E — the E major guitar chord

E major is big and bright. All six strings ring, so it’s often the first chord that actually sounds like something, and you’ll run into it everywhere in blues and around campfires. Watch the fingers next to the open G and B strings: if they lie flat they’ll mute them, so curl onto the fingertips.

How to play it

Index finger on the G string (3rd), 1st fret.
Middle finger on the A string (5th), 2nd fret.
Ring finger on the D string (4th), 2nd fret.
Let the open low E string (6th), B string (2nd) and high E string (1st) ring.

Changes to practice

Holding E still is the easy part. Songs need you to arrive at it in rhythm, so in Strumhold you practice E as changes, alongside the rest of the Open Majors set:

E ↔ A E major to A major
E ↔ D E major to D major
E ↔ G E major to G major
E ↔ C E major to C major

How to play it

Changes to practice

Same root, different color