E major

E major is a major scale with a base note of E. Its key signature has four sharps. Its relative minor is C-sharp minor.

E major
Relative keyCminor
Parallel keyE minor
Dominant keyB major
SubdominantA major, D major, G major, C major, F major
Notes in this scale
E, F, G, A, B, C, D, E
Also see: E minor, or E-flat major.

E major is hard for wind instruments to play. It is quite good for violin, because two of the open strings are A and E, the tonic and subdominant. Other orchestral string instruments can play well in it, and it is also good for the guitar. When writing in E major, clarinets in A should be used instead of clarinets in B-flat to make it easier to play. This is because clarinets are transposing instruments.

Symphonies in E major are quite rare, but the key is often used for concertos. One of them is Felix Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto.

Ascending and descending E-major scale.

The bells of the Clock Tower in London's Palace of Westminster are tuned to the key of E major.

References

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