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E Minor

Reviewed for accuracy · Last updated June 2026 · Maintained by Justin Evans

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Em
E – G – B
Right Hand Fingering:1 – 3 – 5
Left Hand Fingering:5 – 3 – 1
Formula:R-m3-P5
Intervals:P1-m3-P5
Scale Degrees:1-b3-5

Practice E Minor

Reading about it is one thing. Drilling it is what makes it automatic.

Chord Drill →Timed drills — build speed and recognitionPractice Room →Plug in a MIDI keyboard for real-time feedback

Introduction

E Minor piano chord, root position — E, G, B
The E Minor chord in root position on a piano keyboard, notes E, G, B.

The E Minor chord is a three-note chord made up of E, G, and B. It is built from a root, minor third, and perfect fifth.

Notes

Notes:E – G – B

How to Play the E Minor

Right Hand (RH)

Place your right hand over the keys with the thumb on the root. Use the fingering: 1 – 3 – 5

Left Hand (LH)

For the left hand, start with your pinky on the root. Use the fingering: 5 – 3 – 1

E Minor Inversions

E Minor piano chord, 1st inversion — G, B, E
The E Minor chord, 1st inversion, on a piano keyboard.
E Minor piano chord, 2nd inversion — B, E, G
The E Minor chord, 2nd inversion, on a piano keyboard.
PositionNotes
Root PositionE – G – B
1st InversionG – B – E
2nd InversionB – E – G

Key Signature

A chord has no key signature of its own, but the E Minor is the tonic (i) chord of E Minor, which shares the signature of its relative major, G Major — 1 sharp (F♯).

F♯

Order of sharps

Sharps are added to a key signature in a fixed order. Each new sharp key adds the next sharp on the list.

F♯C♯G♯D♯A♯E♯B♯

Mnemonic: Father Charles Goes Down And Ends Battle

Chords in the Key of E Minor

These are the triads built on each degree of the E minor scale:

C1C2C3C4EGBC5C6C7C8
i — E Minor (minor)
DegreeNumeralChordQuality
1iE MinorMinor
2ii°F♯ DiminishedDiminished
3IIIG MajorMajor
4ivA MinorMinor
5vB MinorMinor
6VIC MajorMajor
7VIID MajorMajor

Common E Minor Progressions

Pick a progression and press play. Change the key to hear it anywhere — every chord is built from the same theory as the chord pages, so the notes always agree.

Version
C1C2C3C4EGBC5C6C7C8
i›Em
80 BPM
Sounds a little stiff and jumpy? There’s a reason —

The epic minor loop — cinematic and driving, heard across pop, rock and film scores.

Theory: Intervals

Formula: R-m3-P5
Intervals: P1-m3-P5

The E Minor is built by stacking intervals from the root note. The formula R-m3-P5 describes the scale degrees used. The intervals P1-m3-P5 show the distance between each note in the chord.

E Minor — Frequently Asked Questions

What is the E Minor chord on piano?
The E Minor chord contains the notes E – G – B. On piano, play these notes together to sound the chord.
What notes make up the E Minor chord?
E Minor contains three notes: E (root), G (minor third), and B (perfect fifth). All three are white keys, making E Minor one of the most accessible minor chords on the piano.
What fingering do I use for E Minor?
Right hand: finger 1 on E, finger 3 on G, finger 5 on B. Left hand: finger 5 on E, finger 3 on G, finger 1 on B. Like D Minor, the all-white-key layout is comfortable and symmetrical.
What are the inversions of E Minor?
First inversion (Em/G): G–B–E. Second inversion (Em/B): B–E–G. Em/G is common in pop and rock — it creates a smooth bass movement from G to E, often heard in descending bass line progressions.
What songs use the E Minor chord?
E Minor is ubiquitous in rock and folk. It appears in House of the Rising Sun (Animals), Nothing Else Matters (Metallica), and as the vi chord in G Major — meaning it appears in virtually every G Major song including Let It Be and Country Roads.
What chords pair well with E Minor?
In E Minor: C Major (VI), G Major (III), D Major (VII), B Major (V). Em–C–G–D is one of the most used four-chord sequences in rock. Em–Am–D–G is another classic minor-to-major movement. Em also pairs naturally with Am as the vi and ii chords in G Major.
What is the relationship between E Minor and G Major?
E Minor is the relative minor of G Major — both share the same key signature (one sharp, F#). This means every chord in G Major has a corresponding role in E Minor: G Major becomes the III chord, C Major becomes VI, D Major becomes VII, and Em itself is the tonic (I) chord.

Practice Tips

  • Compare Em and E Major (E–G–B vs E–G#–B) — G vs G# is the only difference, but the mood shift is dramatic.
  • Practice Em → C → G → D as a loop — this four-chord progression appears in thousands of rock and pop songs.
  • Work through Em inversions: E–G–B (root), G–B–E (1st), B–E–G (2nd) — all white keys make this approachable.
  • Play Em followed immediately by Am — these two chords share no notes but move smoothly in minor key contexts.
  • Practice the Em–D–C–B progression (descending I–VII–VI–V in E Minor) — a classic melancholic pattern in classical and folk.

Related Tools

Chord FinderLook up any chord — see the notes, hear it, and play along.Chord DrillTimed drills to build speed and recognition across all chord types.Practice RoomPlug in a MIDI keyboard and get real-time feedback on every chord and scale.Circle of FifthsVisualize key relationships, relative minors, and key signatures.MIDI MonitorLive MIDI message stream with note names, velocity, and a scrolling staff.

References & Further Reading

How this chord page is sourced & verified

The note names, intervals, fingering, and harmony on this page are drawn from the established body of Western music theory and verified against the conventions below — the same fundamentals taught in conservatories and music programs. We list categories of source material rather than individual titles, and reference the standards themselves rather than any single edition.

  • Standard music theory texts — Widely taught fundamentals of pitch, rhythm, and notation.
  • Western tonal harmony conventions — Established rules for chord construction, voice leading, and key relationships.
  • Interval and chord construction standards — The conventional spelling of intervals, triads, sevenths, and extensions.
  • Scale and mode theory — The common derivation of major, minor, pentatonic, blues, and modal scales.
  • Piano pedagogy and technique references — Long-standing practices for fingering, hand position, and practice.

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