Chapter 15: The 7 Diatonic Chords - B String. 3 Final Shapes to Complete the Picture.

You've done an incredible job working through the E, A, D, and G strings. You've seen how this system works, and you've built an amazing toolkit of chords. Now, we've arrived at the final piece of this foundational puzzle: the B-string. We'll learn three more simple, movable shapes, and with these, your core chord vocabulary will be complete. All the groundwork you've laid is about to pay off in a big way.

15 Shapes → 7 Diatonic Chords × 12 Keys × 5 Voicings = 420 Chord Options

Let's finish the job!

Our System: Three Final Shapes for the B-String

This is the last set of shapes in our system. These final three will give you a complete map of the fretboard.

• The B-String Major Shape: Your "happy," "strong," and "resolved" chord for this final position.
• The B-String Minor Shape: The one for that "sad," "serious," or "melancholy" mood.
• The B-String Diminished Shape: And our go-to shape for creating "tension" or "unstable" sounds.

The system is the same as always: find the root note of the chord you want on the B-string, and then apply the correct shape. Simple as that.

Putting It All to Use: Building C Major on the B-String

You know the familiar pattern: Major, minor, minor, Major, Major, minor, diminished. Now let's place our three final shapes on their root notes on the B-string.

The Majors (I, IV, V): C, F, G

Let's find C (1st fret), F (6th fret), and G (8th fret) on the B-string. They're colored in red for you.

Now, apply the B-String Major Shape to each one.

You've just learned how to play all the major chords in the key from a fifth and final position. This is fantastic!

The Minors (ii, iii, vi): Dm, Em, Am