'll find it's a tricky one across the board, so you'll need to exercise some careful fingering when executing its many voicings.
How to Play Bb Major Guitar Chord
Now, if you find yourself wanting to ease your way into playing Bb Major, there are a few "cheat" voicings you can try that will make the job much easier, like this two-finger variant right here:
Place your 1st finger on the 6th string/1st fret
Place your 2nd finger on the 5th string/1st fret
Play string 4 open
Mute strings 1, 2, and 3
Bb Major Guitar Chord Three-Finger Varient
Or this three finger variant:
Place your 1st finger on the 1st string/1st fret
Place your 3rd finger on the 3rd string/3rd fret
Place your 4th finger on the 2nd string/3rd fret
Mute strings 4, 5, and 6
Bb Major Guitar Chord - A Major Chord Clone
And even this "A Major clone" voicing:
Place your 2nd finger on the 4th string/3rd fret
Place your 3rd finger on the 3rd string/3rd fret
Place your 4th finger on the 2nd string/3rd fret
Mute strings 1, 5, and 6
Bb Major Guitar Chord Barre #1
Of course, you could always try the barre chord versions of Bb Major:
Use your 1st finger to bar the strings at the 6th fret
Place your 2nd finger on the 3rd string/7th fret
Place your 3rd finger on the 5th string/8th fret
Place your 4th finger on the 4th string/8th fret
Bb Major Guitar Chord Barre #2
Use your 1st finger to bar the strings at the 1st fret
Place your 2nd finger on the 4th string/3rd fret
Place your 3rd finger on the 3rd string/3rd fret
Place your 4th finger on the 2nd string/3rd fret
Mute string 6
Bb Major Guitar Alternate #1
But if you want a sound that's more complete or more out of the ordinary, you'll want to try one of these more complicated voicings:
Use your 1st finger to cover strings 2, 3, and 4 at the 3rd fret
Place your 2nd finger on the 5th string/5th fret
Place your 3rd finger on the 6th string/6th fret
Place your 4th finger on the 1st string/6th fret
Bb Major Guitar Alternate #2
Place your 1st finger on the 5th string/5th fret
Place your 2nd finger on the 6th string/6th fret
Place your 3rd finger on the 2nd string/6th fret
Place your 4th finger on the 1st string/6th fret
Mute strings 3 and 4
Bb Major Guitar Alternate #3
Place your 1st finger on the 6th string/6th fret
Place your 2nd finger on the 2nd string/6th fret
Place your 3rd finger on the 3rd string/7th fret
Mute strings 1, 4, and 5
Bb Major Guitar Alternate #4
Place your 1st finger on the 2nd string/6th fret
Place your 2nd finger on the 3rd string/7th fret
Place your 3rd finger on the 4th string/8th fret
Mute strings 1, 5, and 6
Bb Major Guitar Alternate #5
Place your 1st finger on the 4th string/8th fret
Place your 2nd finger on the 3rd string/10th fret
Place your 3rd finger on the 1st string/10th fret
Place your 4th finger on the 2nd string/11th fret
Mute strings 5 and 6
Give Learning These Voicings Your All
That's a lot of different ways to play Bb Major, but they're well within your ability to play if you stick to a dedicated practice schedule. Make sure you carve out time each day to work on your chords, and do your best to exercise proper finger and clean technique when moving from one chord to another. Good luck, and, as always, happy practicing!