O Little Town of Bethlehem

Lewis H. Redner · Level 3 (Late beginner) · traditional · Piano

An American Christmas hymn: words by Phillips Brooks, tune “St. Louis” composed by the organist Lewis H. Redner in 1868. An easy arrangement in F major: the right hand plays the tune, the left hand alternates a bass note and a two-note chord (“oom-pah”).

▶ Play this piece with the interactive score

How to practise it

• Listen first: the site plays it while the score scrolls.
• Wait mode: the score waits for you at every note, at your own pace.
• Tempo challenge: play in time, with a score and a map of the bars you got right.
• Work in four-bar phrases, hands separately then together. Keep the left hand softer than the tune: let the right hand sing. Watch the chromatic half step in the first bar (the altered note): play it softly, without accent.

Source : Arrangement Note after Note d’après l’air « St. Louis » de L. H. Redner (1868) · Public Domain