Piano chords · Waltz garden
How to play Scarborough Fair/Canticle on piano
Artist unknown
- E minor
- 3/4
- 120 BPM
- 1966
- Medium
Play the full song with sheet music
Learn Scarborough Fair/Canticle in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: Em – C – G – D
How it goes
Scarborough Fair/Canticle sits in E minor: E is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: Em is E, G and B; C is C, E and G; G is G, B and D; D is D, F# and A. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
EmiCVIGIIIDVII- EmE · G · B
- CC · E · G
- GG · B · D
- DD · F# · A
- 2
Left hand: Swan glide
How it goes
Up the chord, then rocking between two notes: a smooth, gliding waltz. Musicians call it broken chord 1-3-5-3-5-3 (3/4) (broken chord), a medium pattern heard in 28 songs of the library.
- 3
Right hand: the chords, held
How it goes
In this song the right hand mostly plays the tune itself. Hold the chords lightly, or play the melody over the left hand.
- 4
Both hands at 120 BPM
How it goes
Put the two hands together over the loop. Start at half speed with the player's speed control, and bring it up once every change is easy.
- 5
Ending: C – D – Em
How it goes
The last chords are bVI – bVII – i, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
CDEm
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Questions about Scarborough Fair/Canticle
What chords are in Scarborough Fair/Canticle?
The loop is Em – C – G – D (i – VI – III – VII) in E minor, and the song ends on C – D – Em.
What key is Scarborough Fair/Canticle in?
E minor, at about 120 beats a minute in 3/4.
What does the left hand play in Scarborough Fair/Canticle?
Swan glide: broken chord 1-3-5-3-5-3 (3/4), a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Scarborough Fair/Canticle easy to play on piano?
It is a medium one: learn the 4 chords as blocks first, then add the left hand, then the right, slowly.
Made from one arrangement of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.