Left-hand pattern · Rock drive
Marching giant
Thick three-note chords on every beat, rocking between two shapes. Musicians call it left-hand triads.
Want to mix it with other hands?
How Marching giant 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.
Left-hand chords: Small left-hand chords pushing the beat.
Songs with Marching giant
Each one opens with this pattern in its player.
Often comes next
The patterns songs move to after Marching giant, from verse to chorus.
More rock & boogie
All patternsQuestions about Marching giant
What is Marching giant on piano?
Thick three-note chords on every beat, rocking between two shapes. Musicians call it left-hand triads, one of the left-hand chords patterns: small left-hand chords pushing the beat.
How do I play lh triads with the left hand?
Over C major it is C4 (3) + E4 (2) + G4 (1), then C4 (3) + E4 (2) + G4 (1), then G3 (5) + C4 (3) + E4 (2), then G3 (5) + C4 (3) + E4 (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 Marching giant?
It is heard in thousands of songs of the library, as the main groove of 178 songs, such as Hello, Angels We Have Heard On High, Blue Skies, Eleanor Rigby.
Is Marching giant easy?
It is an easy pattern, in 4/4, usually around 100 beats a minute.