E major pentatonic scale on flute
E major pentatonic has 5 notes: E F♯ G♯ B C♯. Degrees: 1 2 3 5 6. Formula: W W W+H W W+H.
What notes are in the E major pentatonic scale?
E, F♯, G♯, B and C♯. It has 5 notes; its formula in whole and half steps is W W W+H W W+H.
What does E major pentatonic sound like, and when do you use it?
Open and bright, no half steps: country, pop and folk. Impossible to play out of tune. Use it over major chords (maj, 6, add9).
To hear it: Amazing Grace (traditional).
Chord progressions to improvise with E major pentatonic
In Jam mode (the Jam button above) a band of grand piano, upright bass and drums (recorded instruments) plays these progressions as swing, bossa, groove or ballad, and the staff lights up the notes of each chord as it plays. It's a backing track made for this scale in E:
- Country (I–IV–V): E | A | E | B. I–IV–I–V: over all three chords, the major pentatonic never fails.
- I–vi (I6–vi7): E6 | E6 | C♯m7 | C♯m7. Major and its relative minor: the same five notes sound bright or melancholic.
E major pentatonic on flute: written notes and fingerings
The flute doesn't transpose: it sounds as written. Fingering for each note, from low to high (left hand | right hand):
- E: 123 | 12 + thumb + E♭
- F♯: 123 | 3 + thumb + E♭
- G♯: 123 | – + thumb + G♯ + E♭
- B: 1 | – + thumb + E♭
- C♯: – | – + E♭
- E: 123 | 12 + thumb + E♭
Same notes as
D♭ minor pentatonic · F♯ Egyptian (suspended) · B major blues pentatonic · B Yo
Major pentatonic in other keys
On other instruments
E major pentatonic on piano · E major pentatonic on guitar · E major pentatonic on bass · E major pentatonic on ukulele · E major pentatonic on mandolin · E major pentatonic on banjo · E major pentatonic on violin · E major pentatonic on viola · E major pentatonic on cello · E major pentatonic on alto sax · E major pentatonic on tenor sax · E major pentatonic on trumpet · All scales