Shall We Gather at the River — Free Piano Sheet Music for Kids, With a Play Button

The chords in this piece

Your left hand plays three chords in this piece. The shaded keys are the notes of each chord, and the numbers under them are the left-hand fingers (1 is the thumb). Oom-pah all the way: the bottom note, then the rest of the chord. F is split too: C, then F and A together. All the common piano chords, with diagrams →

C C

C – E – G · Left hand 5 3 1

C, E and G: the home chord. Little finger on C, middle finger on E, thumb on G.

F F (C position)

C – F – A · Left hand 5 2 1

C, F and A. The same three notes as F major, rearranged so the little finger stays on C; the thumb stretches up one key to A.

G7 G7

G – B – D – F · Left hand 5 3 2 1

G, B, D and F, the whole G7 chord. Little finger reaches down to the low G; the other three fingers play B, D and F together.

About this arrangement

Robert Lowry’s 1864 hymn, verse and chorus, in 4/4. The verse sits in C position with the thumb on middle C, and its rhythm is a dotted quaver and a semiquaver (sixteenth note), long-short, on “gath-er” and “at the”. A few syllables, “trod”, “the”, “ful”, “saints” and “of”, are sung over two notes joined by a slur. The chorus (“Yes, we’ll gath-er”) starts higher, on A, and climbs to the C above, so the hand moves up and then comes back down for the last line. The left hand plays a bass note and a chord on C, F and G7.

Practice tip: Clap the long-short rhythm of bar 1 before you play it. In the chorus, look ahead to the A on “Yes” and get the hand there early.

The words

Shall we gather at the river, where bright angel feet have trod; with its crystal tide forever flowing by the throne of God? Yes, we'll gather at the river, the beautiful, the beautiful river; gather with the saints at the river that flows by the throne of God.

A short history

Robert Lowry (1826–1899) was a Baptist minister in Brooklyn, New York, and a prolific writer of songs for Sunday schools. He wrote both the words and the music of this hymn in 1864 and called it “Beautiful River”; hymn books later named the tune Hanson Place, after the Brooklyn church where he sometimes preached.

The words picture the river of the water of life in the Book of Revelation, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God, with the angels and saints gathered on its banks.

It has been sung at countless baptisms and funerals. Charles Ives made it into his song “At the River”, and Aaron Copland arranged it in the second set of his Old American Songs (1952).

Quick facts

Tune: Robert Lowry, 1864
Key: C major
Time signature: 4/4
Length: 16 bars
Tempo: Steadily, crotchet = 88
Difficulty: Level 4: Up to the C above (piece 135 of 201)
Type: Hymn
Hands: Both: melody in the right hand, chords in the left
Chords: C, F and G7 (diagrams above)
Copyright: Public domain tune; arrangement by Digital Greenhouse, free for personal and classroom use

Questions and answers

What key is Shall We Gather at the River in?

C major, in 4/4 time. There are no sharps or flats in the key signature.

How long is it?

C major, 4/4, 16 bars. The tempo marking is Steadily, crotchet = 88.

Is Shall We Gather at the River out of copyright?

Yes. The tune is by Robert Lowry, 1864. Our piano arrangement is free for personal and classroom use.

What is the hardest part?

Clap the long-short rhythm of bar 1 before you play it. In the chorus, look ahead to the A on “Yes” and get the hand there early.

Can I print it?

Yes. Press Print above to put this piece on its own page, or choose Save as PDF as the printer for a file. It prints on A4 paper; if yours is US Letter, choose US Letter in the box beside Print. The notes are the same size as a printed music book.

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