E Chord — Guitar

E

E1
G♯3
B5

E is E, G♯ and B.

E has three notes, and the guitar has six strings to play them on. The rest of this page shows how a hand fits one to the other.

On the staff

On a treble staff, E is written E, G♯ and B.

The staff shows the notes one after the other, then together. Written this way the chord is in close position, which means each note sits as near to the one below it as the spelling allows. A guitar almost never plays a chord in close position.

E under a hand

Eroot positionposition 1

Strummed from the lowest string to the highest, this grip sounds E, B, E, G♯, B and E, which are the degrees 1 5 1 3 5 1 rather than the 1 3 5 of the written chord. The root is the lowest note, so this grip is in root position and sounds the way the written chord suggests. With E in the bass and six strings sounding three notes, the 1 and 5 appear more than once.

Between the strings you sound: P5›P4›M3›m3›P4

E/G♯first inversionposition 2

Strummed from the lowest string to the highest, this grip sounds G♯, B, E and B, which are the degrees 3 5 1 5 rather than the 1 3 5 of the written chord. The lowest note is the 3 rather than the root, so this grip is in first inversion, written E/G♯. It has the same notes as the root-position grip, but with G♯ in the bass it sounds different. With G♯ in the bass and four strings sounding three notes, the 5 appears more than once.

Between the strings you sound: m3›P4›P5

E/Bsecond inversionposition 7

Strummed from the lowest string to the highest, this grip sounds B, E, B, E, G♯ and B, which are the degrees 5 1 5 1 3 5 rather than the 1 3 5 of the written chord. The lowest note is the 5 rather than the root, so this grip is in second inversion, written E/B. It has the same notes as the root-position grip, but with B in the bass it sounds different. With B in the bass and six strings sounding three notes, the 1 and 5 appear more than once.

Between the strings you sound: P4›P5›P4›M3›m3

Three shapes for E on guitar: E, E/G♯ and E/B.

Every grip here is E, but no two of them sound alike. A chord with the root as its lowest note is in root position, and a chord with any other note at the bottom is an inversion. On a keyboard you choose the inversion you want, but on a neck the shape your hand can reach usually decides it for you. When a grip sounds a note more than once, the fretting hand decides which note that is, not the harmony.

E, five ways up the neck

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E form

openE underneath

D form

fret 2E underneath

C form

fret 4G♯ underneath, the 3

A form

fret 7E underneath

G form

fret 9G♯ underneath, the 3

Each form on its own

E formE underneathopen position

This is the open E chord itself, the one form of E that needs no barre. It sounds six strings, and its lowest note is the root, E.

D formE underneathbarre at fret 2

This is the open D chord moved up two frets, with your index finger doing the job of the nut. It sounds four strings, and its lowest note is the root, E.

C formG♯ underneath, the 3barre at fret 4

This is the open C chord moved up four frets, with your index finger doing the job of the nut. It sounds four strings. The full C shape would put a root three frets above the barre, which is further than a hand can reach, so the lowest note of what remains is G♯, the 3.

A formE underneathbarre at fret 7

This is the open A chord moved up seven frets, with your index finger doing the job of the nut. It sounds five strings, and its lowest note is the root, E.

G formG♯ underneath, the 3barre at fret 9

This is the open G chord moved up nine frets, with your index finger doing the job of the nut. It sounds five strings. The full G shape would put a root three frets above the barre, which is further than a hand can reach, so the lowest note of what remains is G♯, the 3.

E has five forms on guitar: E open, D at fret 2, C at fret 4, A at fret 7 and G at fret 9.

Each of these five shapes is an open chord, C, A, G, E and D, moved up the neck until it plays E. Read left to right and they climb: E open, D at fret 2, C at fret 4, A at fret 7 and G at fret 9. Two of them have the third as the lowest note, because the full shape would put a root three frets above the barre, and a hand cannot reach that far. Guitarists call this system CAGED, after the order in which the five shapes appear as you climb.

E, G♯ and B on the whole neck

This diagram marks every E, G♯ and B on the first fifteen frets of the guitar.

Every grip above is a handful of the notes on this diagram, and none of them uses a note that is not shown here.

Where E comes from

E is a chord of E major, F♯ natural minor, A major and B major.

A chord does not belong to a single key. Each major or natural minor key listed here contains every note of E, which is why the same grip turns up in songs that otherwise have little in common.