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A Thousand Years – Piano Tutorial with Letter Notes

a thousand years piano notes letters

Would you like to learn to play the notes of the song A Thousand Years on the piano? You’ve come to the right place!

The song was first released in 2011 on the album The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack by American singer-songwriter Christina Perri.

Upon its release, the track received rave reviews from critics and audiences alike. It reached very high positions in the international charts and received several certifications in numerous countries. The popularity of the Twilight film, in which the song appears, was a major factor in the success of Christina Perri’s composition.

In this article, you’ll learn how to play the notes of A Thousand Years on the piano. We’ll start with the notes to be played by the right hand, followed by those for the left. Tutorial videos will also be made available, so that you can benefit from a complete and didactic learning experience.

By the end of this guide, the aim is for you to be able to play this famous pop tune on the piano.

Are you ready? Let’s get started!

Bonus : you can also learn to play this song at your own pace on our interactive piano learning app La Touche Musicale.

Contents

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A Thousand Years on the piano: finding your way around the keyboard

Let’s start with a quick review of piano basics. If you’ve already mastered the key layout and note nomenclature, you’ll be able to move on to the next segment. If not, we suggest you pay close attention to the following illustration:

piano keyboard notes

The name of the notes on a piano keyboard.

To locate a specific note, use the note C as an invariable reference point. This note is always located on the white key just to the left of a set of two black keys. Knowing the location of the note C makes it much easier to find other notes such as F, B and D.

The effort invested in mastering the recognition of these notes on the keyboard is well worth it. As soon as you feel comfortable with this exercise, you’ll find that the tips in our guide to playing A Thousand Years on the piano become much less daunting.

A Thousand Years : playing the notes with the right hand

Where to start?

Now that you know how to orient yourself on the piano keyboard, let’s get to the heart of the matter: the tones generated by your right hand, making up the melody of the piece.

Let’s begin this segment by identifying the first tone that your right hand should play. We’re talking here about a harmonic ensemble made up of two notes to be played at the same time: C and E :

a thousand years first notes piano right hand

The notes C and E are the first notes to be played with your right hand for the song A Thousand Years on piano.

The notes of the right hand

Have you managed to identify the notes C and E on the keyboard? Perfect! You now have your starting point, which puts you on track to attack the melody of A Thousand Years with your right hand. Play the following notes one after the other on your keyboard:

C+E – C+E – C+E – B+D – C+E – C+E – C+E – B+D – C+F – C+F – C+F – C – C+E – C+E – B+D – C – B – G – A+C – A+C – A+C – E – D – C – G+C – G+C – G+C – G – F – E – A+C – A – G – F – E – B+D – E – G+B – C – F+A – A+C – A+C – G – E – D – C – G+C – G+C – G+C – G – F – E – A+C – A – G – F – E – B+D – E – G+B – C – F+A – F+A – F+A – F+B – A+C – A+C – G+B – C+E – G – E – C+E – G – E – A – G – D – C – C+E – G – E – C+E – G – E – A – G – D – C – C – C+F – C+F – E – A – A – C – D – C – C+F – C+E – G – F+C – F+B – C+G – A+C – A+C – A+C – E – D – C – G+C – G+C – G+C – G – F – E – A+C – A – G – F – E – B+D – E – G+B – D – A+C – A+C – A+C – G – E – D – C – G+C – E+G – C+E – G – F – E – A+C – A – G – F – E – B+D – E – G+B – C – F+A – F+A – F+A – F+B – A+C – A+C – G+B – C+E – G – E – C+E – G – E – A – G – D – C – C+E – G – E – C+E – G – E – A – G – D – C – C – C+F – C+F – E – A – A – C – D – C – C+F – C+E – B+D – C+E – G – E – C+E – G – E – A – G – D – C – C+E – G – E – C+E – G – E – A – G – D – C – C – C+F – C+F – E – A – A – C – D – C – C+F – C+E – D+G – E+C – E+B – E+G – E+C – E+B – E+G – F – F+D – F+C – G – F – G+E – G+C – G – D+F – D+F – A+C – A+D – C+E – C+E – B+D – B+D – F+A – F+A – F+A – F+B – A+C – A+C – B+D – C+E – G – E – C+E – G – E – A – G – D – C – C+E – G – E – C+E – G – E – A – G – D – C – C – C+F – C+F – E – A – A – C – D – C – C+F – C+E – B+D – C+E – G – E – C+E – G – E – A – G – D – C – C+E – G – E – C+E – G – E – A – G – D – C – C – C+F – C+F – E – A – A – C – D – C – C+F – C+E – G – C – B – G – F – E – F – E – D – C – D – C – B – G – G – F – E – F – E – C – C – C – B – G – F – E – F – E – D – C – D – A+C – A+C – G+B – G+B – F+G.

By practicing these note combinations repeatedly, your fluency will gradually improve until you’re able to play the entire melody of this Christina Perri song using your right hand on the keys. We recommend practicing this sequence of notes several times to perfect your dexterity in this segment of the song.

a thousand years piano notes right hand

A Thousand Years on the piano: the notes of the right hand.

Video tutorial

To speed up your learning process, there’s nothing like a live video demonstration showing you precisely which keys to press with your right hand to play the melody to perfection. Refer to our video tutorial and press the appropriate keys as the notes appear and touch the virtual keyboard.

Video tutorial of the notes to play with the right hand for the song A Thousand Years

Congratulations, you’ve mastered the melody of this popular song with your right hand!

Now let’s move on to the sequence of notes your left hand will play.

Play the notes ofA Thousand Years with the right hand on an interactive app

La Touche Musicale app waits for you to play the right note with your right hand on your piano before moving on to the next one.

A Thousand Years playing the notes with the left hand

Where to start?

It’s commonly accepted that the left hand’s function on the piano is to create the chords, providing the harmonic foundation, while the right hand takes care of the melody. The left hand adds subtlety and richness to your piano performance.

To determine the first key to play with your left hand, we’ll follow a similar method to that used for the right hand. The first note your left hand will press is a C :

a thousand years first note piano left hand

C is the first note to be played with your left hand for A Thousand Years on piano.

The notes of the left hand

You’ve located the correct C in the appropriate octave on your piano? Excellent!

In the same way as for the right hand, we’re now going to focus our attention on the series of notes that your left hand must execute. Press the notes specified below in the given sequence to master the accompaniment to A Thousand Years with your left hand:

C – C – B – A – A – G – F – F – G – G – F – F – E – E – A – B – C – F – F – E – E – A – B – C – D – D – A – G – C – C – B – A – A – G – F – F – G – G – F – F – F – F – F – E – E – A – B – C – F – F – E – E – A – B – C – D – D – G – A – G – C – C – B – A – A – G – F – F – G – G – C – C – B – A – A – G – F – F – G – G – C – C – B – A – A – G – F – F – G – G – D – D – A – G – D – D – G – A – G – C – C – B – A – A – G – F – F – G – G – C – C – B – A – A – A – G – F – F – G – G – F – F – E – E – F – F – A – G – F.

It would be beneficial to practice this segment over and over again until you feel perfectly comfortable in its execution. With assiduous practice, you’ll be able to perform this chain of notes harmoniously and without error.

a thousand years piano notes left hand

A Thousand Years on the piano: the notes of the left hand.

Video tutorial

Of course, we’ve also put together a video guide that takes you through the tones your left hand should play for this iconic piece. Be sure to identify each key and press the corresponding keys at the right moment, to guarantee an accompaniment in perfect harmony with the original version:

Video tutorial of the left hand notes for the song A Thousand Years

Play the notes of A Thousand Years with the left hand on an interactive app

The La Touche Musicale app waits for you to play the correct note with your left hand on your piano before moving on to the next.

Congratulations! You can now play both the melody with your right hand and the accompaniment with your left hand for the song A Thousand Years on your keyboard.

The next step is to synchronize your two hands to offer a coherent and complete interpretation of the song.

Ready to take on this new musical challenge? Let’s get started!

A Thousand Years on the piano: play the song with both hands

Advice

Playing the piano with both hands requires finesse, coordination and a little patience. Be kind to yourself, as aligning the movements of both hands is not always easy at first.

Bear in mind that it’s quite common for mastering a new piano track to take some time, sometimes several weeks. But once you’ve mastered it, you’ll be able to play your favorite piece with ease. Rigorous practice will enable you to know it inside out, making aids like sheet music almost superfluous. La Touche Musicale, an interactive app, can be a valuable resource to guide you along this path.

A useful tip: divide the piece into segments of a few seconds, ideally between 5 and 10.

Start by focusing your attention on the series of notes to be played by your right hand for each chosen segment. Repeat until you feel comfortable, then move on to the left-hand series. Once you’ve mastered the parts corresponding to each hand for a given segment, try coordinating them.

Continue this methodology segment by segment. When you feel ready, consider combining these segments to offer a continuous performance. This gradual approach to learning the piano will help you savor each small victory and make the whole challenge more accessible as you practice.

a thousand years piano notes both hands

A Thousand Years on the piano: the notes of both hands.

Video tutorial

Take a look at our comprehensive tutorial video, which guides you through the art of playing Christina Perri’s track with both hands on the keyboard.

Diligence and regular practice are essential, but trust your talent. Stay alert to tempo changes and maintain flawless synchronization between your hands, as we’ve already outlined.

There will be times when you need to press several keys at once to form chords, and others when notes need to be executed one after the other.

If you find that the speed of the video overwhelms you, don’t hesitate to pause it when the notes appear, giving you the opportunity to adjust the position of your fingers on the keyboard to optimize your learning.

If frequent pausing of the video to reposition your fingers seems laborious, our interactive app La Touche Musicale is just what you need. With its various interactive features, including a “learning mode” that only progresses when you press the correct keys, the app bypasses this obstacle. It also features a visual representation of notes (such as C, D, E, etc.), which you’ll find in our videos. We recommend using this feature as an additional resource to complement this online guide.

With a wide range of titles for various styles and skill levels, we’re convinced that our app can significantly enrich your piano learning journey. So, are you ready to fully immerse yourself in this musical exploration?

Video tutorial to play the notes of both hands of the song A Thousand Years on the piano.

Play the notes of A Thousand Years with both hands on an interactive app

The La Touche Musicale app waits for you to play the right notes with both hands on your piano before moving on to the next.

Congratulations! You can now play Christina Perri’s A Thousand Years in its entirety on your keyboard.

If you found this tutorial useful, please note that we also offer educational material on a wide range of well-known songs, covering various musical genres:

Download the free piano sheet music of the song A Thousand Years in PDF

With the help of this guide, you’ll now be able to play one of the most iconic pop songs from start to finish, while synchronizing both hands on the keyboard.

To enhance this content, a link is provided to download the sheet music of A Thousand Years as a PDF file.

You now have the freedom to play this piece wherever you like.

Remember, our La Touche Musicale app is always there to make your learning both enjoyable and instructive.

We look forward to accompanying you on your future piano adventures!

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