Left-hand pattern · Film & wonder
Rainbow sweep
Five notes arc up two octaves like a rainbow, then let it ring. Musicians call it wide arpeggio 1-5-8-10-15.
Want to mix it with other hands?
How Rainbow sweep 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.
Wide arpeggio: A big sweep over two octaves: the film-score sound.
Songs with Rainbow sweep
Each one opens with this pattern in its player.
Often comes next
The patterns songs move to after Rainbow sweep, from verse to chorus.
More waves
All patternsQuestions about Rainbow sweep
What is Rainbow sweep on piano?
Five notes arc up two octaves like a rainbow, then let it ring. Musicians call it wide arpeggio 1-5-8-10-15, one of the wide arpeggio patterns: a big sweep over two octaves: the film-score sound.
How do I play wide arpeggio 1-5-8-10-15 with the left hand?
Over C major it is C3 (5), then G3 (2), then C4 (1), then E4 (3), then C5 (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 Rainbow sweep?
It is heard in 78 songs of the library, as the main groove of 9 songs, such as Mad World, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, I'll Be Seeing You, Longer.
Is Rainbow sweep easy?
It is a tricky pattern, in 4/4, usually around 92 beats a minute.