Bb — fretboard degree map

The same neck read as degrees instead of note names. A degree tells you what a note does in the key, which is what transfers from one key to another: the shape of the major scale is the same everywhere, the letters are not.

Tuning

standard (E A D G B E)

Key

Bb major

Degrees shown

1 to 7 with the accidentals of the key

Frets shown

0 to 22

Notes outside the key

Db, E, Gb, Ab, B (marked with a dot)

Comparison

the same map as note names is on Bb note map

Bb major, as degrees

A dot marks a note that is not in the scale. The shaded cell is the tonic.

Bb natural minor, as degrees

The same fretboard read against the natural minor scale of the same tonic. The shape is the major scale of the key a minor third above, which is why it is the same set of positions moved three frets.

Using the degree map

• The major scale is the same sequence of intervals on every string. Reading it as degrees rather than letters is what makes the shapes transposable.
• The fifth degree is the most common note to double in a chord, and the third decides whether the chord is major or minor. Both are visible in the map above.
• The notes outside the key are the ones available for chromatic movement: a b3 over a major chord, a b7 over a major triad, a #4 to move up to the fifth.
• The relative minor of Bb is G; the natural minor map above is the major map of C# read from a different tonic.

Related

• Neck mapBb — note mapBb major · frets 0–22 · Bb C D Eb F G A
• ScaleBb major7 notes · 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
• ScaleBb natural minor7 notes · 1 2 b3 4 5 b6 b7
• KeyKey of BbBb C D Eb F G A · Bb major / G minor
• Neck mapNote namesall twelve pitch classes, frets 0–22
• ChordBb — Major1 3 5 · Bb D F
• ChordBb11 — Dominant eleventh1 9 3 11 5 b7 · Bb C D Eb F Ab
• ChordBb13 — Dominant thirteenth1 9 3 5 13 b7 · Bb C D F G Ab

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Everything in this key: Bb · Fretboard · Theory Atlas