Traditional · C major
Frère Jacques: piano notes for beginners
Frère Jacques is in C major and runs to 8 bars. Four short phrases, each played twice. The easiest tune on the site to memorise. There are three levels here: the melody on its own, the melody with one bass note per bar, and both hands together. Every note shows the finger to use, and the music waits for you rather than running ahead.
Three levels
Start at whichever one you can manage
One hand
The melody on its own, right hand only.
Play level 1 → LEVEL 2Melody and bass
One steady left-hand note under each bar.
Play level 2 → LEVEL 3Both hands
The full arrangement, both hands as written.
Play level 3 →Every phrase repeats immediately, so you only ever learn four short ideas.
The notes
What notes are in Frère Jacques?
The melody uses 6 different notes: C, D, E, F, G, A. It is written in C major in 4/4 time, and runs to 8 bars.
Every note the melody uses, lit on the keyboard. C major.
Before you start
Common mistakes on Frère Jacques
- Speeding up on the repeat. Each phrase should sound identical both times.
- Losing evenness in the run of four quicker notes in bar five.
- Letting the last note stop short. Hold it for its full two beats.
The practice room highlights the bars you keep fluffing and offers to loop them, so you do not have to spot these yourself.
Copyright
Why this piece is free
French traditional melody. The earliest known manuscript dates to about 1780 and every proposed author died before 1800. The arrangement, the fingering and the notation on this page are our own original work.
See the full public domain policy for every piece on this site.
Keep going
After this piece
About the same level: first piece · C major in 4/4 time Open → 1 Mary Had a Little Lamb
About the same level: first piece · C major in 4/4 time Open → 2 Ode to Joy
The next step up: beginner · C major in 4/4 time Open →
New to reading the dots? The guide to reading music is free, and the five minute walkthrough comes before everything else.