Hark! The Herald Angels Sing is the brightest fanfare in our Christmas collection, and the interactive player below is the fastest way to learn it: hear it at half speed, watch the notes and keys light up, and drag the score to loop any bar. Sheet music, fingering for both hands, and a free printable PDF come next.
Learn it with the interactive player
- Slow it down: x0.5 or x0.75 while you learn the notes, back to x1 once they flow.
- Pause anywhere: the current keys stay lit so you can find them on your own piano.
- Drag the score left or right, or use the 15s buttons, to replay a phrase.
The sheet music, section by section
Section A is two matched phrases: G4 leaps to C5-C5-B4, C5-E5-E5-D5, then G5-G5-G5-F5 and E5-D5-E5 for Glory to the newborn King; Peace on earth starts the same and dips to a half close B4-A4-G4. The left hand rocks C3-G3-E3-G3 in steady quarters; take it at x0.5 and watch the B4 in measures 7-8 change from thumb to finger 3.
Section B rings out twice on repeated G5s, G5-G5-G5-C5 then F5-E5-E5-D5, before the famous refrain climbs to A5 at ff and cascades F5-E5-F5, D5-E5-F5-G5-C5, C5-D5-C5 for Glory to the newborn King. Fix the high frame first, thumb on C5 and pinky on G5, and loop measure 13 at x0.75.
The full score
In the full score the left hand plays four quarters in every bar, so it is your metronome; keep the three repeated G5s in measure 9 sounding like three bells. Build from 76 toward the 108 BPM Allegro moderato, f at the start, mf for Peace on earth, ff for the final Hark.
Note by note: keys and fingering
- Right hand: The verse alternates a low frame, thumb (1) on G4 with middle (3) on C5 and pinky (5) on E5, and a high frame with the pinky on G5 and ring (4) on F5. Section B lives in the high frame, thumb on C5 and pinky on G5, shifting up one step so the pinky reaches A5 for the final Hark.
- Left hand: A rocking single-note pattern on each chord: root with the pinky (5), fifth with the thumb (1), third with the middle (3), so C3-G3-E3-G3, F2-C3-A2-C3, G2-D3-B2-D3 and A2-E3-C3-E3. The left hand is a broken-chord engine that never plays two keys at once.
| Note | On the Staff | On the Keyboard | Finger |
|---|---|---|---|
| G4 | Second line of treble staff | White key between the first two of three black keys above middle C | RH Thumb (1) |
| A4 | Second space of treble staff | White key between the last two of three black keys above middle C | RH Index (2) |
| B4 | Middle line of treble staff | White key right of the three black keys above middle C | RH Index (2) |
| C5 | Third space of treble staff | One octave above middle C | RH Middle (3) |
| D5 | Fourth line of treble staff | White key between the two black keys above C5 | RH Ring (4) |
| E5 | Fourth space of treble staff | White key right of the two black keys above C5 | RH Pinky (5) |
| F5 | Top line of treble staff | White key left of the three black keys above C5 | RH Ring (4) |
| G5 | Space just above the treble staff | White key between the first two of three black keys above C5 | RH Pinky (5) |
| A5 | First ledger line above the treble staff | White key between the last two of three black keys above C5 | RH Pinky (5) |
| F2 | Space just below the bottom line of the bass staff | White key left of the three black keys, two octaves below F4 | LH Pinky (5) |
| G2 | Bottom line of bass staff | White key between the first two of three black keys, an octave and a fourth below middle C | LH Pinky (5) |
| A2 | First space of bass staff | White key between the last two of three black keys, an octave and a third below middle C | LH Pinky (5) |
| B2 | Second line of bass staff | White key right of the three black keys, an octave and a step below middle C | LH Middle (3) |
| C3 | Second space of bass staff | One octave below middle C | LH Pinky (5) |
| D3 | Third line of bass staff | White key between the two black keys below middle C | LH Thumb (1) |
| E3 | Third space of bass staff | White key right of the two black keys below middle C | LH Middle (3) |
| G3 | Fourth space of bass staff | White key between the first two of three black keys below middle C | LH Thumb (1) |
Prefer a video? Watch the keys light up
Same color code as the player: green marks the right hand, blue the left hand, with the score and keyboard in one vertical video.
The story behind Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
This tune was never meant for Christmas. Mendelssohn composed it in 1840 for the Festgesang, a cantata celebrating 400 years of Gutenberg's printing press, and doubted the melody would ever suit sacred words. In 1855 the English organist William H. Cummings ignored that doubt and fitted it to Charles Wesley's hymn text of 1739, which Wesley had originally opened with Hark! how all the welkin rings. The marriage stuck, and the printing-press fanfare became one of the most joyful carols ever sung. It is a piece built on repeated notes and bold octave-wide leaps, pure celebration, and this arrangement keeps it in C major over a rocking single-note bass.
Get the printable PDF
The printable PDF of Hark! The Herald Angels Sing - full score, hand positions, and a step-by-step practice guide - ships inside our free Christmas pack together with fourteen other carols.
A fanfare played ff for sixteen bars is tiring from a wobbly stool, and an Adjustable Piano Bench with Back Support keeps your back and shoulders relaxed when the dynamics climb.
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FAQ
How hard is Hark! The Herald Angels Sing on piano?
It is a Level 3 piece in our Christmas collection. The right hand spans G4 to A5 across two frames with a full octave leap between measures 8 and 9, the left hand rocks through broken chords in single quarter notes on every beat, and the dynamics rise from f to ff.
How long does it take to learn Hark! The Herald Angels Sing?
Three to four weeks for most learners. The two frames can be learned separately in the first week, the left-hand broken chords are one pattern on four different roots, and the octave leap plus the shift up to A5 in measure 13 take the rest of the time at 108 BPM.
What level is Hark! The Herald Angels Sing?
Level 3 of our Christmas collection. C major, 4/4, Allegro moderato at 108 BPM, 16 measures. The right hand covers G4 to A5 and the left hand plays single quarter notes from F2 to G3 in a root-fifth-third-fifth pattern.
What are the notes for Hark! The Herald Angels Sing?
The melody starts G4, C5, C5, B4, then C5, E5, E5, D5, then G5, G5, G5, F5 and E5, D5, E5. The second phrase repeats the opening and ends G5, D5, D5, B4, B4, A4, G4. Section B runs G5, G5, G5, C5, F5, E5, E5, D5 twice, then A5, A5, A5, G5, F5, E5, F5. The left hand opens C3, G3, E3, G3; see the full table above.