As the tonic (I)E major
Home. The loop leaves Emaj7 and keeps coming back to it.
Emaj7 Chord: Guitar, Piano and Notes
The Emaj7 chord is a major seventh chord built on the root note E. Its notes are E, G♯, B and D♯.
Transpose
Quality
Short answer
Major seventh chords are lush, open and slightly jazzy. Stacking a major third on top of a major triad gives them a dreamy colour often heard in bossa nova, soul and modern R&B.
- Notes
- E · G♯ · B · D♯
- Formula
- 1 · 3 · 5 · 7
- Semitones
- 0 · 4 · 7 · 11
- Note
- E
- Quality
- Major 7
- Symbol
- Emaj7
Emaj7 on piano
4 notesView:
Switch to the interactive diagram to hear the chord, change voicing and swap finger numbers for note names.
To play Emaj7 on piano, place your right hand with your thumb on E, index finger on G♯, middle finger on B and little finger on D♯. Press the keys together and listen for an even sound. On the keyboard G♯ and D♯ are black keys and E and B are white. Practice moving in and out of the chord slowly, then bring in a metronome.
- E1
- G♯3
- B5
- D♯7
Emaj7 on guitar
View:
Switch to the interactive diagram to hear the chord, change voicing and swap finger numbers for note names.
On guitar, Emaj7 is commonly played with the voicing shown above. This one is a barre at fret 7: keep the index finger flat across the strings and curve the others so they don't mute the strings next to them. Don't play string 6.
E · G♯ · B · D♯
Try Emaj7 on the virtual piano
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Emaj7 chord notes
| Degree | Interval | Semitones | Note | Hear |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Root | 0 | E | |
| 3 | Major third | 4 | G♯(G#) | |
| 5 | Perfect fifth | 7 | B | |
| 7 | Major seventh | 11 | D♯(D#) |
How to use the Emaj7 chord
The Emaj7 chord is built from a root, a major third, a perfect fifth and a major seventh. Start at the root E and stack the intervals to get the whole chord: E, G♯, B and D♯. The same formula gives you the chord in any other key.
Major seventh chords colour jazz standards, bossa nova, soul and modern pop. They most often serve as Imaj7 or IVmaj7 in a major key to add warmth without changing the function.
In major keys Emaj7 is the Imaj7 in E major and the IVmaj7 in B major; in minor keys it's the IIImaj7 in C♯ minor and the VImaj7 in G♯ minor.
How Emaj7 differs from similar chords
Emaj7 is not E7: its seventh sits a half step below the root rather than a whole step, so it floats instead of pulling. Next to E6, which adds the sixth instead, Emaj7 sounds lusher and more modern. The major seventh is the only note that separates it from a plain E triad.
Where Emaj7 is used
A major chord is at home as a tonic, and just as useful as the IV or the V of a neighbouring key. Each progression below is written in the key its numerals name.
As the IVB major
- Imaj7Bmaj7
- IVmaj7Emaj7
- V7F♯7
- Imaj7Bmaj7
Emaj7 is the step away from home that makes the return feel like a return.
As the goal of a ii-V-IE major
The oldest cadence there is: two chords of preparation, then Emaj7.
Questions people ask
- What notes are in the Emaj7 chord?
- The Emaj7 chord contains E, G♯, B and D♯ (E, G#, B and D# in plain text).
- Is the Emaj7 chord major or minor?
- Emaj7 is a major seventh chord. Major seventh chords are lush, open and slightly jazzy. Stacking a major third on top of a major triad gives them a dreamy colour often heard in bossa nova, soul and modern R&B.
- What key is the Emaj7 chord in?
- In major keys Emaj7 is the Imaj7 in E major and the IVmaj7 in B major; in minor keys it's the IIImaj7 in C♯ minor and the VImaj7 in G♯ minor.
- How do you play Emaj7 on piano?
- Place your fingers on E, G♯, B and D♯ and play them together. The root usually goes to the little finger of the left hand, the upper notes to the right. On the keyboard G♯ and D♯ are black keys and E and B are white.
- How do you play Emaj7 on guitar?
- Use the fingering in the diagram above. This one is a barre at fret 7: keep the index finger flat across the strings and curve the others so they don't mute the strings next to them. Don't play string 6.
- What chords work well with Emaj7?
- Emaj7 pairs naturally with the chords in the related section: a perfect fifth up or down, the relative major or minor, and anything sharing two notes with it.