E minor

See also: E major and E-flat minor

E minor

Relative key	G major
Parallel key	E major
Component pitches
E, F♯, G, A, B, C, D, E

E minor (Em, Mim) is a minor scale based on the note E. The E natural minor scale ( ♭ ♭♭) consists of the pitches E, F♯, G, A, B, C, and D. The E harmonic minor scale ( ♭ ♭ ) contains the natural 7, D♯, rather than the flatted 7, D – to align with the major dominant chord, B7 (B D♯ F♯ A).

Its key signature has one sharp, F (see below: Scales and keys).

Its relative major is G major, and its parallel major is E major.

Much of the classical guitar repertoire is in E minor, as this is a very natural key for the instrument. In standard tuning (E A D G B E), four of the instrument's six 'open' (unfretted) strings are part of the tonic chord. The key of E minor is also extremely popular in heavy metal music, as its tonic is the lowest note on a standard-tuned guitar.

E minor was one of the most-often used keys by Felix Mendelssohn.

Well-known classical compositions in this key

• Symphony No. 4 – Johannes Brahms
• Nocturne in E Minor – Frédéric Chopin
• Piano Concerto No. 1 – Frédéric Chopin
• Prelude in E minor – Frédéric Chopin
• Waltz in E minor - Frédéric Chopin
• Symphony No. 9 "From the New World" – Antonín Dvořák
• Slavonic Dance No. 2, Op. 72 – Antonín Dvořák
• Cello Concerto – Edward Elgar
• Symphony No. 44 "Trauer" – Joseph Haydn
• Symphony No. 7 – Gustav Mahler
• Violin Concerto in E Minor – Felix Mendelssohn
• Caprice No. 3 – Niccolò Paganini
• Montagues and Capulets - Sergei Prokofiev
• Symphony No. 2 – Sergei Rachmaninov
• Vocalise, Op. 34, No. 14 – Sergei Rachmaninov
• Symphony No. 10 – Dmitri Shostakovich
• Symphony No. 1 – Jean Sibelius
• Symphony No. 5 – Tchaikovsky
• Symphony No. 6 – Ralph Vaughan Williams
• Concerto for Bassoon, Strings, and continuo, RV 484 – Antonio Vivaldi
• Cello Sonata No. 2 - Benedetto Marcello

See also: list of symphonies in E minor

Scales and keys