Friedrich Burgmüller (1806-1874) 1851 F major 3/4 Easy 0:16 Both hands
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Innocence is a small waltz-like study in F major, marked Grazioso - gracefully - and it is one of the most loved pieces of Burgmüller's 25 easy studies. The right hand floats down in rippling semiquavers, A G F E, F E D C, then settles on two quiet notes; the next phrase climbs back up the same way. This page gives you the first section, bars 1 to 8, both hands as printed, ending on the C of the first time bar. The left hand holds a chord through each bar. Practise the right hand alone first, slowly, until every group of four notes is even, then add the chords.
Bar 1 runs down from the high A to the A an octave lower in twelve semiquavers, then bar 2 rests on C and B flat. Bar 3 dips from G down to C and runs back up to the high C, bar 4 rests on B flat and A. Bars 5 to 7 come down again, with C sharp and B natural, to the final C.
One chord per bar, held: F major, then G and D over F, C with E and B flat, F major again. The last bars move to D minor, C major over G and G7 before the C.
The turns inside each run: A G F E, then back up to F before going down. Each group of four starts one note higher than where the last one ended - keep the thumb under the hand.
Bar 1: A G F E with 5-4-3-2, F E D with 3-2-1, then cross 3 over the thumb to C and play D C B flat A with 4-3-2-1. In bar 3 the hand turns at the bottom: pass the thumb under on C.
The right-hand melody of this version, bar by bar, in letter names and in Do Ré Mi. Sharps are written #, flats b; a note held across a bar line is written once.
Melody: A G F E F E D C D C Bb A C Bb Bb G F E D C D E F G …
| Bar | Notes | Do Ré Mi |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | A G F E F E D C D C Bb A | La Sol Fa Mi Fa Mi Ré Do Ré Do Sib La |
| 2 | C Bb Bb | Do Sib Sib |
| 3 | G F E D C D E F G A Bb C | Sol Fa Mi Ré Do Ré Mi Fa Sol La Sib Do |
| 4 | Bb A A | Sib La La |
| 5 | A G F E F E D C# D | La Sol Fa Mi Fa Mi Ré Do# Ré |
| 6 | G F E D E D C B C B A G | Sol Fa Mi Ré Mi Ré Do Si Do Si La Sol |
| 7 | Ab G A G E D | Lab Sol La Sol Mi Ré |
| 8 | C | Do |
The chords this arrangement holds for at least two bars, read from the score with the root in the bass. Each one opens its page: the notes, every inversion and the fingering, playable on a piano.
The piece is in F major: all the chords of the key
Innocence is No. 5 of Friedrich Burgmüller's 25 Études faciles et progressives, Op. 100, published in Paris in 1851. Burgmüller, born in Regensburg, had moved to Paris around 1832, where he taught and wrote salon music and pieces for his pupils.
Like the rest of the book, it is a study disguised as a character piece: here the goal is light, even semiquavers in three-four time, with the hand turning smoothly at the bottom of each run.
This transcription: Burgmüller, 25 Études faciles et progressives, Op. 100, No. 5 (1851), Litolff edition: Mutopia Project no. 214, typeset by Bas Wassink, placed in the public domain; bars 1-8 as printed, ending on the C of the first time bar. Transcribed by GOONS Studio from the original work, which is in the public domain.
First Section, Op. 100 No. 1 · C major
Complete, Burgmüller Op. 100 No. 2 · A minor
Easy Version · G major
Easy Version · F majorThe full piano studio opens this score with your MIDI keyboard and sustain pedal, records what you play and exports it as a MIDI file. It comes with the GOONS Studio subscription - start with the 7-day free trial, no card required.
Level 2 of 5 here, usually played in the second or third year of piano. The notes stay in one position for most of a bar, but the semiquavers need an even, light touch.
No. 5 of the 25 Easy and Progressive Studies. The book starts with La Candeur (No. 1) and Arabesque (No. 2), both on this site.
It is in three-four time, like a waltz, and it moves gracefully - the marking is Grazioso - but Burgmüller wrote it as a study for flowing semiquavers rather than as a dance.