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E major

E major has 4 sharps (F♯, C♯, G♯ and D♯). Its scale is E F♯ G♯ A B C♯ D♯, its chords are E, F♯m, G♯m, A, B, C♯m and D♯dim, and its relative minor is C♯ minor.

Make a beat in E majorWrite a melody in this key

Opens the free editor with a pop beat on E B C♯m A. No account needed to start.

The E major scale

Whole, whole, half, whole, whole, whole, half: the half steps come between G♯ and A, and between D♯ and E.

E F♯ G♯ A B C♯ D♯ E

EABEF♯G♯C♯D♯

On the piano, E major uses 4 black keys (F♯, G♯, C♯ and D♯) and 3 white keys (E, A and B).

The notes of E major by scale degree
DegreeNoteName
1ETonic
2F♯Supertonic
3G♯Mediant
4ASubdominant
5BDominant
6C♯Submediant
7D♯Leading tone

Chords in E major

One chord on each note of the scale, built from the scale’s own notes. The Roman numeral says which note it starts on: capitals are major, small letters minor.

IE
iiF♯m
iiiG♯m
IVA
VB
viC♯m
vii°D♯dim

Which chords sound happy or sad

Bright

E A B

I, IV, V. The major chords. E feels like home; B pulls back to it.

Softer, sadder

F♯m G♯m C♯m

ii, iii, vi. The minor chords. C♯m is the sad turn in many pop songs.

Tense

D♯dim

vii°. Diminished: tense and unstable, it wants to move on, usually to E.

A progression in E major

The pop progression · I–V–vi–IV
E
B
C♯m
A
Hear it as

More progressions in E major

Key signature and related keys

Key signature

4 sharps: F♯ C♯ G♯ D♯

Written at the start of every line of music, so each F, C, G and D is played sharp. Sharps join in the order F C G D A E B, and flats in the order B E A D G C F.

Relative minor

C♯ minor

The same seven notes and key signature, starting on C♯.

Parallel minor

E minor

The same home note, with 1 sharp. Borrowing a chord from it makes a part sound darker.

Next to it on the circle of fifths

Keys next to each other share six of their seven notes. See them all on the circle of fifths.

E major in beats

The editor’s starter beats for these styles are written in E major. Each opens the free editor with its own drums, bass and chords at its usual tempo, no account needed.

City pop · 112 BPMHyperpop · 160 BPMIndie rock · 124 BPMPunk · 170 BPMRock · 120 BPM

Questions about E major

How many sharps are in E major?

Four: F♯, C♯, G♯ and D♯. Those notes are played sharp every time, so the key signature has 4 sharps, and C♯ minor, its relative minor, has the same.

What is the relative minor of E major?

C♯ minor. It uses the same seven notes and the same key signature as E major, but starts on C♯, the sixth note of the scale. The two share every chord, which is why songs move between them so easily.

What chords are in E major?

E, F♯m, G♯m, A, B, C♯m and D♯dim: one built on each note of the scale (I, ii, iii, IV, V, vi, vii°). E, A and B are the three major chords most songs in E major lean on, and C♯m (vi) gives a sadder turn.

What is the most common chord progression in E major?

I–V–vi–IV: E, B, C♯m and A. It is behind hundreds of hit songs, and it is the one the beat on this page plays.

Every key

Major keys
C majorG majorD majorA majorE majorB majorF♯ majorD♭ majorA♭ majorE♭ majorB♭ majorF major
Minor keys
A minorE minorB minorF♯ minorC♯ minorG♯ minorD♯ minorB♭ minorF minorC minorG minorD minor

Build a song in E major

Start with the beat, then add chords, a melody and your voice in the editor, part by part.

Make a beat in E majorAll music keys

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