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Posted by Greene Music on April 15, 2022

One of the biggest perks of picking up the piano as a hobby or new skill is how simple it can be to begin. Unlike other instruments that require a great deal of practice to manage various strings and elements, beginning songs for piano entail hitting the right keys that are visible right in front of you. And while many songs can be quite challenging to play, there are quite a few simple piano songs that allow beginners to gain their footing before diving into the more intricate sheet music. 

Much of learning to play the piano comes from practice, and for beginners, this starts with the most simple of songs. We all must start somewhere, and these early-stage songs allow those new to the piano to learn to play with one hand and then two. As levels increase, pianists can learn about tone and rhythm, different notes and triads, and so much more. But first, we must begin with the basics. 

As seasoned piano experts, our team at Greene Music has helped quite a few beginning players master this beautiful instrument, and with this background and knowledge, we are sharing just where to begin. To help a new piano player begin their journey with this instrument, we have compiled our go-to easy piano songs for beginners. 

Useful Tips for Quick Learning

Whether you are learning to play the piano, or are seeking to help a child master this instrument, you should have a real piano to play to learn properly. While tablets and smartphones can mimic playing patterns and sounds, playing the right instrument is half the success. And at Greene Music, we can offer the finest Yamaha digital pianos that can partner with the Smart Pianist app to help make playing the piano easier, and more convenient. 

Now, once you have the right piano to begin, there are a few tips that can help make learning new songs easier, and faster. For quick learning, we recommend:

  • Learn music in sections. It helps a lot to break down a song into sections and learn each individually. You can break this down into the introduction, verse, and chorus to start. Instead of learning a song from start to finish, breaking it down into these sections will make it easier for your brain to comprehend. 
  • Start playing with the right hand. Using two hands at once is a skill that takes a bit of time to coordinate, especially as a beginner. So, with these beginner piano songs, just focus on playing the right-handed melody first, and then add in as many additional chords as possible. 
  • Choose a song you truly like. This will make learning how to play it much more enjoyable, and ensure you don’t become sick of it too fast and quit your practice. 
  • Last, slow it down. There’s a great deal of truth in the phrase “slow and steady wins the race.” By learning a song at a slower pace, you can pick up on and learn the unique notes and how to move between them. This will help greatly improve your skills. 

10 Popular Beginner Piano Songs

Learning to play the piano starts with finding the right easy piano tunes for beginners. To save you time in your search, our experts at Greene Music are sharing the best songs to play on the piano for beginners to help them begin building their skills to become better pianists. 

For all the simple songs to play on the piano to begin a journey as a pianist, keep reading below. 

Mary Had a Little Lamb

A familiar song to many, and one that is wonderful for younger children to start with, is Mary Had a Little Lamb. This easy piano music for beginners is often used in the early stages of piano teachings as the notes are quite simple to master. The nursery rhyme is broken down as such:

Mary had a little lamb

E D C D E E E 

Little lamb, little lamb

D D D E G G 

Mary had a little lamb 

E D C D E E E 

Its fleece was white as snow

E D D E D C

Watch below to see how it’s done:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdSDMIF67M8&feature=youtu.be

Chopsticks

Next on the list of the easiest piano songs to start with is Chopsticks. This is one many piano teachers turn to as it can be played with just two fingers - wonderful for those who are truly in those very beginning stages of playing. 

To master this two-finger piece, watch the video below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVtw4DWnQ5w&feature=youtu.be

Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star

Another of the go-to easy piano songs to learn is Twinkle, Twinkle, and Little Star. Many beginner players will enjoy playing this childhood classic. What makes it all the easier to master is that each note included is played twice in a row, requiring new players to find fewer notes on the keyboard. This song is broken down as seen below:

Twinkle, Twinkle, little star

C C G G A A G

How I wonder what you are

F F E E D D C

Up above the world so high 

GG F F E E D

Like a diamond in the sky 

G G F F E E D

Twinkle, twinkle, little star

C C G G A A G

How I wonder what you are 

F F E E D D C

To visually see how to play the notes, view the following video:

https://youtu.be/y69ssAtvcp8

Happy Birthday

The perfect, festive song for new pianists is Happy Birthday. This is useful for all our loved one’s birthday parties, and with a recognizable tune, it’s an easy feat for new piano players. To play this song, the note breakdown is:

Happy birthday to you 

G G A G C B

Happy birthday to you 

G G A G D C

Happy birthday dear (insert name)

G G G^ E C B A

Happy birthday to you 

F F E C D C

To visualize how to play this song on your own, watch this video:

https://youtu.be/kt8Mzf7M7Q4

If You’re Happy and You Know It

Another song many of us are familiar with from childhood is If You’re Happy and You Know It. This is a fun, slightly faster-paced song for new players and one of our top easy piano tunes for beginners. 

That being said, this song does offer one tricky part - a B flat note. To play this, the player must press the small black key between the A and B keys. However, this option will not be available on many toy pianos, making it all the more important to have a real one. 

To play this song, follow this note scheme:

If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands

C C F F F F F F E F G 

If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands

C C G G G G G G F G A

If you’re happy and you know it

A A Bb Bb Bb Bb D D

Then your face will surely show it

Bb Bb A A A G F F

If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands

A A G G G F E E D E F

For more on how to play this song, watch the tutorial below:

https://youtu.be/m1EDXRSYYPk

The Itsy Bitsy Spider

A popular song for many children to sing, the Itsy Bitsy Spider also makes for a great starting place when exploring piano simple songs. This one is pretty easy to play, and very enjoyable for younger children. 

To master these notes, here is the breakdown:

The itsy bitsy spider went up the water spout

G C C C D E E E D C D E C 

Down came the rain and washed the spider out 

E E F G G F E F G E 

Out came the sun and dried up all the rain 

C C D E E D C D E C 

And the itsy bitsy spider went up the spout again 

G G C C C D E E E D C D E C

To slow down the motions of this song, watch this video:

https://youtu.be/-mf5mlassWo

Heart & Soul

Heart & Soul is a standard introductory song for many beginner players. This song is great for duets, too, allowing two players to sit side-by-side to bring the tune of this song. When two players play, such as a student and a teacher, one will play the chords while the other does the melody. This chord is typically represented as C-Amin-F-G.

To learn to play this song, watch the tutorial below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLSTo4lFsYk&feature=youtu.be

Old MacDonald Had a Farm

Another great nursery rhyme to add to the list of beginning songs for piano is Old MacDonald Had a Farm. This one is a bit longer than some of the other easiest piano songs but is still just as simple to play. Here is the breakdown.

Old MacDonald had a farm

G G G D E E D

E-i-e-i-o

B B A A G

And on that farm he had a cow

D G G G D E E D 

E-i-e-i-o

B B A A G

With a moo moo here and a moo moo there

D D G G G D D G G G

Here a moo, there a moo

G G G G G G

Everywhere a moo moo

G G G G G G

Old MacDonald had a fard

G G G D E E D

E-i-e-i-o

B B A A G

To see how to play this song on your keyboard, watch below:

https://youtu.be/ww22nE-6PkE

Fur Elise

Stepping away from the nursery rhymes to add a more classic song to the list of easy piano songs to learn is Fur Elise. This is a fun song to play that is pretty simple to learn, and easy to play well. To expand on your skillset, you can add more notes as you go to improve the sound and grow your knowledge.

To learn how to play this song, view the tutorial below. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=027VKn4OKmI&feature=youtu.be

Jingle Bells

To wrap up the top 10 songs to play on the piano for beginners, we are ending on a festive, holiday-inspired note with Jingle Bells. A winter-time favorite for many, Jingle Bells is sure to get the whole family in the holiday mood, and it’s a pretty simple song to play, too. To ring in the festivities, here is the note breakdown for this holiday favorite. 

(D^) B - B B B - B B B-^D G A B

(Oh) Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way

C C C C C B B 

Oh what fun it is to ride

B B B A A B A D

In a one-horse open sleigh 

B B B B B B B D G A B

To learn the full notes for this song, watch this video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ROqgdTRa0bE

Conclusion

There is no shortage of simple piano songs to help get beginning players on their feet. From well-known nursery rhymes to classical tunes and more popular, modern songs, there’s a vast array of easy piano songs to learn, and this is only the start. 


To master all the easy songs for beginners, it’s best to play on a high-quality digital piano. Greene Music is home to the finest Yamaha Clavinova digital pianos, with models perfect for beginners. You can browse through the catalog to look for a piano or you can get in touch with Greene Music by calling at (858) 586-7000 or via the contact form, and piano experts will help you choose the instrument that is just right for you.