Left-hand pattern · Pop heartbeat
Hop-skip heartbeat
Three steps, then a quick hop that skips right over beat 4. Musicians call it root bass on beats 1, 2, 3, 3&, 4&.
Want to mix it with other hands?
How Hop-skip heartbeat 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.
Root bass rhythm: Just the lowest note, played in a rhythm you can dance to.
Songs with Hop-skip heartbeat
Each one opens with this pattern in its player.
Often comes next
The patterns songs move to after Hop-skip heartbeat, from verse to chorus.
More heartbeats
All patternsQuestions about Hop-skip heartbeat
What is Hop-skip heartbeat on piano?
Three steps, then a quick hop that skips right over beat 4. Musicians call it root bass on beats 1, 2, 3, 3&, 4&, one of the root bass rhythm patterns: just the lowest note, played in a rhythm you can dance to.
How do I play root bass · 1 · 2 · 3 · 3& · 4& with the left hand?
Over C major it is C3 (5), then C3 (5), then C3 (5), then C3 (5), then C3 (5); 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 Hop-skip heartbeat?
It is heard in 250 songs of the library, as the main groove of 34 songs, such as The First Cut Is The Deepest, Bring Me To Life, I'll Take You There, Hero.
Is Hop-skip heartbeat easy?
It is an easy pattern, in 4/4, usually around 105 beats a minute.