Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Old-time stride

How to play When The Roll Is Called Up Yonder on piano

By Steven Tedesco

  • Ab major
  • 2/4
  • 92 BPM
  • 2008
  • Tricky
Play the full song with sheet music
Tuning the piano…
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Style

Left hand Kangaroo leapsRight hand Clockwork chordsChords worked out from the notes of the famous part

Learn When The Roll Is Called Up Yonder in 5 steps

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

  1. 1

    Chords: Ab – Db – Ab

    When The Roll Is Called Up Yonder sits in Ab major: Ab is home, where the song ends. It goes round 3 chords: Ab is Ab, C and Eb; Db is Db, F and Ab. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.

    AbIDbIVAbI
    • AbAb · C · Eb
    • DbDb · F · Ab
  2. 2

    Left hand: Kangaroo leaps

    Bass, high chord, bass, high chord, fast: the hand leaps like a kangaroo. Musicians call it stride (2/4) (stride & boom-chick), a tricky pattern heard in 107 songs of the library.

    Kangaroo leapsStride & boom-chick · StrideLeft handTricky
  3. 3

    Right hand: Clockwork chords

    Four quick, even chords per short bar, ticking like clockwork. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.

    Clockwork chordsSyncopated chords · StrideRight handMedium
  4. 4

    Both hands at 92 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. 5

    Ending: Db – Eb – Ab

    The last chords are IV – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.

    DbEbAb
    • EbEb · G · Bb

Play next

The same left hand: Kangaroo leaps

About this pattern
Maple Leaf RagScott Joplin
I Got RhythmGeorge Gershwin
Away In A MangerJohn T. McFarland
Carol Of The BirdsTraditional Catalonian Carol

Questions about When The Roll Is Called Up Yonder

What chords are in When The Roll Is Called Up Yonder?

The loop is Ab – Db – Ab (I – IV – I) in Ab major, and the song ends on Db – Eb – Ab.

What key is When The Roll Is Called Up Yonder in?

Ab major, at about 92 beats a minute in 2/4.

What does the left hand play in When The Roll Is Called Up Yonder?

Kangaroo leaps: stride (2/4), a tricky pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is When The Roll Is Called Up Yonder easy to play on piano?

It is a tricky one: learn the 3 chords as blocks first, then add the left hand, then the right, slowly.

Can I hear the real melody of When The Roll Is Called Up Yonder?

Yes: "The part you know" plays the main tune of the song from a score, with both hands.

Made from one arrangement of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.