Piano chords · Lullaby boat
How to play Hail! Hail! The Gang's All Here! on piano
By Arthur Seymour Sullivan
- G major
- 6/8
- 120 BPM
- V7–ii–V7–I loop
- 1994
- Medium
Play the full song with sheet music
Learn Hail! Hail! The Gang's All Here! in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: D7 – Am – D7 – G
How it goes
Hail! Hail! The Gang's All Here! sits in G major: G is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: D7 is D, F#, A and C; Am is A, C and E; G is G, B and D. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
D7V7AmiiD7V7GI- D7D · F# · A · C
- AmA · C · E
- GG · B · D
- 2
Left hand: Swelling 6/8
How it goes
Rises to the top and falls back in one rocking six-note wave. Musicians call it open arpeggio 1-5-8-10-8-5 (6/8) (open arpeggio), a medium pattern heard in 73 songs of the library.
- 3
Right hand: Hammock chords
How it goes
Long-short, long-short: soft chords sway like a hammock. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
- 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: G – D7 – G
How it goes
The last chords are I – V7 – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
GD7G
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Questions about Hail! Hail! The Gang's All Here!
What chords are in Hail! Hail! The Gang's All Here!?
The loop is D7 – Am – D7 – G (V7 – ii – V7 – I) in G major, and the song ends on G – D7 – G.
What key is Hail! Hail! The Gang's All Here! in?
G major, at about 120 beats a minute in 6/8.
What does the left hand play in Hail! Hail! The Gang's All Here!?
Swelling 6/8: open arpeggio 1-5-8-10-8-5 (6/8), a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Hail! Hail! The Gang's All Here! 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 2 arrangements of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.