How do you play Frère Jacques on the piano?

Frère Jacques piano notes

Frère Jacques starts on middle C: C D E C, C D E C, then E F G, E F G. The quick part is G A G F E C, twice, and the song ends with C, a low G below middle C, and C again. Each line comes twice in a row, so it is quick to learn.

Play it on the virtual piano

The notes, line by line

Each line shows the letters to play, then each key with its octave: C4 is middle C. The box under a key is the computer key that plays it on the virtual piano.

Are you sleeping, are you sleeping
C D E C C D E C
C4QD4WE4EC4QC4QD4WE4EC4Q
Brother John, Brother John?
E F G E F G
E4EF4RG4TE4EF4RG4T
Morning bells are ringing, morning bells are ringing
G A G F E C G A G F E C
G4TA4YG4TF4RE4EC4QG4TA4YG4TF4RE4EC4Q
Ding, dang, dong. Ding, dang, dong.
C G C C G C
C4QG3BC4QC4QG3BC4Q

How to play it

Put your right thumb on middle C: C D E F G are fingers 1 to 5.
Play C D E C twice with fingers 1 2 3 1, then E F G twice with fingers 3 4 5.
For "morning bells are ringing", stretch your hand: thumb on C, fingers 2 to 5 on E F G A. Play G A G F E C with fingers 4 5 4 3 2 1.
End with "ding, dang, dong": C, the G below middle C, and C. Move your thumb down to the low G and back, or play the low G with your left hand.

Fingers have numbers: 1 is the thumb, 2 the index finger, 3 the middle finger, 4 the ring finger and 5 the little finger. In the virtual piano, press Listen to hear the rhythm first, and pick a slower speed while you learn.

Key facts

Level	Easy
Notes in the melody	32
Keys	7: G3 C4 D4 E4 F4 G4 A4
Black keys	None
Lowest and highest note	G3 – A4
First note	C4
Melody by	Traditional

The notes in do re mi

In fixed do, C is always Do, as in Spanish, French and Italian.

Do Re Mi Do Do Re Mi Do
Mi Fa Sol Mi Fa Sol
Sol La Sol Fa Mi Do Sol La Sol Fa Mi Do
Do Sol Do Do Sol Do

About the song

Frère Jacques is a French children's song. The French words ask Brother Jacques if he is still asleep, because the morning bells are ringing.

It is a round: a second group starts the song when the first group reaches the second line. The oldest known copy of the tune is a French manuscript from about 1775 to 1785. Gustav Mahler used it, in a minor key, in the third movement of his Symphony No. 1.

Questions

Is Frère Jacques the same song as Are You Sleeping?

Yes. Are You Sleeping, Brother John? is the English version of the French song, with the same tune.

Can two people play Frère Jacques as a round on one piano?

Yes. One player starts, and the second starts from the beginning when the first reaches "Brother John". The two parts fit together the whole way through.