Piano chords · Rock drive
How to play This Is How A Heart Breaks on piano
By Rob Thomas
- D minor
- 4/4
- 120 BPM
- Medium
Play the full song with sheet music
Learn This Is How A Heart Breaks in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: Dm – C – Bb – C
How it goes
This Is How A Heart Breaks 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; Bb is Bb, D and F. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
DmiCVIIBbVICVII- DmD · F · A
- CC · E · G
- BbBb · D · F
- 2
Left hand: Engine 8ths
How it goes
The lowest note on every eighth: the engine of rock. Musicians call it root bass · 8ths (root bass rhythm), a medium pattern heard in thousands of songs of the library.
- 3
Right hand: Slow-down chords
How it goes
Quick chords rush through the first half, then slow down to land on 4. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
- 4
Both hands at 120 BPM
How it goes
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
How it goes
The last chords are bVI – bVII – i, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
BbCDm
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Questions about This Is How A Heart Breaks
What chords are in This Is How A Heart Breaks?
The loop is Dm – C – Bb – C (i – bVII – bVI5 – bVII) in D minor, and the song ends on Bb – C – Dm.
What key is This Is How A Heart Breaks in?
D minor, at about 120 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in This Is How A Heart Breaks?
Engine 8ths: root bass · 8ths, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is This Is How A Heart Breaks 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.