Guitar scale · harmonic & melodic
E Neapolitan Major Scale
Melodic minor with a lowered 2nd: 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 5 6 7.
Tap any note to hear it.
E Neapolitan Major Scale tab: all 5 positions
Each tab climbs from the low E string to the high e string. Play it up, then back down.
e|-----------------------------0-1-3-| B|-------------------------2-4-------| G|-------------------0-2-4-----------| D|-------------1-2-3-----------------| A|-------0-2-4-----------------------| E|-0-1-3-----------------------------|
e|-----------------------------3-5-| B|-----------------------4-5-6-----| G|-----------------2-4-6-----------| D|-----------2-3-5-----------------| A|-----2-4-6-----------------------| E|-3-5-----------------------------|
e|-----------------------------5-7-| B|-----------------------5-6-8-----| G|-----------------4-6-8-----------| D|-------------5-7-----------------| A|-----4-6-7-8---------------------| E|-5-7-----------------------------|
e|----------------------------------7-9-11-| B|-----------------------------8-10--------| G|----------------------8-9-10-------------| D|---------------7-9-11--------------------| A|--------7-8-10---------------------------| E|-7-9-11----------------------------------|
e|----------------------------------------9-11-12-13-| B|----------------------------------10-12------------| G|--------------------------9-10-12------------------| D|------------------9-11-13--------------------------| A|------------10-12----------------------------------| E|-9-11-12-13----------------------------------------|
How to play E Neapolitan Major on guitar
Find the root first: E is at fret 0 on the low E string and fret 7 on the A string. The blue notes on the diagram are every E on the neck; the gold ones are the rest of the scale's home chord (♭3, 5, 7), the safest notes to land on at the end of a phrase.
Learn it one box at a time. Position 1, the E shape, sits at frets 0–4. Once it's under your fingers, move to position 2 (the D shape) and play the notes the two boxes share, then keep going up the neck. After all five, the scale joins up into one pattern across the whole fretboard.
Degrees
| Degree | Note |
|---|---|
| 1 | E |
| ♭2 | F |
| ♭3 | G |
| 4 | A |
| 5 | B |
| 6 | C# |
| 7 | D# |
Chords in E Neapolitan Major
Stack every other note of the scale and you get these seven chords. They are the chords that sound "at home" in E Neapolitan Major; tap one to see its shapes.
| Degree | Chord | 7th chord | Function |
|---|---|---|---|
| i | Em | Em(maj7) | Tonic |
| ♭II+ | Faug | Fmaj7#5 | Supertonic |
| ♭III+ | Gaug | — | Mediant |
| IV | A | A7 | Subdominant |
| V | — | — | Dominant |
| vi° | C#dim | C#m7b5 | Submediant |
| VII | — | — | Leading tone / subtonic |
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Practise E Neapolitan Major anywhere, even offline.
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Questions
- What notes are in the E Neapolitan Major Scale?
- The E Neapolitan Major Scale has 7 notes: E, F, G, A, B, C#, D#.
- What chords are in the E Neapolitan Major Scale?
- The chords of E Neapolitan Major are Em (i), Faug (♭II+), Gaug (♭III+), A (IV), C#dim (vi°).
- What is the formula of the neapolitan major scale?
- 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 5 6 7, which is the step pattern H W W W W W H (W = whole step, H = half step).
- Where do I play E Neapolitan Major on the guitar?
- The root E is at fret 0 on the low E string and fret 7 on the A string. Position 1 (the E shape) covers frets 0–4, and four more positions connect it up the neck.