Master the E Maj9 Chord with Interactive Fretboard Practice
To build Emaj9, the E major ninth chord, take root E, major third G#, fifth B, major seventh D# and ninth F#. The top four notes, G#, B, D# and F#, spell a G# minor seventh chord, so maj9 is a major triad over a minor seventh built on its third.
Five voicings are mapped out here, five of them with open strings and one using a barre. For soloing or filling in melody, the E major scale contains every note of the chord. Compare it with dominant seventh chords, which pull toward a resolution.
Set a tempo in the chord player above, start the drums and play Emaj9 along with the loop.
E major 9th guitar chord is also written as Emaj9, EM9, EΔ9 or Ema9.
Emaj9 Chord Notes and Formula
Notes that compose the E maj9 chord:
How the Major Ninth chord is built:
Formula: 1 3 5 7 9
E Maj9 Chord Interactive Fretboard
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E Maj9 Guitar Chord Diagrams
Position 1 Open
Finger Positions
- Let the low E string play without pressing any fret
- Let the B string play without pressing any fret
- Place your index finger (1) on the fret 1 of the D string
- Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 1 of the G string
- Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 2 of the A string
- Place your pinky finger (4) on the fret 2 of the high E string
Position 2 Barre Open
Finger Positions
- Let the low E string play without pressing any fret
- Place your index finger (1) on the fret 4 of the D, G, B and high E strings at the same time
- Place your pinky finger (4) on the fret 7 of the A string
Position 3 Open
Finger Positions
- Let the low E string play without pressing any fret
- Let the high E string play without pressing any fret
- Place your index finger (1) on the fret 6 of the D string
- Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 7 of the A string
- Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 7 of the B string
- Place your pinky finger (4) on the fret 8 of the G string
Position 4 Open
Finger Positions
- Let the low E string play without pressing any fret
- Mute the high E string
- Place your index finger (1) on the fret 6 of the D string
- Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 7 of the A string
- Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 7 of the B string
- Place your pinky finger (4) on the fret 8 of the G string
Position 5 Open
Finger Positions
- Let the low E string play without pressing any fret
- Let the B string play without pressing any fret
- Let the high E string play without pressing any fret
- Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 8 of the G string
- Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 9 of the A string
- Place your pinky finger (4) on the fret 9 of the D string
Find more shapes in our all guitar chords online library. If you
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Chords That Go With Emaj9
One key where Emaj9 fits is E major, where it works as the I chord. These are the main chords of that key, the ones you will often hear around it:
See every key in the guitar keys chart, or build a progression with these chords in the chord progression generator.
More E Chords
Want to know how this chord is built? Read ninth and add9 chords explained, or browse all E guitar chords.
Created by
Giancarlo is a musician (teaching guitar since 2000), software engineer, AI consultant and published researcher
FAQ
What notes does Emaj9 include?
E, G#, B, D# and F#. The major seventh D# sits a semitone short of the root E, and F# is the ninth.
How many ways are there to play Emaj9?
Five voicings, all of them using open strings, and one also using a barre. They stretch from fret 1 to fret 9.
Which scale contains E major ninth?
E major: E, F#, G#, A, B, C# and D#. Every tone of the chord is in this scale.
What does the 9 in Emaj9 stand for?
It names the ninth, F#, which is the second degree of E major sounded an octave higher than the root. The chord also has the major seventh, D#.
