The library · Traditional songs
Au clair de la lune
Traditional French song
Many pianists' very first tune: four phrases, three chords and an A A B A form, perfect for discovering the method.
C major · 4/4 · 100 beats per minute · 16 bars · 38 s · beginner level
no account needed
The form
The sections of the piece and their chords: the map you learn before playing a single note.
A A B A
| Section | Bars | Chords | Phrase ending |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | 1–4 | C · G7 · C · G7 · C I · V7 · I · V7 · I |
Perfect cadence |
| A | 5–8 | C · G7 · C · G7 · C I · V7 · I · V7 · I |
Perfect cadence |
| B | 9–12 | G · Dm · G7 · G V · ii · V7 · V |
Imperfect cadence |
| A | 13–16 | C · G7 · C · G7 · C I · V7 · I · V7 · I |
Perfect cadence |
The key
- C major
- No sharps or flats
- Scale
- C · D · E · F · G · A · B
- Pillar chords
- I = C · IV = F · V7 = G7
The tricky passages
No passage is harder than the rest: a good piece to discover the method.
The plan: 6 days
Half an hour a day. First I help you understand the map of the piece, then we lay down the chord framework, learn each section phrase by phrase, work on the tricky passages, put it together and bring it up to tempo, until you can play it from memory.
no account needed
More pieces from the library
- Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star · Traditional, with variations by Mozart
- Frère Jacques · Traditional French song
- Ode to Joy · Ludwig van Beethoven
- Prelude in C major, BWV 846 · Johann Sebastian Bach
- Invention No. 1 in C major, BWV 772 · Johann Sebastian Bach
- Minuet in G major, BWV Anh. 114 · Christian Petzold