Piano chords · Pop heartbeat

How to play Little Talks on piano

Tuning the piano…

Learn it

Learn Little Talks in 5 steps

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

1
Chords: Bbm – Gb – Db – Ab – Bbm – Gb – Db – Ab
How it goes
Little Talks sits in Db major: Db is home, where the song ends. It goes round 8 chords: Bbm is Bb, Db and F; Gb is Gb, Bb and Db; Db is Db, F and Ab; Ab is Ab, C and Eb. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
BbmviGbIVDbIAbVBbmviGbIVDbIAbV
- BbmBb · Db · F
- GbGb · Bb · Db
- DbDb · F · Ab
- AbAb · C · Eb
176 songs go round the same chords
2
Left hand: Groovy roots
How it goes
Notes jump around the “ands”, giving the bass a funky bounce. Musicians call it root bass · syncopated 8ths (root bass rhythm), a medium pattern heard in 363 songs of the library.
Groovy rootsRoot bass rhythm · PopLeft handMedium
3
Right hand: Deep-breath chords
How it goes
A breath on beat 1, then quick chords pumping to the end. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
Deep-breath chordsSyncopated chords · PopRight handMedium
4
Both hands at 104 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: Bbm – Gb – Db
How it goes
The last chords are vi – IV – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
BbmGbDb

What chords are in Little Talks?

The loop is Bbm – Gb – Db – Ab – Bbm – Gb – Db – Ab (vi – IV – I – V – vi – IV – I – V) in Db major, and the song ends on Bbm – Gb – Db.

What key is Little Talks in?

Db major, at about 104 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Little Talks?

Groovy roots: root bass · syncopated 8ths, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Little Talks easy to play on piano?

It is a medium one: learn the 8 chords as blocks first, then add the left hand, then the right, slowly.

Can I hear the real melody of Little Talks?

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

Made from 3 arrangements of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.