Piano songs · First piece
Mary Had a Little Lamb on piano
Mary Had a Little Lamb uses just three notes for most of the tune, all next to each other: E, D and C. It's the classic first song on piano. Here are the notes in letters, with a simple left hand for later.
this song
Mary Had a Little Lamb sheet music
The same notes as the player above, as a piano score: C major, 4/4 time. Press Play and the notes light up as they sound. Free to print or save as a PDF.
How to read the rhythms · how to read the notes
About the piece
The words are a poem by Sarah Josepha Hale, published in Boston in 1830, said to be based on a real lamb that followed a girl named Mary Sawyer to school. The tune was added soon after, probably by Lowell Mason. In 1877 it became the first thing ever recorded and played back, when Thomas Edison recited it into his phonograph.
The notes
The letters above are the tune, played by your right hand: E D C D E; E E D D D; E G G E D; C D E E E; E D D E D; C. Longer boxes are longer notes. Press Play and follow along, slow it down with the speed slider, or turn on Wait for me and play each note yourself.
How to learn it
- Three fingers: put your right thumb on middle C, finger 2 on D and finger 3 on E. The first line is just E D C D E E E.
- One stretch: the tune jumps up to G once ("E G G"). Reach with finger 5, then come back.
- Steady beats: every note is one beat, except the held notes at the end of a phrase, which last two.
- Then the left hand: one long low C per bar, changing to G twice. Play it slowly under the tune.
Learning Mary Had a Little Lamb on a real piano? Ivory listens to you play and tells you what's off: a note that's missing, a hand that lands late, a rhythm that runs away. Then it shows you how it should go.
Questions people ask
What are the notes for Mary Had a Little Lamb on piano?
E D C D E E E, D D D, E G G, E D C D E E E E, D D E D C.
Is Mary Had a Little Lamb the easiest piano song?
It's one of the very easiest: five notes in one hand position, and most of it uses only E, D and C.
More songs to play
A simple arrangement of a public-domain melody. Piano sound: Salamander Grand Piano by Alexander Holm, CC BY 3.0.