Piano chord
B♭ diminished chord
B♭dim is a diminished triad: the root B♭, a minor 3rd up to D♭ and a diminished 5th up to F♭.
- Symbol
- B♭dim
- Notes
- B♭ – D♭ – F♭
Play it yourself
Tap B♭, D♭ and F♭ on the keys below, in any order.
- B♭
- D♭
- F♭
Diminished chords sound tense and unstable, as if they want to move on. In a major key the diminished chord is the one built on the seventh note, and it usually leads back home.
Inversions of B♭dim
An inversion keeps the same notes but puts a different one at the bottom. Pianists use them to move between chords with less jumping.
- Root position
B♭ – D♭ – F♭
- 1st inversion · B♭dim/D♭
D♭ – F♭ – B♭
- 2nd inversion · B♭dim/F♭
F♭ – B♭ – D♭
Keys with B♭dim
B♭dim occurs naturally in these keys. The Roman numeral shows which step of the scale it is built on.
- vii° · B major
- ii° · G♯ minor