Camptown Races

Stephen Foster's tune in G position, with eighth notes and a repeated "doo-dah" answer.

Level:
3 of 6
Hands:
Right hand
Key:
C major
Notes:
22
Range:
C4 to A4
One run:
about 13 seconds at 80 bpm

The notes, in order

22 notes, one at a time.

  1. G4
  2. G4
  3. E4
  4. G4
  5. A4
  6. G4
  7. E4
  8. E4
  9. D4
  10. E4
  11. D4
  12. G4
  13. G4
  14. E4
  15. G4
  16. A4
  17. G4
  18. E4
  19. D4
  20. E4
  21. D4
  22. C4

How to practise it

  1. Thumb on E, finger 5 on A: the whole tune fits under one hand
  2. The first line is all quick notes, the "doo-dah" answer is slow. Keep the beat the same through both
  3. Play it twice: the second verse is the same tune

The scale behind it

This one is built on the C Major scale: C D E F G A B (no sharps or flats). Its right-hand fingering runs 1-2-3-1-2-3-4-5, and the scale page has the full diagram if you want to hear the shape on its own first.

How to play it here

Play along on the keys with your mouse, your computer keyboard, a touch screen, or a MIDI keyboard you have plugged in. Every key can show its own name, and the metronome will hold the tempo while you work through the 22 notes.

What it trains

  • adult beginner
  • folk
  • rhythm
  • repeated notes

More adult beginner course

Piano for adult beginners, in the order the method books teach it: black keys and finger numbers, Middle C, pentascales, primary chords, then real pieces with both hands.

All piano exercises