Left-hand pattern · Lullaby boat
Gondola ripple
Up to the top, a pause to sway, and back: a gentle boat ride. Musicians call it broken chord 1-5-8-8-5 (6/8).
Want to mix it with other hands?
How Gondola ripple goes
One bar over a C chord: a row for each key, a column for each step, the finger on each note. Over another chord, move the same shape to its root.
Broken chord: The chord, one note at a time, close together.
Songs with Gondola ripple
Each one opens with this pattern in its player.
Often comes next
The patterns songs move to after Gondola ripple, from verse to chorus.
More ripples
All patternsQuestions about Gondola ripple
What is Gondola ripple on piano?
Up to the top, a pause to sway, and back: a gentle boat ride. Musicians call it broken chord 1-5-8-8-5 (6/8), one of the broken chord patterns: the chord, one note at a time, close together.
How do I play broken chord 1-5-8-8-5 (6/8) with the left hand?
Over C major it is C3 (5), then G3 (2), then C4 (1), then C4 (1), then G3 (2); the number after each note is the finger (1 is the thumb). Over any other chord, move the same shape to that chord's root.
What songs use Gondola ripple?
It is heard in 25 songs of the library, as the main groove of 10 songs, such as Good Good Father (arr. Phillip Keveren), I Found A Boy, Made, We Are Man And Wife.
Is Gondola ripple easy?
It is a medium pattern, in 6/8, usually around 84 beats a minute.