“When I Survey the Wondrous Cross” is one of the most well-known and loved Christian hymns of all time. It was written by Isaac Watts in the early 18th century.
As common with many hymns, it has been sung to a variety of melodies. This tutorial uses the Rockingham tune by Edward Miller. The piece of music is primarily set in 3/4 (waltz) time, with one bar of 4/4 in the middle. It’s set in E? major.
Note: It is not common to see the 4/4 bar written out like this. An alternative way of notating and interpreting this is to keep bar 9 in 3/4 time but ensure there is a pause before proceeding with bar 10. Without this, there is not enough space between the second and third lines of the verse, which really is required.
Melody Line
Here’s the music score for the hymn’s melody line:
You can listen to the melody here:
And here it is with a metronome click:
The melody is a fairly easy one to play, but do watch out for the combination of white and black notes, particularly if you’re not used to playing in keys such as this.
E flat major has three flats – Eb, Bb; and Ab.
I recommend starting the melody with your right hand thumb on the first Eb. In bar 3, play the Eb with your thumb and the G with your second finger, the Bb of the next bar with your fourth finger, and the C with your fifth finger.
After you’ve played the Bb in bar 5 with your fourth finger, switch to your second finger so you can reach up to the higher Eb in bar six with your fifth finger. Run down to the Bb at the end in bar 7, then switch again to your fourth finger for the repeated Bb in bar 8.
Bar 9 is a 4/4 bar which allows for the slight feeling of a pause in between end of the second line and the start of the third line. If you know the tune itself it should cause you no problems.
Back to 3/4 in bar 10. Stretch up to the Bb with your second finger, then play the remaining notes as they most naturally fall under your fingers, ending with your thumb on Eb at the end of bar 13.
Back up to your fourth finger for the Ab in bar 14, and a natural run to the end.
Do notice the A natural in the melody of bar 12.
Download MP3 (metronome version)
Simple Bass Line
A simple bass line consisting of single notes has been added to provide basic harmony.
Here’s the music score.
You can listen to the bass line accompaniment here:
And here it is with a metronome click:
Most of the measures feature a half note (minim) followed by a quarter note (crotchet), with the exception of bar 3 (a dotted half-note), bar 9 (the 4/4 bar), and bar 17 (a single half note).
The accompaniment includes an A natural in bar 10. Remember that all accidentals are ‘reset’ at the end of each measure, so in bar 11 you return to playing an A flat as per the key signature.
Download MP3 (metronome version)
Melody with Right Hand Chords
This version of When I Survey features simple chords in the right hand, with melody notes still being played.
Here’s the music score.
When playing this, it would be wise to make use of the sustain pedal so you can transition between the chords more smoothly.
Some of the chord transitions involve quite a jump, such as that from the Bb first inversion chord at the end of bar 5 to the C minor second inversion chord at the start of bar 6.
It can also be quite a tricky stretch to play the chords together with the higher melody note. The run of notes in bar 16 may be quite a stretch. If this is the case, don’t play the lowest note of the chord.
You can listen to the chords version here:
And here it is with a metronome click:
Download MP3 (metronome version)
I hope that helps you when it comes to playing When I Survey the Wondrous Cross.
