The Nocturne in E major is another reflective and contrapuntally engaging piece. The nocturne's thematic structure (A-B-C-A-B) consists of a slow primary theme in E major, followed by a more quickly moving secondary melodic theme with climbing bass runs. This leads to the agitated and contrapuntal third section in C♯ minor, which has melodic interplay between the left and the right hand top three fingers, with the right thumb and first fingers largely playing accompaniment. A dissonant arpeggio ushers in the reprise of the first theme. This then gives way to the rolling bass a second time, which leads into the coda. In their reprisal, these two melodic themes are accompanied by slightly differing harmonies with modified embellishment in the right hand. The nocturne ends with a coda reaffirming the tonic key, which is a technique seen in several other nocturnes including Op. 62 No. 1 and Op. 9 No. 2. This was the very last nocturne that Chopin composed in his lifetime, although three more were published posthumously.
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