Humming Song, Op. 68 No. 3
Humming Song (Trällerliedchen), No. 3 of Schumann's Album for the Young, Op. 68, is a Beginner piece in C major and 4/4, Octotune grade 3 of 8: a smooth right-hand tune, hummed rather than sung, over steady left-hand eighths.
At a glance
| Composer | Robert Schumann (1810–1856) |
|---|---|
| Difficulty | Beginner: grade 3 of 8 |
| Key | Key signature: no sharps or flats |
| Time | 4/4 |
| Tempo | 60 quarter-note beats a minute, as the app starts it (it can go slower) |
| Length | 24 measures, about 1:35 |
| Hands | both hands |
| Right hand | D4 to A5 |
| Left hand | D3 to G4 |
| On the path | Unit 10, Keys of G and F |
It reaches past the staff: see ledger lines explained.
Levels in the app
| Version | Grade | Levels |
|---|---|---|
| Humming Song (Album for the Young), Op. 68 No. 3 | 3 of 8 | Melody, Melody and bass, Full |
Practice notes
Trällerliedchen, "Humming Song", is No. 3 of Schumann's Album for the Young, Op. 68 (1848). It is the tune a child hums to themselves: simple, smooth and a little dreamy, in C major.
How it is built. The right hand plays the tune in quarter notes, with a few eighths, moving mostly by step in the top half of the treble staff. The left hand plays flowing eighth notes under it the whole way: a moving lower note and a repeated G above it. Partway through, F sharps turn the music briefly toward G major.
The tricky parts
- Legato. The tune should be smooth, each note joined to the next. Listen for gaps.
- The left hand's evenness. Eight eighths to a measure, never rushed. The repeated G is the soft part; the lower notes make the line.
- F sharp. It is written in beside each note, not in the key signature.
Practice plan
- The tune with its bass: the Melody and bass level, both hands. This is how Unit 10 plays it.
- The left hand alone at the Full level, in Wait for me, until its pattern is in your fingers.
- Both hands at 60% speed, then Play along, raising the speed while it stays smooth.
In the path: Unit 10 for grown-ups plays the tune over its bass.
Questions
Is Schumann's Humming Song easy?
Yes. It is a Beginner piece, Octotune grade 3 of 8, in C major. The right hand sings a simple tune; the left hand keeps flowing eighth notes under it.
Credits and license
- Music: Robert Schumann (1810–1856)
- Typeset by Philippe Hézaine for the Mutopia Project
- License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0
- Source and printable sheet music: the Mutopia Project’s page for this piece