Oh! Susanna — 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). The C bars are oom-pah (low C, then E and G, twice a bar); the others hold two chords to a bar. The chorus starts on F, the thumb stretched up to A. 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 (C position)

B – D – F · Left hand 5 3 2

B, D and F: G7 without its bottom G. Little finger down to B, finger 3 on D, finger 2 on F.

About this arrangement

Stephen Foster’s first hit, from 1848, and a good piece for a real dotted rhythm inside the bar: “Al-a-bam-a” is a dotted crotchet and a quaver on G and A, and “with my ban-jo” does the same on C and D. The tune starts on a pickup of two quavers (“Oh, I”) and stays in C position, stretching the little finger up to A. The chorus starts in bars 9 and 10 on long Fs and As over the F chord, the one moment the left hand leaves C and G7.

Practice tip: Clap “Al-a-BAM-a” before you play it: long-short on “Al-a”. Then play bars 1 and 2 alone until the dotted notes feel like a skip, not a stumble.

The words

Oh, I come from Alabama with my banjo on my knee, I'm going to Louisiana, my true love for to see. Oh, Susanna, oh don't you cry for me, for I come from Alabama with my banjo on my knee.

A short history

Stephen Foster wrote “Oh! Susanna” in 1846 or 1847, in his early twenties, while he was working as a bookkeeper in Cincinnati. It was first sung in public at Andrews’ Eagle Ice Cream Saloon in Pittsburgh on 11 September 1847 and was published in 1848 by W. C. Peters of Cincinnati, who paid him 100 dollars for it. Foster earned almost nothing more from it, while it went on to be one of the best-known songs in America.

The song travelled west with the 1849 gold rush, where miners sang it with new words about California, and it was picked up by minstrel troupes who carried it across the country and to Britain.

Foster died in New York in 1864, aged 37, with 38 cents in his pocket. He is remembered as the first professional songwriter in America, and “Oh! Susanna” is still the song people reach for when they want to sound like the old West.

Quick facts

Tune: Stephen Foster, 1848
Key: C major, C position
Time signature: 4/4
Length: 16 bars and a pickup
Tempo: Brightly, crotchet = 108
Difficulty: Level 2: Left-hand chords (piece 21 of 201)
Type: Folk song
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 Oh! Susanna 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 and a pickup. The tempo marking is Brightly, crotchet = 108.

Is Oh! Susanna out of copyright?

Yes. The tune is by Stephen Foster, 1848. Our piano arrangement is free for personal and classroom use.

What is the hardest part?

Clap “Al-a-BAM-a” before you play it: long-short on “Al-a”. Then play bars 1 and 2 alone until the dotted notes feel like a skip, not a stumble.

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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