Piano chords · Pop heartbeat
How to play Machine on piano
- A major
- 4/4
- 81 BPM
- 2018
- Medium
Learn Machine in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: C – E – C – E
Machine sits in A major: A is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: C is C, E and G; E is E, G# and B. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
CbIIIEVCbIIIEV- CC · E · G
- EE · G# · B
- 2
Left hand: Excited heartbeat
Lots of quick notes with a tiny skip before beat 3: full of energy. Musicians call it root bass · 1 · 1& · 2 · 2a · 3 · 3& · 4 (root bass rhythm), a medium pattern heard in 81 songs of the library.
- 3
Right hand: Late-hop chords
Steady chords with one quick extra hop after beat 3. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
- 4
Both hands at 81 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: D – E – A
The last chords are IV – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
DEA- DD · F# · A
- AA · C# · E
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Questions about Machine
What chords are in Machine?
The loop is C – E – C – E (bIII – V5 – bIII – V) in A major, and the song ends on D – E – A.
What key is Machine in?
A major, at about 81 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in Machine?
Excited heartbeat: root bass · 1 · 1& · 2 · 2a · 3 · 3& · 4, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Machine 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.