Simple Gifts

Joseph Brackett · Level 2 (Beginner) · traditional · Piano

A Shaker song composed by Joseph Brackett in 1848 (“’Tis the gift to be simple”), made famous by Aaron Copland in Appalachian Spring. An easy arrangement in G 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.
• Learn the tune alone by singing it, then the left hand alone: spot the chord changes before putting hands together in Wait mode, then at a reduced tempo.

Source : Arrangement Note after Note d’après le chant de Joseph Brackett (1848) · Public Domain