Piano chords · Pop heartbeat

How to play I Will Wait on piano

Tuning the piano…

Learn it

Learn I Will Wait in 5 steps

The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.

1
Chords: Db – Db – Fm – Absus4
How it goes
I Will Wait sits in Db major: Db is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: Db is Db, F and Ab; Fm is F, Ab and C; Absus4 is Ab, Db and Eb. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
DbIDbIFmiiiAbsus4Vsus4
- DbDb · F · Ab
- FmF · Ab · C
- Absus4Ab · Db · Eb
65 songs go round the same chords
2
Left hand: Walking roots
How it goes
One low note on every beat, steady as walking feet. Musicians call it root bass · quarters (root bass rhythm), an easy pattern heard in thousands of songs of the library.
Walking rootsRoot bass rhythm · PopLeft handEasy
3
Right hand: Ticking clock
How it goes
One high note repeated on every quick beat: tick, tick, tick. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
Ticking clockRepeated-note pulse · RockRight handMedium
4
Both hands at 130 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: Gb – Ab – Db
How it goes
The last chords are IV – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
GbAbDb
- GbGb · Bb · Db
- AbAb · C · Eb

What chords are in I Will Wait?

The loop is Db – Db – Fm – Absus4 (I – iii – Vsus4 – I) in Db major, and the song ends on Gb – Ab – Db.

What key is I Will Wait in?

Db major, at about 130 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in I Will Wait?

Walking roots: root bass · quarters, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is I Will Wait 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.

Can I hear the real melody of I Will Wait?

Yes: "The part you know" plays the repeating figure of the song from a score, with both hands.

Made from 4 arrangements of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.