Piano chords · Pop heartbeat
How to play How Could I Ever Know? on piano
Written by Lucy Simon
- Db major
- 4/4
- 96 BPM
- I–IV–I–IV loop
- 1991
- Medium
Learn How Could I Ever Know? in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: Db – Gb – Db – Gb
How Could I Ever Know? sits in Db major: Db is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: Db is Db, F and Ab; Gb is Gb, Bb and Db. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
DbIGbIVDbIGbIV- DbDb · F · Ab
- GbGb · Bb · Db
- 2
Left hand: Pop heartbeat
Long, short, long: the heartbeat under a thousand pop songs. Musicians call it root bass · charleston push (1 · 2& · 3) (root bass rhythm), an easy pattern heard in thousands of songs of the library.
- 3
Right hand: Knock-and-peek
The same note knocks five times, then peeks one step higher. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
- 4
Both hands at 96 BPM
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: Db – Gb – Db
The last chords are I – IV – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
DbGbDb
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Questions about How Could I Ever Know?
What chords are in How Could I Ever Know??
The loop is Db – Gb – Db – Gb (I – IV – I – IV) in Db major, and the song ends on Db – Gb – Db.
What key is How Could I Ever Know? in?
Db major, at about 96 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in How Could I Ever Know??
Pop heartbeat: root bass · charleston push (1 · 2& · 3), an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is How Could I Ever Know? 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 one arrangement of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.