Piano chords · Pop heartbeat

How to play When Doves Cry on piano

Tuning the piano…

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Learn When Doves Cry in 5 steps

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

1
Chords: F – Am – G – F
When Doves Cry sits in C major: C is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: F is F, A and C; Am is A, C and E; G is G, B and D. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
FIVAmviGVFIV
- FF · A · C
- AmA · C · E
- GG · B · D
35 songs go round the same chords
2
Left hand: Island pulse
Three, three, two: the island rhythm in so many pop hits. Musicians call it root bass · tresillo 3-3-2 (root bass rhythm), an easy pattern heard in thousands of songs of the library.
Island pulseRoot bass rhythm · PopLeft handEasy
3
Right hand: Ticking clock
One high note repeated on every quick beat: tick, tick, tick. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
Ticking clockRepeated-note pulse · RockRight handMedium
4
Both hands at 120 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: F – G – C
The last chords are IV – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
FGC
- CC · E · G

What chords are in When Doves Cry?

The loop is F – Am – G – F (IV – vi – V – IV) in C major, and the song ends on F – G – C.

What key is When Doves Cry in?

C major, at about 120 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in When Doves Cry?

Island pulse: root bass · tresillo 3-3-2, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is When Doves Cry 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.