Are You Sleeping? (Frère Jacques): easy piano notes with letter names
This version of Are You Sleeping? starts on G above middle C and uses seven white keys: D, G, A, B, C, D and E. No black keys are needed. Help your child find G first, then try the tune one short phrase at a time.
Key: G major. Time: 4/4. Range: D4–E5. Hand: right hand for the melody. This page contains the melody without a left-hand accompaniment.
Find G and the keys around it
Look for a group of two black keys near the middle of the keyboard. Middle C is the white key just to their left. Count four white keys up from it: that key is G4, where the song begins. A, B, C and D follow to its right.
One comfortable start is thumb on G, index finger on A, middle finger on B, ring finger on C and little finger on D. The quick high E and the low D in the last bars sit just outside that hand position, so let the hand move a little; it does not need to stretch.
The complete melody, with beat counts
Each row below is one bar with four beats. The number after a note is its length in beats: (1) one beat, (2) two beats and (0.5) half a beat, so two such notes share one beat. Press a held note once and let it sound for the written length.
Every bar comes twice in a row. The tune climbs G A B G, then B C D, runs quickly through D E D C before B and G, and ends with G, the low D and G again.
| Bar | Notes and beats |
|---|---|
| 1 |
G(1)
A(1)
B(1)
G(1)
|
| 2 |
G(1)
A(1)
B(1)
G(1)
|
| 3 |
B(1)
C(1)
D(2)
|
| 4 |
B(1)
C(1)
D(2)
|
| 5 |
D(0.5)
E(0.5)
D(0.5)
C(0.5)
B(1)
G(1)
|
| 6 |
D(0.5)
E(0.5)
D(0.5)
C(0.5)
B(1)
G(1)
|
| 7 |
G(1)
D(1)
G(2)
|
| 8 |
G(1)
D(1)
G(2)
|
Try one small part at a time
- Start with bars 1–2: G A B G, twice. The hand stays still.
- Try bars 3–4: B C D, twice. Hold each D for two beats.
- Play bars 5–6 slowly. D E D C are quick, two notes to a beat, and then B and G take one beat each.
- Try bars 7–8: G, the low D, then G held for two beats. Let the thumb move down to D and back to G.
- Join two parts at a time. Because every bar comes twice, the second time is a good moment to listen.
A melody, not chords
The table shows the tune itself, one note at a time. An accompaniment and its chords are something else, and this one-hand version does not include them. Are You Sleeping? is often sung as a round, with a second voice starting two bars later.
Letter names help you find the keys. The staff shows how the tune moves higher or lower, and the note shapes show their lengths. You can print this page using your browser’s print command and keep the beat-count table by the piano.
Questions about this version
How many keys does the tune use?
Seven white keys from D4 to E5: D, G, A, B, C, D and E. The five in the middle, G to D, fit under one hand.
Does my child need to play both hands?
This page teaches the melody with one hand. There is no left-hand part to learn at the same time.
Why do other versions look different?
The tune is often written in other keys, and in French it is Frère Jacques. This page uses G major, where no black keys are needed, with the beat counts shown above.
Continue with guided practice
Are You Sleeping? is one of the familiar songs in Soitilo. Each playing task begins with Practice, where the accompaniment waits for your child, before Play with the accompaniment. Soitilo works on the screen, with a MIDI keyboard (USB cable or Bluetooth, on a device that supports it) or with a piano heard through the microphone.
For parents: explore how the learning path works and what is included for free.
Start with the basics and Chapter 1 at no cost. Optional subscriptions open more learning and songs. The iPhone and iPad version is coming soon to the App Store.
soitilo.com