The ♭2 of A is B♭
The ♭2 (flat two, written b2) of A is B♭ (B flat): a minor second above the root.
How to find it
Count letters first, the root included: A, B. A 2nd lands on B.
Then the sound: a minor second is 1 semitones above A, and the B that is 1 semitones up is B♭.
That is why it is B♭ and not A♯: A♯ is the same key on the piano, but from A it would be an unison, not a 2nd.
Where you meet it
The ♭2 is a half step above the root. It is the note that makes Phrygian sound dark, and the root of the ♭II7 chord, the tritone substitute for the V7 that resolves to A.
In the scale A Phrygian:
A · B♭ · C · D · E · F · G
The ♭2 in every key
| Key | The ♭2 |
|---|---|
| C | D♭ |
| G | A♭ |
| D | E♭ |
| A | B♭ |
| E | F |
| B | C |
| F♯ | G |
| D♭ | E𝄫 |
| A♭ | B𝄫 |
| E♭ | F♭ |
| B♭ | C♭ |
| F | G♭ |
Every degree of A
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