Piano chords · Pop heartbeat
How to play This Christmas on piano
By Donny Hathaway
- F major
- 4/4
- 100 BPM
- 1970
- Medium
Learn This Christmas in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: Bbmaj7 – Ebmaj7 – Am – Am – Bbmaj7 – Ebmaj7 – Am – Am
This Christmas sits in F major: F is home, where the song ends. It goes round 8 chords: Bbmaj7 is Bb, D, F and A; Ebmaj7 is Eb, G, Bb and D; Am is A, C and E. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
Bbmaj7IVmaj7Ebmaj7bVIImaj7AmiiiAmiiiBbmaj7IVmaj7Ebmaj7bVIImaj7AmiiiAmiii- Bbmaj7Bb · D · F · A
- Ebmaj7Eb · G · Bb · D
- AmA · C · E
- 2
Left hand: Tick-tick-boom pulse
Two quick low notes and a high one, twice: ta-ta-DUM, ta-ta-DUM. Musicians call it root bass · 8ths 1-2, 3-4 (root bass rhythm), a medium pattern heard in 479 songs of the library.
- 3
Right hand: Wait-a-beat chords
Silence on beat 1, then chords on 2, 3 and 4, leaving room for the bass. 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 – F
The last chords are IV – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
BbCF- BbBb · D · F
- CC · E · G
- FF · A · C
Play next
Questions about This Christmas
What chords are in This Christmas?
The loop is Bbmaj7 – Ebmaj7 – Am – Am – Bbmaj7 – Ebmaj7 – Am – Am (IVmaj7 – bVIImaj7 – iii – IVmaj7 – bVIImaj7 – iii – IVmaj7 – bVIImaj7) in F major, and the song ends on Bb – C – F.
What key is This Christmas in?
F major, at about 100 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in This Christmas?
Tick-tick-boom pulse: root bass · 8ths 1-2, 3-4, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is This Christmas 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 This Christmas?
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.