Piano chords · Pop heartbeat
How to play The Word on piano
By The Beatles
- D minor
- 4/4
- 100 BPM
- 1965
- Easy
Learn The Word in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: Dm – C – Dm – G
The Word sits in D minor: D is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: Dm is D, F and A; C is C, E and G; G is G, B and D. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
DmiCVIIDmiGIV- DmD · F · A
- CC · E · G
- GG · B · D
- 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: Late-knock chords
One chord, a long wait, then a quick knock-knock at the end. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
- 4
Both hands at 100 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: Bb – C – Dm
The last chords are bVI – bVII – i, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
BbCDm- BbBb · D · F
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Questions about The Word
What chords are in The Word?
The loop is Dm – C – Dm – G (i – bVII – i – IV) in D minor, and the song ends on Bb – C – Dm.
What key is The Word in?
D minor, at about 100 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in The Word?
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 The Word easy to play on piano?
Yes. Both hands play easy patterns over 4 chords. Learn the chords first, then add one hand at a time.
Made from one arrangement of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.