How to play the E Ionian guitar scale

The E Ionian scale is a ionian scale which means it has the following definition:

R 2 3 4 5 6 7

The Ionian mode is the first mode of the Major scale.

Which notes are in the E Ionian guitar scale?

The notes in the E Ionian scale are:

E F# G# A B C# D# E

There are 7 notes in the scale with no flats and 4 sharps.

What are the intervals in the E Ionian Guitar Scale?

The scale definition for the E Ionian guitar scale is R 2 3 4 5 6 7 which means that the interval formula for the scale in semitones is:

2 2 1 2 2 2 1

You can also write this as note intervals:

Tone Tone Semitone Tone Tone Tone Semitone

The E Ionian Guitar Scale on the fretboard

Let's take a look at E Ionian on the guitar fretboard. Here is the scale across the entire fretboard:

What are the chords in the key of E Ionian?

There are 7 notes in the E Ionian scale so you can build 7 chords using each note in the scale as a chord root.

The triads (three note chords) in the key of E Ionian are:

Degree

I

ii

iii

IV

V

vi

vii

Chord

E maj

F# min

G# min

A maj

B maj

C# min

D# dim

Spelling

E G# B

F# A C#

G# B D#

A C# E

B D# F#

C# E G#

D# F# A

Diagram

E Ionian Guitar Scale Recap

Here is a quick recap of all the information about the E Ionian covered in this page:

• The E Ionian Scale is a ionian scale.

• The definition of the E Ionian scale is: R 2 3 4 5 6 7

• The notes in the E Ionian guitar scale are: E F# G# A B C# D# E

• The interval formula for the E Ionian scale is: 2 2 1 2 2 2 1

• The note intervals in the E Ionian scale are: Tone Tone Semitone Tone Tone Tone Semitone