Piano chords · Waltz garden

How to play Silent Night on piano

By Franz Gruber

Tuning the piano…

Learn it

Learn Silent Night in 5 steps

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

1
Chords: D – D – A – A
Silent Night sits in A major: A is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: D is D, F# and A; A is A, C# and E. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
DIVDIVAIAI
- DD · F# · A
- AA · C# · E
2
Left hand: Lullaby ripple
Up to the top and rocking there in quick notes: a lullaby in three. Musicians call it broken chord 1-5-8-5-8-5 (3/4) (broken chord), a medium pattern heard in 92 songs of the library.
Lullaby rippleBroken chord · WaltzLeft handMedium
3
Right hand: Waltz push chords
Chord, a push before beat 3, then the landing: a waltz with a nudge. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
Waltz push chordsSyncopated chords · WaltzRight handEasy
4
Both hands at 85 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
- EE · G# · B

What chords are in Silent Night?

The loop is D – D – A – A (IV – I – IV – I) in A major, and the song ends on D – E – A.

What key is Silent Night in?

A major, at about 85 beats a minute in 3/4.

What does the left hand play in Silent Night?

Lullaby ripple: broken chord 1-5-8-5-8-5 (3/4), a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Silent Night 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 Silent Night?

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

Made from 8 arrangements of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.