E Chord Variations All Beginners Should Know

It's time to look at the E Shape and how to make cool sounds using variations of the regular open E chord. Adding fingers, taking them away, all that good stuff. :)

💡 This lesson is part of my Chord Shapes Explorer series - included in my Beginner Course - Grade 3. If you've missed the previous lessons, check them out now.

D Chord Shape Explorer

C Chord Shape Explorer

G Chord Shape Explorer

A Chord Shape Explorer

Moving Up Open Chords

And much more to come!

Note: Explorer lessons for all five CAGED shapes can also be found, grouped together, under All Courses here.

Create Variations by Lifting Fingers Off

First, we'll explore how to create variations by lifting fingers off. Let's start with a regular E Major chord using fingers 1, 2, and 3 (022100). If we lift off finger 1, we get an Em chord (022000).

We can't usually substitute an E Major for an E minor chord – it sounds weird and is harmonically incorrect. What we can do is hammer on with finger 1. That can sound bluesy, especially when combined with Esus4 (see the section on Adding Little Finger).

💡 Chord Naming – Learn how to name chords and much, much more with my course Practical Music Theory.

If we lift off finger 3, we reveal the open D string and get an E7 chord (020100). Since the b7 note (the open D string) is low, it doesn't sound as good as the other open E7 chord (022130). So we should probably avoid it as a chord, but we can use it to embellish.

And if we lift off finger 2, we leave the open A string, which is also great for adding extra notes and embellishing. Try hammering on fret 2 from the open string while playing the chord. It has a country sound but sounds wicked in other styles too.

Variations Using Little Finger

Some of these are tricky for beginner guitarists, but I encourage you to try them! Let's start by adding the little finger to fret 3 of string 1; it gives us 022103, and a strange chord called an Eaddm3! That shouldn't work, but in Blues, it sounds awesome.

We can also add our little finger to fret 2 of string 1, giving us an Eadd9 (022102). It nearly always works, as does adding it to fret 2 of string 2 (022120), which is an E6 chord.

If we add our little finger to fret 2 of string 3 (022200), we get Esus4. This one is super common. You can also play this chord by barring with fingers 2 and 3. If we add our little finger to fret 3 of string 2 (022130), we get an E7, as mentioned earlier.

💡Break The Rules! The point of chord explorer is to break the rules, so try out these chords in songs. If it sounds good, it is good. :)

Time for another strange one! If we add it to fret 3 of string 3, we get an Esus#11 chord! It won't sound good in pop or folk but can work in metal or other alternative genres.

And finally, it's possible to add it to fret 3 of string 6. You can "curl" the note by bending the string down. It sounds wicked.

Practice, Practice, Practice

There are fewer variations in the E shape, so you must get comfortable with them. When you practice, spend some time just working on these variations and getting used to the new sounds. Then try them out when you're practicing songs. 12 Bar Blues in the key of E are a great place to start because E takes up most of the bars.

It's best to use one or two variations well than knowing lots but being unable to use them. Keep your ears open and listen. Practice them until they become instinctual.

If you have any questions or suggestions, leave a comment below. Have fun exploring the E-shape, and again, make sure you use all this in your songs! Cheers. :)

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