E9 Piano Chord

How to play E9 on piano, step by step

1. Start on the E above middle C. That is the lowest note of the chord.
2. Thumb (1): E
3. Index finger (2): G♯
4. Middle finger (3): B
5. Ring finger (4): D
6. Little finger (5): F♯
7. That reach is wider than an octave, so most players split it: play E with the left hand and the other notes with the right. If you keep it in one hand, leave out the fifth (B), the note the chord misses least.

On guitar, E9 is the classic funk chord. The piano version is the same five notes doing the same job, and it locks into a rhythm section the same way.

If it sounds wrong

The reach is too wide

E to F sharp is a ninth. Split it: E in the left hand, G sharp, B, D and F sharp in the right. The split is the standard way, not a fallback.

It sounds soft instead of bluesy

The seventh must be D natural. D sharp turns the chord into Emaj9, which floats where E9 drives.

The two black keys get uneven

G sharp sits under the index and F sharp under the little finger, at opposite ends of the hand. Keep the hand level so the outside black key speaks as clearly as the inside one.

What makes it an E9

E · G♯ · B · D · F♯ | 1 3 5 ♭7 9

E9 is an E7 chord with an F sharp added: E, G sharp, B and D make the seventh, and the F sharp a ninth above the root completes it.

E9 is the V9 of A, the seventh chord blues, soul and funk actually play instead of the plain E7. A blues in E runs on this chord, and funk keyboard parts sit on it for bars at a time.

E9 vs E7

E9 is E7 with an F sharp on top. Both pull toward A; the ninth adds shine without changing the direction.

Play E7 and add F sharp with the little finger. In funk the chord stops being a step toward somewhere and becomes the groove itself.