How to Play "Clocks" by Coldplay on Piano
Superlatives fill the atmosphere when listeners get their first listening to "Clocks" by British rockers Coldplay. Catchy lyrics and an upbeat pop rock melody fuse together to create an haunting rock ballad. "Clocks" is also fun and moderately easy to play on piano.
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Instructions
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Get the Sheet Music
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1
Print out the sheet music to "Clocks" by going to the website Scribd, which has a printable piano version of the song. "Clocks" is 7 pages long and prints out a few bars at a time, so take your time.
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2
Listen to Coldplay play "Clocks" as you follow along with the sheet music. Repeat the song until you can easily pick out the notes from the sheet music in the recorded song.
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3
Play "Clocks" slowly the first few times to achieve a working knowledge of the song's sound. Though the song isn't complicated, it is long, so patience and deliberation are solid rules of thumb.
Play the Song
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Follow a chord progression for a more complete version of "Clocks." Begin the introduction on Eb. You then progress to Bbm, to which you add C and end on Fm for seven bars.
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5
Move into the verses by following a progression of Eb to Bbm to Bbm sus4 to Ab to Bbm sus4. Move back to Ab to Bbm for 4 bars, returning to the introduction for 12 bars.
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6
Begin the chorus on F#, followed by Db and Fm for 14 bars.
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Listen as the song begins to come together. Inevitably, "Clocks" sounds like a Bach prelude, with no rests, chords played in the bass over syncopated triads in the introduction and verses followed by a syncopated chorus.
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Tips & Warnings
Beginning piano players who are still learning theory should write a chord's name above each chord and triplet to get a better idea of what to play and when to play it.
