But there's much more than tonality that goes into evoking those moods. And because that's what their composers obviously intended, that's the way the songs are typically performed. Indeed, those recalcitrant minor key songs that defy generalization about the link between tonality and mood may tell us something more important about music than the ones that conform.ĭon't forget: The main reason 'Happy Birthday' sounds 'upbeat' and 'Eleanor Rigby' sounds 'doleful' is that their composers intended that they should. While there might be a loose correlation-reinforced by our particular musical tradition-between minor scales and 'sadness,' it's a mistake to think that the moods evoked by music can be confidently reduced to tonality in and of itself. Originally the words weren't Happy Birthday at all, but 'Good morning to you, good morning to you.MORE ON SONGS THAT MAKE YOU CRY: Eleanor Barkhorn: 10 Songs That Make Men Cry: Tracks by R.E.M., Eric Clapton, Leonard Cohen, and More Dominic Tierney: 'The Battle Hymn of the Republic': America's Song of Itself The Atlantic Glee Panel: 'Glee': The Saddest Thing on Television? However, the writers are known to history - two sisters named Mildred and Patty Hill, who wrote the song in 1893. This song has BECOME traditional - according to Wikipedia, Happy Birthday is the most-recognized song in the English language.

when the same chord is played for two measures in a row, a secondary bass note is used instead of the root of the chord.

the initial rolled chord is figured with a glissando mark instead of individual notes.

The arrangement below is essentially the same as the first one shown, except for:

(That's not the end of the story, but it's the BASIC idea.) I have found it difficult to get my students to feel comfortable with the seventh chords, so this newest arrangement is going to get a big push from me in the coming months!įor chord newbies: regular chords are TRIADS - on the piano it looks like 'note, skip, and skip.' To turn that triad into a seventh chord, just add one more skip. Here, because we are in the key of C, those chords end up being C, F, and G7. Very basic, and all piano players need to have an understanding of the relationship of these three chords.

The left hand split chords of this arrangement are just the I, IV, and V7 chords. I love to start 'Happy Birthday' with a rolled chord as shown above (and below), because it primes everyone to know just when to jump into the song! Please scroll down the page for the download links.

Happy birthday instrumental music