{"id":6018,"date":"2017-02-27T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2017-02-27T16:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/?p=6018"},"modified":"2024-04-23T14:27:36","modified_gmt":"2024-04-23T21:27:36","slug":"happy-birthday-tutorial","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/happy-birthday-tutorial\/","title":{"rendered":"Happy Birthday Piano Chords and Easy Tutorial"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Recently, a friend of mine admitted that he didn\u2019t know the piano chords to \u201cHappy Birthday\u201d on the piano. He was at a birthday party, there was a piano there, and people knew that he played. So, they asked him to play \u201cHappy Birthday,\u201d but he didn\u2019t know how!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And get this \u2014 it happened <em>more than once<\/em>!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In this lesson, I\u2019ll show you how to play \u201cHappy Birthday\u201d on the piano in C Major in its easiest form. Then, I\u2019ll show you how to play a jazzy version. Super simple but it sounds <em>so<\/em> nice!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-rank-math-toc-block\" id=\"rank-math-toc\"><p><strong>Table of Contents:<\/strong><\/p><nav><ol><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#happy-birthday-piano-chords-lead-sheet\">Piano Chords &amp; Lead Sheet<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#happy-birthday-the-easy-version\">The Easy Version<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#happy-birthday-the-jazzy-version\">The Jazzy Version<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#make-your-happy-birthday-even-fancier\">Make Your \u201cHappy Birthday\u201d Even Fancier<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#transposing-the-piano-chords-in-happy-birthday\">How to Transpose &#8220;Happy Birthday&#8221;<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#closing-thoughts\">Closing Thoughts<\/a><\/li><\/ol><\/nav><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<span class=\"blue-text-block\"><center><h2 style=\"font-size:22px\"><b>\ud83c\udfb9 Your Go-To Place for All Things Piano<\/b><\/h2><p>Get exclusive interviews, fascinating articles, and inspiring lessons delivered straight to your inbox. Unsubscribe at any time.<\/p><iframe class=\"email-form-include\" src=\"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/weeklyemail\" frameborder=\"none\"><\/iframe><\/center><\/span>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"happy-birthday-piano-chords-lead-sheet\" style=\"font-size:32px\"><strong>Happy Birthday &#8211; Piano Chords &amp; Lead Sheet<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>To play &#8220;Happy Birthday&#8221; on the piano in C major, you only need four piano chords: <strong>C<\/strong>, <strong>G<\/strong>, <strong>F<\/strong>, and <strong>Dm<\/strong>. Here&#8217;s a diagram of all of them in root position:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns are-vertically-aligned-top is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-top is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong>C Major Triad<\/strong><br>C-E-G<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"260\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musora.com\/musora-cdn\/image\/quality=85\/https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11145431\/C-Major-Root-2-1024x260.png\" alt=\"C major triad keyboard diagram with notes C-E-G highlighted in red and labelled.\" class=\"wp-image-13681\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11145431\/C-Major-Root-2-1024x260.png 1024w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11145431\/C-Major-Root-2-300x76.png 300w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11145431\/C-Major-Root-2-768x195.png 768w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11145431\/C-Major-Root-2-1536x390.png 1536w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11145431\/C-Major-Root-2-2048x520.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong>F Major Triad<\/strong><br>F-A-C<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"260\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musora.com\/musora-cdn\/image\/quality=85\/https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11145509\/F-Major-Root-1-1024x260.png\" alt=\"F major triad keyboard diagram with notes F-A-C highlighted in red and labelled.\" class=\"wp-image-13683\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11145509\/F-Major-Root-1-1024x260.png 1024w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11145509\/F-Major-Root-1-300x76.png 300w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11145509\/F-Major-Root-1-768x195.png 768w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11145509\/F-Major-Root-1-1536x390.png 1536w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11145509\/F-Major-Root-1-2048x520.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-top is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong>G Major Triad<\/strong><br>G-B-D<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"260\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musora.com\/musora-cdn\/image\/quality=85\/https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11145456\/G-Major-Root-1-1024x260.png\" alt=\"G major triad keyboard diagram with notes G-B-D highlighted in red and labelled.\" class=\"wp-image-13682\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11145456\/G-Major-Root-1-1024x260.png 1024w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11145456\/G-Major-Root-1-300x76.png 300w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11145456\/G-Major-Root-1-768x195.png 768w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11145456\/G-Major-Root-1-1536x390.png 1536w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11145456\/G-Major-Root-1-2048x520.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong>D Minor Triad<\/strong><br>D-F-A<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"260\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musora.com\/musora-cdn\/image\/quality=85\/https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11145522\/D-Minor-Root-1-1024x260.png\" alt=\"D minor triad keyboard diagram with notes D-F-A highlighted in red and labelled.\" class=\"wp-image-13684\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11145522\/D-Minor-Root-1-1024x260.png 1024w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11145522\/D-Minor-Root-1-300x76.png 300w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11145522\/D-Minor-Root-1-768x195.png 768w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11145522\/D-Minor-Root-1-1536x390.png 1536w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11145522\/D-Minor-Root-1-2048x520.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>We&#8217;ve also made a lead sheet of the melody and chords:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>&gt; <a href=\"https:\/\/pianote.s3.amazonaws.com\/blog\/pdf\/Happy%20Birthday-Lead-Sheet.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Download Happy Birthday Piano Chords &amp; Lead Sheet<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"happy-birthday-the-easy-version\" style=\"font-size:32px\"><strong>Happy Birthday &#8211; The Easy Version<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The easiest way to play \u201cHappy Birthday\u201d is to play the melody on your right hand and the chords on your left. We\u2019ve written our lead sheet in C Major, but pay attention \u2014 the song actually starts on G!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To do this, just change chords whenever they appear above a point in the melody:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"252\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musora.com\/musora-cdn\/image\/quality=85\/https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11150438\/Happy-Birthday-Lead-Sheet-with-markup-1024x252.png\" alt=\"Happy birthday piano chords and lead sheet with chords over notes\/words highlighted in pink.\" class=\"wp-image-13685\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11150438\/Happy-Birthday-Lead-Sheet-with-markup-1024x252.png 1024w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11150438\/Happy-Birthday-Lead-Sheet-with-markup-300x74.png 300w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11150438\/Happy-Birthday-Lead-Sheet-with-markup-768x189.png 768w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11150438\/Happy-Birthday-Lead-Sheet-with-markup-1536x377.png 1536w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11150438\/Happy-Birthday-Lead-Sheet-with-markup-2048x503.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>You can also think of it as changing chords over words:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musora.com\/musora-cdn\/image\/quality=85\/https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11152142\/happy-birthday-chords-copy-1.png\" alt=\"Happy birthday piano chord chart\" class=\"wp-image-13691\" style=\"width:400px;height:317px\" width=\"400\" height=\"317\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11152142\/happy-birthday-chords-copy-1.png 800w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11152142\/happy-birthday-chords-copy-1-300x238.png 300w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11152142\/happy-birthday-chords-copy-1-768x609.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>Before you go further, we recommend practicing the easy version of \u201cHappy Birthday\u201d a few times first. Get to know these chords.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you (or your party) find this key too high or too low to sing, keep reading to learn how you can <a href=\"#bonus-transposing-the-piano-chords-in-happy-birthday\">transpose<\/a> it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-text-color has-cyan-bluish-gray-color has-alpha-channel-opacity has-cyan-bluish-gray-background-color has-background is-style-wide\"\/>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\" style=\"font-size:24px\"><strong>Unlock the Secret to Songs (FREE Webinar)<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musora.com\/musora-cdn\/image\/quality=85\/https:\/\/pianote.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/blog\/2023\/Song%20Secrets%20Webinar%20Lead%20Gen\/lisa%20webinar.jpg\" alt=\"Woman with short platinum hair in light stripey sweater playing keyboard.\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\">If you struggle with reading music, you&#8217;re not alone! Did you know you can play hundreds of songs without standard notation? We&#8217;ll show you the secrets traditional lessons won&#8217;t teach in a 100% free webinar. It&#8217;s open to all ages and ability levels. Just show up and have fun!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<center><a class=\"join\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/song-secrets-webinar\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">CHECK IT OUT<\/a>\n<\/center>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-text-color has-cyan-bluish-gray-color has-alpha-channel-opacity has-cyan-bluish-gray-background-color has-background is-style-wide\"\/>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"happy-birthday-the-jazzy-version\" style=\"font-size:32px\"><strong>Happy Birthday &#8211; The Jazzy Version<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Playing \u201cHappy Birthday\u201d like this is fine and dandy, but a way to take it up a notch is to jazz it up!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Making something sound \u201cjazzy\u201d can be quite simple: use <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/understanding-7ths\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">seventh chords<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>What are seventh chords? It\u2019s when you add a fourth note after your triad that is seven notes away from the root (or bottom) chord.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Now, here\u2019s an important thing to remember: <strong>stay in your key.<\/strong> We\u2019re in C Major, which means no sharps or flats, so don\u2019t add a note that gets a sharp or flat onto your seventh. Here are the chords we\u2019ll use:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong>Cmaj7<\/strong><br>C-E-G-B<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"260\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musora.com\/musora-cdn\/image\/quality=85\/https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11151742\/C-Major-7-Root-1-1024x260.png\" alt=\"Cmaj7 keyboard diagram with notes C-E-G-B highlighted in red and labelled.\" class=\"wp-image-13687\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11151742\/C-Major-7-Root-1-1024x260.png 1024w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11151742\/C-Major-7-Root-1-300x76.png 300w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11151742\/C-Major-7-Root-1-768x195.png 768w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11151742\/C-Major-7-Root-1-1536x390.png 1536w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11151742\/C-Major-7-Root-1-2048x520.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong>Fmaj7<\/strong><br>F-A-C-E<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"260\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musora.com\/musora-cdn\/image\/quality=85\/https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11151831\/F-Major-7-Root-1-1024x260.png\" alt=\"Fmaj7 keyboard diagram with notes F-A-C-E highlighted in red and labelled.\" class=\"wp-image-13689\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11151831\/F-Major-7-Root-1-1024x260.png 1024w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11151831\/F-Major-7-Root-1-300x76.png 300w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11151831\/F-Major-7-Root-1-768x195.png 768w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11151831\/F-Major-7-Root-1-1536x390.png 1536w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11151831\/F-Major-7-Root-1-2048x520.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong>G7<\/strong><br>G-B-D-F<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"260\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musora.com\/musora-cdn\/image\/quality=85\/https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11151759\/G-7-Root-1-1024x260.png\" alt=\"G7 keyboard diagram with notes G-B-D-F highlighted in red and labelled.\" class=\"wp-image-13688\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11151759\/G-7-Root-1-1024x260.png 1024w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11151759\/G-7-Root-1-300x76.png 300w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11151759\/G-7-Root-1-768x195.png 768w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11151759\/G-7-Root-1-1536x390.png 1536w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11151759\/G-7-Root-1-2048x520.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong>Dm7<\/strong><br>D-F-A-C<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musora.com\/musora-cdn\/image\/quality=85\/https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11151855\/D-Minor-7-Root-1-1024x260.png\" alt=\"Dm7 keyboard diagram with notes D-F-A-C highlighted in red and labelled.\" class=\"wp-image-13690\" style=\"width:402px;height:102px\" width=\"402\" height=\"102\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11151855\/D-Minor-7-Root-1-1024x260.png 1024w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11151855\/D-Minor-7-Root-1-300x76.png 300w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11151855\/D-Minor-7-Root-1-768x195.png 768w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11151855\/D-Minor-7-Root-1-1536x390.png 1536w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11151855\/D-Minor-7-Root-1-2048x520.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 402px) 100vw, 402px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"bonus-whats-the-difference-between-cmaj-7-and-c-7\" style=\"font-size:24px\"><strong>What\u2019s the difference between Cmaj7 and C7?\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>You\u2019ll notice some of the chords have \u201cmaj\u201d in them and some of them don\u2019t. The \u201cmaj\u201d means the chord isn\u2019t a dominant seventh, while the lack of a \u201cmaj\u201d means the chord <em>is<\/em> a dominant seventh.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A <strong>dominant seventh chord<\/strong> is a chord that\u2019s built on the seventh note of a scale. For example, take <strong>C7<\/strong>: count backwards to five from C and you\u2019ll land on F. This means C7 is a dominant seventh chord built on the fifth note of F Major.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>What difference does this make? Well, F Major has one flat: B flat. This makes C7 a chord with the notes C-E-G-Bb.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Meanwhile, Cmaj7, a <em>non<\/em>-dominant seventh chord, has the notes C-E-G-B. You can learn more about different types of seventh chords <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/understanding-7ths\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"make-your-happy-birthday-even-fancier\" style=\"font-size:32px\"><strong>Make Your \u201cHappy Birthday\u201d Even Fancier<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>So far, we\u2019ve been playing all our chords in root position. But you can mix up the order of notes in your chords using <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/piano-chord-inversions\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">inversions<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You\u2019ll notice I play a G7 chord in 2nd inversion at the end. That is, the G7 chord is ordered D-F-G-B. Can you see how I get to move less by using this inversion? Inversions can help us transition smoothly between chords!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns are-vertically-aligned-center is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:10%\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:80%\">\n<video playsinline=\"\u201c\u201d\" autoplay=\"\u201c\u201d\" src=\"https:\/\/pianote.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/blog\/2021\/Happy%20Birthday%20Rewrite\/happy%20birthday%20ending%20min.mp4\" loop=\"\" muted=\"\" width=\"100%\"><\/video>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:10%\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>You can learn more about inversions here and how to use them as shortcuts <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/chord-shortcuts\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">here<\/a>. Here are more ideas to make your \u201cHappy Birthday\u201d performance more impressive:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Use broken chords and\/or play arpeggios in the left hand.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Add riffs and fills. You\u2019ll see I add a little grace note at the end!<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Experiment with different transitions, such as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/gospel-progressions\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">gospel transitions<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/passing-chords\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">RnB transitions<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"transposing-the-piano-chords-in-happy-birthday\" style=\"font-size:32px\"><strong>Transposing the Piano Chords in Happy Birthday<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Now, we\u2019ve been playing (and perhaps singing!) \u201cHappy Birthday\u201d in C Major. But not everyone is comfortable with singing in C Major. So, it helps to learn how to transpose (move into a different key).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"step-1-assign-each-chord-a-number\" style=\"font-size:24px\"><strong>Step 1: Assign each chord a number<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>If you want to learn how to transpose, it helps to learn the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/the-number-system\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">number system<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Each chord gets a number. Our starting key is C Major, so recall that the C Major scale goes like this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-text-color has-large-font-size\" style=\"color:#f61a30\"><strong>C-D-E-F-G-A-B<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Since our C chord is built on the first note of the C Major scale (C), it gets the number 1 or <strong>I<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The chord is built on the fifth note of the C Major scale, so it gets the number 5 or <strong>V<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Our F chord is built on the fourth note of the C Major scale, so its name is <strong>IV<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Dm is built on the second note of the C Major scale, so it becomes our <strong>ii<\/strong> chord. (Note: uppercase letters represent major chords and lowercase letters represent minor chords.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So, in number form, our lead sheet now looks like this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musora.com\/musora-cdn\/image\/quality=85\/https:\/\/pianote.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/blog\/2021\/Happy%20Birthday%20Rewrite\/happy%20birthday%20numbers.png\" alt=\"Happy birthday piano chords in number form on the lead sheet.\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"step-2-pick-a-key-and-transpose\" style=\"font-size:24px\"><strong>Step 2: Pick a key and transpose<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Now, let\u2019s use these numbers to transpose our song.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Say C Major is too high for you (maybe you have a party full of baritones!). Let\u2019s transpose everything down to A Major.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here\u2019s the A Major scale:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-text-color has-large-font-size\" style=\"color:#f61a30\"><strong>A-B-C#-D-E-F#-G#<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So, our I chord becomes a chord built on the first note of the scale. This is the <strong>A <\/strong>chord (A-C#-E).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Our V chord becomes an <strong>E<\/strong> chord (E-G#-B).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Next, our IV chord turns into a <strong>D<\/strong> chord (D-F#-A).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Finally, the ii chord is now <strong>Bm<\/strong> (B-D-F#).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Now you have a transposed song:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musora.com\/musora-cdn\/image\/quality=85\/https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11152649\/happy-birthday-a-major.jpg\" alt=\"Happy birthday piano chord chart in A major.\" class=\"wp-image-13693\" style=\"width:400px;height:317px\" width=\"400\" height=\"317\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11152649\/happy-birthday-a-major.jpg 800w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11152649\/happy-birthday-a-major-300x238.jpg 300w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/11152649\/happy-birthday-a-major-768x609.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>That\u2019s all there is to it! Try it yourself. Transpose everything in the opposite direction: up to E Major. Then, <a href=\"#answers\">scroll to the bottom<\/a> of this article to see if you got the chords right!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"closing-thoughts\" style=\"font-size:32px\"><strong>Closing Thoughts<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Here\u2019s your final challenge: find out when your next birthday party will be, and then play \u201cHappy Birthday\u201d for everyone there!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For extra pizazz, memorize the song. (Don\u2019t worry, it\u2019s not too long!).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And don\u2019t be like my friend. Learn \u201cHappy Birthday.\u201d (Looking at you, Scott!).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Happy practicing \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"tve-leads-shortcode tve-leads-triggered tve-tl-anim tl-anim-instant tve-leads-track-shortcode_16126\"><div class=\"tl-style\" id=\"tve_tcb2_blank\" data-state=\"52\" data-form-state=\"\"><style type=\"text\/css\" class=\"tve_custom_style\">@import url(\"\/\/fonts.googleapis.com\/css?family=Bebas+Neue:400&subset=latin\");@import url(\"\/\/fonts.googleapis.com\/css?family=Open+Sans:400,400i,700,700i,600,600i,800,500&subset=latin\");@media (min-width: 300px){[data-css=\"tve-u-18c4b1884fe\"]{--tve-border-radius: 6px;overflow: hidden;border-radius: 6px !important;background-color: rgb(255,228,230) !important;--background-color: rgb(255,228,230) !important;--tve-applied-background-color: rgb(255,228,230) !important;background-image: none !important;--background-image: none !important;--tve-applied-background-image: none !important;margin-bottom: 1px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}[data-css=\"tve-u-18c4b1884ff\"]{margin-bottom: 10px !important;padding-bottom: 10px !important;margin-top: 10px !important;}[data-css=\"tve-u-18c4b188500\"]{margin-top: 0px !important;margin-bottom: 10px !important;padding-top: 1px !important;}:not(#tve) [data-css=\"tve-u-18c4b188502\"]{--g-regular-weight: 400;--g-bold-weight: 700;color: var(--tcb-color-3) !important;--tcb-applied-color: var$(--tcb-color-3) !important;--tve-applied-color: var$(--tcb-color-3) !important;font-family: \"Open Sans\" !important;font-size: 22px !important;}:not(#tve) [data-css=\"tve-u-18c4b188502\"] strong{font-weight: 700 !important;}[data-css=\"tve-u-18c4b188503\"]{padding-top: 8px !important;margin-bottom: 1px !important;padding-left: 20px !important;padding-right: 10px !important;}:not(#tve) [data-css=\"tve-u-18c4b188504\"]{--g-regular-weight: 400;font-family: \"Open Sans\" !important;font-weight: var(--g-regular-weight,normal) !important;color: var(--tcb-color-3) 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scroll !important;--background-repeat: no-repeat !important;--tve-applied-background-image: linear-gradient(rgba(0,0,0,0.4),rgba(0,0,0,0.4)) !important;}:not(#tve) [data-css=\"tve-u-18c4b188505\"].tve-state-active .tcb-button-link{background-color: var(--tcb-local-color-394d4) !important;--background-color: var(--tcb-local-color-394d4) !important;--tve-applied-background-color: var$(--tcb-local-color-394d4) !important;}:not(#tve) [data-css=\"tve-u-18c4b188506\"]{font-size: 22px !important;}}@media (max-width: 1023px){[data-css=\"tve-u-18c4b188503\"]{padding-left: 1px !important;padding-right: 1px !important;}}@media (max-width: 767px){[data-css=\"tve-u-18c4b1884ff\"]{padding: 2px !important;margin-bottom: 10px !important;margin-top: 20px !important;}[data-css=\"tve-u-18c4b188503\"]{padding: 2px 0px !important;}}<\/style><style type=\"text\/css\" class=\"tve_user_custom_style\">.tve-leads-conversion-object .thrv_heading h1,.tve-leads-conversion-object .thrv_heading h2,.tve-leads-conversion-object .thrv_heading h3{margin:0;padding:0}.tve-leads-conversion-object .thrv_text_element p,.tve-leads-conversion-object .thrv_text_element h1,.tve-leads-conversion-object .thrv_text_element h2,.tve-leads-conversion-object .thrv_text_element h3{margin:0}<\/style><div class=\"tve-leads-conversion-object\" data-tl-type=\"shortcode_16126\"><div class=\"tve_flt\"><div id=\"tve_editor\" class=\"tve_shortcode_editor\"><div class=\"thrv-leads-form-box tve_no_drag tve_no_icons thrv_wrapper tve_editor_main_content thrv-leads-in-content tve_empty_dropzone\" style=\"--tve-border-radius: 6px; overflow: hidden; border-radius: 6px !important;\" data-css=\"tve-u-18c4b1884fe\"><div class=\"thrv_wrapper thrv_contentbox_shortcode thrv-content-box tve-elem-default-pad\" data-css=\"tve-u-18c4b1884ff\" style=\"\"><div class=\"tve-content-box-background\"><\/div><div class=\"tve-cb\"><div class=\"thrv_wrapper thrv_text_element\" data-css=\"tve-u-18c4b188500\"><h3 class=\"\" data-css=\"tve-u-18c4b188502\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><b>\ud83c\udfb9 Learn With Real Piano Teachers<\/b><\/h3><\/div><div class=\"thrv_wrapper thrv_text_element\" data-css=\"tve-u-18c4b188503\" style=\"\"><p data-css=\"tve-u-18c4b188504\" style=\"text-align: left;\">Get real feedback from real experts\u2026all from the comfort of your own home. Explore our Method and community for yourself with a free trial.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"thrv_wrapper thrv-button thrv-button-v2 tcb-local-vars-root tve_ea_thrive_animation tve_anim_grow\" data-button-style=\"btn-tpl-58447\" data-tcb_hover_state_parent=\"\" data-button-size-d=\"s\" data-css=\"tve-u-18c4b188505\" style=\"\"><div class=\"thrive-colors-palette-config\" style=\"display: none !important\"><\/div>\t\t<a href=\"\/trial\" class=\"tcb-button-link tcb-plain-text tve_evt_manager_listen tve_et_tve-viewport\" style=\"\" target=\"_blank\" data-tcb-events=\"__TCB_EVENT_[{&quot;t&quot;:&quot;tve-viewport&quot;,&quot;config&quot;:{&quot;anim&quot;:&quot;grow&quot;,&quot;loop&quot;:1},&quot;a&quot;:&quot;thrive_animation&quot;}]_TNEVE_BCT__\">\t\t<span class=\"tcb-button-texts\" style=\"\"><span class=\"tcb-button-text thrv-inline-text\" style=\"\" data-css=\"tve-u-18c4b188506\">Try Pianote for 7 Days<\/span><span class=\"tcb-secondary-text thrv-inline-text tve-froala fr-box fr-basic\" style=\"\"><\/span><\/span>\t<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-right\" style=\"font-size:16px\"><em>Chords in E Major: I = E, V = B, IV = A, ii = F#m<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Learn how to play Happy Birthday! Piano chords, lead sheet, and a step-by-step tutorial for an easy and a jazzy version.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":39,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[519,508],"tags":[1133,1137],"class_list":["post-6018","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-beginner-songs","category-song-tutorials","tag-survey","tag-webinar"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6018","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/39"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6018"}],"version-history":[{"count":19,"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6018\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17091,"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6018\/revisions\/17091"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6018"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6018"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6018"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}