The Hark the Herald Angels Sing chords in G, for guitar, are G, D, D7, Bm, C, Em, Am, A7 and E. On piano and ukulele in F, the key hymnals print it in, they're F, C, C7, Am, B flat, Dm, Gm, G7 and D. Below are the chords with the words for all three verses, the piano notes for the tune, the song in every common key, and how a tune Mendelssohn wrote for a printing festival ended up with Charles Wesley's words.
It has nine chords because each half of the tune travels: the first half ends on the 5 chord, and the second half passes through the 2m chord before coming home. Every chord on guitar is an open shape except Bm, a barre at the second fret.
The short version
Guitar in G: G, D, D7, Bm, C, Em, Am, A7, E. Piano and ukulele in F: F, C, C7, Am, B♭, Dm, Gm, G7, D. Three verses of ten lines in 4/4, each with the refrain "Hark! the herald angels sing, Glory to the newborn King!" For a group, F works.
What chords are in Hark the Herald Angels Sing?
Hark the Herald Angels Sing uses nine chords. In G they're G, D, D7, Bm, C, Em, Am, A7 and E; in F, F, C, C7, Am, B flat, Dm, Gm, G7 and D. G, C and D (or F, B flat and C) carry the tune, and A7 and E lead into D and Am along the way.
The first half, four lines, ends on D, the 5 chord, and A7 gets it there: A7 is the 5 chord of D, so "God and sinners reconciled" lands on D as if it were home. The second half starts on D, then moves to C and Am for "With th'angelic host proclaim," with E pulling into Am the same way. The secondary dominants post explains both moves.
| Number | Guitar (key of G) | Piano and ukulele (key of F) | Piano notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | G | F | F, A, C |
| 5 | D | C | C, E, G |
| 5 (as a 7th) | D7 | C7 | C, E, G, B♭ |
| 4 | C | B♭ | B♭, D, F |
| 3m | Bm | Am | A, C, E |
| 6m | Em | Dm | D, F, A |
| 2m | Am | Gm | G, B♭, D |
| 2 (as a 7th) | A7 | G7 | G, B, D, F |
| 3 (major) | E | D | D, F♯, A |
Find the chord in the guitar column and play the one beside it on piano or ukulele. Every chart on this page works this way.
Hark the Herald Angels Sing lyrics and chords
These are the traditional words: Charles Wesley's, with George Whitefield's first lines and Martin Madan's "Christ is born in Bethlehem," set out as three verses with the Hark the Herald Angels Sing chords in G. Each chord sits on the syllable where it changes and rings until the next one.
Verse 1 (4/4, key of G)
[G]Hark! the herald angels [D]sing,
"[G]Glo[Bm]ry [C]to the [D]newborn [G]King;
Peace on earth, and [Em]mercy [A7]mild,
[Bm]God and [D]sinners [G]re[A7]con[D]ciled!"
Joyful, all [G]ye nations [D]rise,
Join the tri[G]umph of the [D]skies;
[C]With th'angelic [Am]host [E]pro[Am]claim,
"[D7]Christ is [G]born in [D]Bethle[G]hem!"
[C]Hark! the herald [Am]an[E]gels [Am]sing,
"[D]Glory [G]to the [D7]newborn [G]King!"
Verses 2 and 3
Christ, by highest heav'n adored;
Christ, the everlasting Lord;
Late in time behold Him come,
Offspring of a virgin's womb.
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see;
Hail th'incarnate Deity,
Pleased as man with men to dwell,
Jesus, our Emmanuel.
Hail the heav'n-born Prince of Peace!
Hail the Sun of Righteousness!
Light and life to all He brings,
Ris'n with healing in His wings.
Mild He lays His glory by,
Born that man no more may die,
Born to raise the sons of earth,
Born to give them second birth.
Each verse ends with the refrain, "Hark! the herald angels sing, Glory to the newborn King!" Piano and ukulele: F for G, C for D, C7 for D7, Am for Bm, B♭ for C, Dm for Em, Gm for Am, G7 for A7, D for E.
How do you play Hark the Herald Angels Sing on guitar?
The Hark the Herald Angels Sing guitar chords in G are G (320003), D (xx0232), D7 (xx0212), C (x32010), Em (022000), Am (x02210), A7 (x02020), E (022100) and Bm (x24432, a barre at the second fret), counting strings from the low E. Strum down on each beat; it's a brisk, marching 4/4.
The first two lines are G and D with one quick Bm and C on "Glory to the." Bm comes up only twice, on "Glory" and "God," so if the barre is hard, practice just those two changes. The busiest moment is "With th'angelic host proclaim" and "angels sing" near the end, which go C, Am, E, Am: E and Am are the same shape one string apart, so move all three fingers over by one string.
To play with a hymnal in F, you can stay in G and sing a step higher if you're the only instrument; with a piano or organ playing from the book, capo the fifth fret and use the shapes of the key of C, where only F is a barre. The guitar capo chart lists every fret.
What are the piano notes for Hark the Herald Angels Sing?
The Hark the Herald Angels Sing piano notes in F use the white keys plus B flat. The tune starts on middle C, jumps up to F for "the herald," and spans a ninth, from middle C up to the D an octave and a step above it. Play the chords in the left hand.
Hark the Herald Angels Sing: piano notes (right hand, key of F)
Hark! the herald angels sing: C F F E F A A G
Glory to the newborn King: C C C B♭ A G A
Peace on earth, and mercy mild: C F F E F A A G
God and sinners reconciled: C G G E E D C
Joyful, all ye nations rise: C C C F B♭ A A G
Join the triumph of the skies: C C C F B♭ A A G
With th'angelic host proclaim: D D D C B♭ A B♭
Christ is born in Bethlehem: G A B♭ C F F G A
Hark! the herald angels sing: D D D C B♭ A B♭
Glory to the newborn King: G A B♭ C F F G F
The first and third lines are the same notes, and so are the fifth and sixth, and the seventh and ninth. "Glory to the," "God and sinners," "Joyful, all ye" and "Join the triumph" all start on the C above middle C, and the high point, the D above that, comes on "With th'angelic" and the last "Hark! the herald." Some syllables carry two notes, so a line can have more notes than syllables.
For the left hand, play the chord shown on each syllable. G7, the only chord with a B natural, comes under "mild" and the "con" of "reconciled," and D, with its F sharp, under "proclaim" and the last "angels."
What are the ukulele chords for Hark the Herald Angels Sing?
The Hark the Herald Angels Sing ukulele chords in F are F (2010), C (0003), C7 (0001), Am (2000), B flat (3211), Dm (2210), Gm (0231), G7 (0212) and D (2220), where the numbers are frets on the G, C, E and A strings in that order. B flat is the only barre.
The ukulele shares the piano chart in F, which puts it in the same key as the hymnal. Strum down on each beat. C7 (0001) is one finger, so verse 1's "Christ is born in Bethlehem," C7 to F to C to F, is the easiest stretch of the song. To play along with a guitar in G, use G (0232), D (2220), D7 (2223), Bm (4222), C (0003), Em (0432), Am (2000), A7 (0100) and E (1402).
Hark the Herald Angels Sing chords in five common keys
Hark the Herald Angels Sing's lowest note is the 5 below the key note and its highest is the 6 above it, a ninth apart. In F that's middle C up to the D above the next C. Pick the key that puts both inside your voice, then read the chords across.
| Key | Main chords (1, 5, 4, 6m, 2m) | Lowest and highest note (middle C is C4) | Guitar shapes |
|---|---|---|---|
| E flat | E♭, B♭, A♭, Cm, Fm | B♭3 up to C5 | C shapes capo 3 |
| E | E, B, A, C♯m, F♯m | B3 up to C♯5 | C shapes capo 4 |
| F | F, C, B♭, Dm, Gm | C4 up to D5 | C shapes capo 5 |
| G | G, D, C, Em, Am | D4 up to E5 | Open (Bm is a barre) |
| A | A, E, D, F♯m, Bm | E4 up to F♯5 | G shapes capo 2 |
The other four chords follow the same pattern in every key: the 5 as a 7th, the 3m, the 2 as a 7th, and the 3 as a major chord. Men singing the tune sing it an octave lower than written.
In Nashville numbers, line 1 is 1, 5; line 2 is 1, 3m, 4, 5, 1; line 3 is 1, 6m, 2 (as a 7th); line 4 is 3m, 5, 1, 2 (as a 7th), 5; lines 5 and 6 are 5, 1, 5 each; line 7 is 4, 2m, 3, 2m; line 8 is 5 (as a 7th), 1, 5, 1; line 9 is 4, 2m, 3, 2m; and line 10 is 5, 1, 5 (as a 7th), 1. The Nashville Number System post explains how to read a chart like this.
What key should a group sing Hark the Herald Angels Sing in?
F, the hymnal key, suits most groups: the tune runs from middle C up to D, a ninth higher, C4 to D5. G puts the top at E, which is a stretch for a casual room; E flat brings it down to C for deeper voices.
The Hymnal 1982, Glory to God, Evangelical Lutheran Worship, Lutheran Service Book and the 2008 Baptist Hymnal all print it in F.
The low note comes first: "Hark!" is middle C in F. The high D comes on "With th'angelic" and on the last "Hark! the herald," so sing that phrase before you choose. If it strains, drop the key; if the opening "Hark!" is too low to hear, raise it.
If you're leading and want to check your own range first, the free vocal range test finds your lowest and highest notes and suggests keys that fit, with guitar capo frets.
Who wrote Hark the Herald Angels Sing?
Charles Wesley wrote the words, published in 1739 as "Hymn for Christmas-Day," beginning "Hark how all the welkin rings." George Whitefield changed the opening to "Hark! the herald angels sing" in 1753. The tune is Felix Mendelssohn's, from a cantata of 1840, fitted to the words by William H. Cummings in the 1850s.
According to the Hymnology Archive, Wesley's hymn appeared in Hymns and Sacred Poems (1739). "Welkin" is an old word for the sky. Whitefield's 1753 hymnal gave it the opening lines sung today, and Martin Madan added "With th'angelic host proclaim, Christ is born in Bethlehem" in 1760.
Mendelssohn wrote the tune in 1840 for his Festgesang, a cantata for men's chorus and brass celebrating the 400th anniversary of Gutenberg's printing press, as the Library of Congress's illustrated history of the carol describes. William H. Cummings, an organist who had sung under Mendelssohn as a teenager, set Wesley's words to it, and his arrangement was published in London in the mid-1850s. Hymns Ancient & Modern spread the pairing from 1861. The words and tune are in the public domain.
How do you put Hark the Herald Angels Sing into Song Cage?
Song Cage shows a song as chords over the words, like a printed chord sheet, and moves the whole song to a new key in one step. Type the words into a song in Sheet view, put the chords on, then pick a key from the key chip and choose Move song.
Move song is how the guitar chart in G and the piano chart in F stay in step: all nine chords move together and land on the same words. View > Nashville Numbers shows the song as numbers in any key, and clicking a chord shows its guitar shape or piano keys, with a capo if you set one. When you add a chord, the chord palette's Secondary Dominants section lists chords like A7 and E that lead to a chord in the key. The changing keys chapter covers Move song and Relabel.
To hear the words on the tune, add the melody by singing it in and using Detect melody, or by entering the notes, and the Singer voice sings each syllable on its note. It sounds like an 80s talking computer played off an old cassette, rough but clear enough to hear how the words sit. For more carols, see Silent Night chords, O Come All Ye Faithful chords, Joy to the World chords and O Holy Night chords.
Play Hark the Herald Angels Sing in your key
Put the chords over the words in Song Cage, move the song between the guitar's G and the hymnal's F, and see every chord as a guitar shape or as piano keys.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the chords for Hark the Herald Angels Sing?
On guitar in G: G, D, D7, Bm, C, Em, Am, A7 and E. On piano or ukulele in F: F, C, C7, Am, B flat, Dm, Gm, G7 and D. The 1, 4 and 5 chords carry the tune.
What are the piano notes for Hark the Herald Angels Sing?
In F, "Hark! the herald angels sing" is C F F E F A A G, starting on middle C. The tune uses the white keys plus B flat and reaches up to the D above the next C.
Who wrote the music for Hark the Herald Angels Sing?
Felix Mendelssohn, for a cantata in 1840 celebrating Gutenberg's printing press. William H. Cummings fitted Charles Wesley's words to it in the 1850s.
What does "welkin" mean?
The sky, or the heavens. Wesley's original first line was "Hark how all the welkin rings"; George Whitefield changed it to "Hark! the herald angels sing" in 1753.
What key is Hark the Herald Angels Sing in?
Hymnals usually print it in F, with the tune running from middle C to the D a ninth above. G is easier on guitar but puts the top note at E.
Is Hark the Herald Angels Sing in the public domain?
Yes. Wesley's words date from 1739 and Mendelssohn's tune from 1840. Modern arrangements and recordings can still be under copyright.
