Piano chords · Pop heartbeat
How to play Sparrow on piano
By Emeli Sande
- G major
- 4/4
- 76 BPM
- 2019
- Medium
Learn Sparrow in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: Am – G – F – Am
Sparrow sits in G major: G is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: Am is A, C and E; G is G, B and D; F is F, A and C. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
AmiiGIFbVIIAmii- AmA · C · E
- GG · B · D
- FF · A · C
- 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: Leaping sparkle
A note and a much higher one leap back and forth, bright and playful. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
- 4
Both hands at 76 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: C – D – G
The last chords are IV – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
CDG- CC · E · G
- DD · F# · A
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Questions about Sparrow
What chords are in Sparrow?
The loop is Am – G – F – Am (ii – I – bVII – ii) in G major, and the song ends on C – D – G.
What key is Sparrow in?
G major, at about 76 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in Sparrow?
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 Sparrow 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.