With Christmas on its way we wanted to provide some very easy, basic arrangements of popular Christmas carols and songs so that almost anyone could play recognisable melodies which can be enjoyed and sung to, even if they have very limited music reading and piano/keyboard playing experience.
Presented here are simple, larger print music pieces featuring single melody notes playable with the right hand along with single bass notes playable with the left hand.
If you have the very basics of reading musical notation you should be able to play these pieces of music, and with just a little practice be proficient at them. If you desire, you can then move on to slightly more advanced Christmas carols and Christmas songs.
A couple of notation marks you may not be used to are the “Volta” brackets. Marked 1 and 2, they show which bars to play on the first time of playing, and the repeat. In the example below, you would play bars one, two and three, then go back to the beginning, repeat bars one and two, and then skip to play bars four and five.
These marks are used to save space on the page when a repeated piece of music is very similar except for a final bar or continuation.
Other than that, if you are comfortable with basic notation, time signatures and key signatures, these pieces should be easy to play.
A good technique is to play the two parts (left and right hand) separately until you are confident with both, then try playing both hands together. It is also more important to play evenly than quickly, so feel free to start playing at a slower tempo and work up to the desired speed as you gain in confidence.
Contents
- Away in a Manger UK
- Away in a Manger
- Good King Wenceslas
- Hark the Herald Angels Sing
- Jingle Bells
- Joy to the World
- Let it Snow
- Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer
- See Him Lying on a Bed of Straw
- Silent Night
- The First Noel
- The Holly and the Ivy
- We Wish You A Merry Christmas
- While Shepherds Watched
- White Christmas
Away in a Manger (UK)
This is a popular Christmas carol especially with children, with a gentle melody. The melody used here is the one most commonly sung in Britain. It is in 3/4 time in the key of F major.
Away in a Manger
With a melody much more commonly sung in the United States, this version of Away in a Manger is also written here in 3/4 time and in F major key signature.
Good King Wenceslas
This traditional carol is written here in 4/4 time in G major.
Hark the Herald Angels Sing
Hark the Herald Angels Sing is often found in a variety of key signatures. This version is a little lower, making it more comfortable for many people to sing, being in D major and 4/4 time.
Hark the Herald Angels Sing PDF file
Jingle Bells
The chorus of Jingle Bells is presented here in C major and 4/4 time.
Joy to the World
A more modern carol is Joy to the World, here in 4/4 time and C major.
Let it Snow
This popular Christmas song has been recorded by many well known artists. Here it is written in 4/4 time and C major key.
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
The main section of this popular Christmas song is written here in 4/4 time and C major key.
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer PDF file
See Him Lying on a Bed of Straw
This gentle carol, also known as the Calypso Carol, is presented here in 4/4 time in C major.
See Him Lying on a Bed of Straw PDF file
Silent Night
Silent Night can be sung in several different keys. Here it is presented in A major and 3/4 time.
The First Noel
This traditional folk carol is presented here in 3/4 time and C major key.
The Holly and the Ivy
This traditional carol is presented in 3/4 time and G major key signature.
The Holly and the Ivy PDF file
We Wish You A Merry Christmas
This Christmas song is presented here in G major key signature and 3/4 time.
We Wish You a Merry Christmas PDF file
While Shepherds Watched
This popular Christmas carol is here given in 4/4 time and E major key signature.
While Shepherds Watched PDF file
White Christmas
A highly popular traditional Christmas song, recorded by many, and here presented in 4/4 time and C major key.
