Eb major piano chord, notes and fingering.

The Eb major piano chord is made of three notes: Eb, G and Bb. Press them together and you are playing Eb major. It is a root (Eb), a major third (G, four semitones above the root) and a perfect fifth (Bb, seven semitones above). On a chord chart it is written simply as Eb, with no letters after it.

How to play Eb major on piano

1. Find Eb on the keyboard. Eb is the second black key of the pair, just before E. It is the same key as D#.
2. With your right hand, put finger 1 on Eb, finger 3 on G and finger 5 on Bb. Finger 1 is the thumb.
3. Press all three keys together. In root position they run from Eb4 to Bb4, a reach of 7 semitones. Play chord sounds them together and Arpeggio sounds them one by one, from the bottom up.
4. Click Left hand to see the left hand. It plays Eb3 to Bb3, one octave lower: Eb with finger 5, G with finger 3, Bb with finger 1.
5. The cards under the keyboard hold the three positions, with Eb, G and Bb at the bottom in turn. Play and Arpeggio on a card play that position.
6. Open Note names. As written the keys read Eb, G and Bb. Sharps shows D#, G and A#, and Flats shows Eb, G and Bb. This chord is written with flats, so As written and Flats match.

How Eb major is built

Counted from the root, the formula is 0, 4, 7. Stacked on each other the gaps are 4 + 3: a major third (Eb to G) with a minor third (G to Bb) on top. Lower the middle note by one semitone, G to Gb, and the chord turns into Eb minor.

Worked example: the pitch of Eb4. On a piano tuned to A4 = 440 Hz, a note 6 semitones below A4 has the frequency 440 × 2^(-6/12), which is about 311.13 Hz. G4 is 2 semitones below A4, so 440 × 2^(-2/12) gives about 392.00 Hz.

Eb major and D# major are the same chord on the keyboard: the same three keys sound for both. Written as D# major it would need a double accidental (D#, F## and A#), so Eb is the name that sheet music uses. The key of Eb major has 3 flats, while the key of D# major would need double accidentals.

What the keys look like under your hand

The white keys beside Eb are D on the left and E on the right, a semitone each way. Two of the three notes are black keys (Eb and Bb) and one is a white key (G). Your thumb lands on Eb, a black key with D and E beside it. Keep the thumb relaxed and slightly curved, and let the wrist stay level instead of twisting to reach. Your little finger plays Bb, a black key with A and B beside it. The little finger is short, so let the hand lean a little toward its edge and aim for the middle of the key.

Eb major inversions and fingering

Eb major has three positions. In root position Eb is at the bottom. In the first inversion, G is at the bottom and the chord is written Eb/G. In the second inversion, Bb is at the bottom and the chord is written Eb/Bb. The tightest reach, 7 semitones from the lowest key to the highest, is the root position. The widest, at 9, is the second inversion.

The keys that hold Eb major

Eb major fits six of the major and natural minor keys that have a standard key signature, which means every note of it comes from that key's scale. The simplest is Bb major, with 2 flats, where it is chord IV.

Progressions that use Eb major, with the chord numbers and the chords in that key:

• Bb major: I-IV-V-I, which is Bb, Eb, F, Bb, the three-chord cadence of folk, rock and blues.
• G minor: i-VI-III-VII, which is Gm, Eb, Bb, F, a common minor-key loop.
• Eb major: I-V-vi-IV, which is Eb, Bb, Cm, Ab, the four-chord loop heard in a great deal of pop.

Here is a worked example in Bb major. The chord before Eb major in the first progression above is Bb (Bb, D and F). From Bb in root position, the closest way to reach Eb major is its second inversion (Bb, Eb and G, lowest note first): one note stays where it is, and the others move 3 semitones in total, counting each note against the note in the same place from the bottom.

What Eb major sounds like

Major chords sound bright and settled, which is why songs so often end on one. In a major key the major chords are I, IV and V, and those three alone can carry a great many songs. A major triad is also the first chord most pianists learn.

You will meet Eb major as the IV chord in Bb major, the VI chord in G minor and the I chord in Eb major. It is also the V chord in Ab minor, where the raised seventh of the harmonic minor scale makes the chord major.

A common mistake with Eb major

A common mistake is pressing Gb instead of G, one semitone lower than the third of Eb major. That turns the chord into Ebm (Eb, Gb and Bb). If your Eb chord sounds sad, check the middle finger first.

Chords to learn next

Chords close to Eb major: Eb minor (same root, with a minor third; shares Eb and Bb); Eb7 (adds a flat seventh; contains all its notes); Ebmaj7 (adds a major seventh; contains all its notes); C minor (its relative minor; shares Eb and G).

Once Eb major feels easy, play it and then Ebm to hear what one note changes. For chords beyond these six types, and for guitar and ukulele shapes, use the chord finder. To play along with your computer keys, open the virtual piano. The piano chords page lists all 72 chords.