Traditional · C major
London Bridge Is Falling Down: piano notes for beginners
London Bridge Is Falling Down is in C major and runs to 8 bars. A stepwise tune that never jumps more than one note, so the hand barely moves. 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 →Almost every note is next door to the one before it. Let your fingers walk rather than jump.
The notes
What notes are in London Bridge Is Falling Down?
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 London Bridge Is Falling Down
- Cutting the two-beat notes short at the end of each line.
- Playing the D in bar three with the wrong finger and running out of hand.
- Rushing. It is a walking pace, not a march.
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
English traditional rhyme with no known author, first published in 1744. 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.