Zarlino

D♭ major

Five flats: B♭, E♭, A♭, D♭ and G♭.

Every other note in D♭ major is natural. The flats are what move C major’s pattern of whole and half steps onto D♭. The distances don’t change, only the starting note does.

Play D♭ major from E♭ to E♭ and you get E♭ Dorian; start on A♭ and it’s A♭ Mixolydian. Nothing changes except which note feels like home. It also shares every note with B♭ minor.

How it sounds
Settled more than happy. The major third gives it warmth and the fifth keeps it steady. It’s good at sincere things like hymns, love songs and nostalgia, and pushed too far it turns naive. Songwriters stain it with borrowed chords to stop that happening.
Where it lives
Pop, rock, country, folk, gospel, classical and musical theatre. Film scores reach for it when the scene is hopeful. So do most children’s songs.

On the neck

Position
Show
Position 1, frets 1 to 4
  • High E string: F at fret 1, G♭ at fret 2, A♭ at fret 4
  • B string: C at fret 1, D♭ at fret 2, E♭ at fret 4
  • G string: A♭ at fret 1, B♭ at fret 3
  • D string: E♭ at fret 1, F at fret 3, G♭ at fret 4
  • A string: B♭ at fret 1, C at fret 3, D♭ at fret 4
  • Low E string: F at fret 1, G♭ at fret 2, A♭ at fret 4

The notes

In order, with the frets between them: D♭2E♭2F1G♭2A♭2B♭2C1D♭

Spelled from D♭ — the same notes with fewer accidentals.

The distances below aren’t even, and everything else on this page comes out of that. Two notes do most of the work. F is what makes the key sound major. C sits one fret under D♭ and wants to get there.

What each interval does

Home. Every other note is measured from it. C sits one fret below.

D♭

Perfect unison

Two frets up from D♭: whole step.

E♭

Major second

Two frets up from E♭: whole step.

F

Major third

One fret up from F: half step.

G♭

Perfect fourth

Two frets up from G♭: whole step.

A♭

Perfect fifth

Two frets up from A♭: whole step.

B♭

Major sixth

Two frets up from B♭: whole step.

C

Major seventh

Playing in D♭

  • Not a single open string.

    None of the six open strings belongs to D♭ major. Everything is fretted, which is half the reason guitarists almost never pick this key themselves.

  • Every chord is a barre.

    D♭, E♭m, Fm, G♭, A♭, B♭m: no open shapes anywhere. D♭ is a piano key and a horn key, and guitarists usually arrive in it with a capo in their hand.

  • Where the root sits.

    4th fret of the A string, 9th of the low E, 11th of the D. Learn the A-string root first, because it anchors the barre shape you’ll use most.

  • Three ways round it.

    Capo 4 with A shapes turns A, D and E into D♭, G♭ and A♭, all open. Capo 1 with C shapes works too, though it keeps the F barre. Or tune every string down a half step and play in D.

  • Where you’ll meet it.

    Piano ballads, gospel, soul and R&B. D♭ sits comfortably under the hand on a keyboard, so songs written there often land in it and stay.

The chords

Every chord below is built the same way. Start on a note, skip the next one, take the one after, skip again, take again. D♭, skip E♭, F, skip G♭, A♭: that’s the D♭ chord. Skip once more, add C, and it’s D♭maj7.

The method stays the same. The spacing doesn’t. D♭ to F is four frets, E♭ to G♭ only three. Four frets at the bottom gives a major chord and three gives a minor one, so I, IV and V come out major while ii, iii and vi come out minor.

How chords are built from a scale

Degree I
Degree ii
Degree iii
Degree IV
Degree V
Degree vi
Degree vii°

The numerals next to each chord are the same seven chords, written so they work in any key. Uppercase means major, lowercase means minor, and the small circle means diminished. In D♭ major, I–IV–V is D♭–G♭–A♭.

Learn a progression as I–V–vi–IV and you have it in twelve keys. Learn it as D♭–A♭–B♭m–G♭ and you have it in one.

Chord pages: D♭, E♭m, Fm, G♭, A♭, B♭m, Cdim

Position
Show
D♭, C form, frets 1 to 4
  • High E string: F at fret 1
  • B string: D♭ at fret 2
  • G string: A♭ at fret 1
  • D string: F at fret 3
  • A string: D♭ at fret 4
  • Low E string: not played

D♭ chord: all voicings and theory

The three functions

Every chord in the key does one of three jobs. Most progressions are a trip across these three and back. In D♭ major, D♭, B♭m and Fm are home, G♭ and E♭m move away, and A♭ and Cdim build the tension.

  1. Tonic

    home

    • D♭I
    • B♭mvi
    • Fmiii

  2. Pre-dominant

    moving

    • G♭IV
    • E♭mii

  3. Dominant

    tension

    • A♭V
    • Cdimvii°rare

resolves back to D♭

Chords land in the same group because they share notes. D♭ is D♭–F–A♭, B♭m is B♭–D♭–F, Fm is F–A♭–C. B♭m and Fm each keep two of D♭’s three notes, so either can stand in for home without much moving underneath.

That swap is all substitution means: keep most of the chord, change one note.

Progressions

Pop and rock

Pop makes the whole trip and then won’t finish it. The dominant arrives on schedule, and instead of resolving home the loop goes straight back to the top. That’s how four bars can carry a five-minute song without anyone minding.

Pop and rock progressions in D♭ major
NameNumeralsIn D♭
The axiscommonI–V–vi–IValso from vi–IV–I–V and IV–I–V–viD♭ – A♭ – B♭m – G♭
Doo-wop / 50scommonI–vi–IV–VD♭ – B♭m – G♭ – A♭
Three-chordcommonI–IV–VD♭ – G♭ – A♭
Simple rockI–V–IVD♭ – A♭ – G♭
SensitiveI–iii–vi–IVD♭ – Fm – B♭m – G♭
LiftrareI–IV–vi–VD♭ – G♭ – B♭m – A♭

Jazz and standards

Jazz runs the cycle hard and often: pre-dominant to dominant to tonic, ii–V–I, then again from wherever that landed. The tension never lasts long. It just keeps getting renewed.

Jazz and standards progressions in D♭ major
NameNumeralsIn D♭
The cadencecommonii–V–IE♭m7 – A♭7 – D♭maj7
TurnaroundcommonI–vi–ii–VD♭maj7 – B♭m7 – E♭m7 – A♭7
Long turnaroundiii–vi–ii–VFm7 – B♭m7 – E♭m7 – A♭7
ExtendedrareI–IV–iii–vi–ii–V–ID♭maj7 – G♭maj7 – Fm7 – B♭m7 – E♭m7 – A♭7 – D♭maj7

Classical

Classical states the cadence plainly. The dominant turns up where you expect it and goes where it promised. On the rare occasions it doesn’t, you’re meant to notice.

Classical progressions in D♭ major
NameNumeralsIn D♭
Authentic cadencecommonV–IA♭ – D♭
Plagal (“amen”)IV–IG♭ – D♭
DeceptiverareV–viA♭ – B♭m
Pachelbel canonI–V–vi–iii–IV–I–IV–VD♭ – A♭ – B♭m – Fm – G♭ – D♭ – G♭ – A♭

Borrowed chords

Chords pulled in from D♭ minor while home stays where it is. A lot of the emotional weight in pop songwriting comes from here. The key stays put and the weather changes.

Chords borrowed into D♭ major from D♭ minor
ChordNumeralTypical use
G♭mivD♭ – G♭ – G♭m – D♭The quickest way to make a major key sound sad.
A♭VID♭ – A – B – D♭An instant heroic lift. Plenty of rock songs change colour at the chorus with this one.
B♭VIID♭ – B – G♭ – D♭The mixolydian rock cadence: a step down, then back.
E♭IIID♭ – E – G♭ – D♭Hard rock. The flat third turns up as a whole chord instead of a single note.

Writing with this

Putting chords under a melody

A melody note doesn’t belong to one chord.

Hold an F and you can put D♭, Fm or B♭m under it without touching the tune. D♭ makes it bright, Fm shades it, and B♭m sits somewhere between.

A lot of what we hear as a songwriter’s style comes down to which of the three they reach for.

The family

Relative minorB♭ Natural Minor