Hark The Herald Angels Sing chords

by Chris Tomlin

Song Key: F Major with a key change to Gb Major

Key Signature - F Major: 1 flat (Bb)

Key Signature - Gb Major: 6 flats (Bb, Eb, Ab, Db, Gb, Cb,)

Time Signature: 4/4 (♩)

Tempo: 80 bpm (Gently, building throughout)

Vocal Range: C4 - Eb5


Guitar Tuning: E A D G B e

Skill Level: Intermediate

Chords in F Major: F, F/A, F/C, Fmaj7, Fmaj7/A, Fsus2, Fsus4, Gm, Gm7, Am, Bb, C, C/E, C/G, C7, Dm7

Chords in Gb Major: Gb, Abm7, Cb, Db, Db7, Eb7

Extra: D Major for beginners

Chart Legend
Numbered Circles: Fingers used to play chords   O: Optional Note
Barre Line: One finger holds down multiple strings   R: Root Note
Unmarked strings: Play open   X: Don't play string    B: Bass Note
F Major F Major barre chord F/A F/C Fmaj7 Fmaj7/A Fsus4 Fsus2 Gm barre chord Gm7 barre chord Am C Major C/E C/G C7 Dm7 Dm7/A Bb Major Bb Major barre chord

Chords in F# Major:

F# Major barre chord G# Major barre chord G#7 barre chord B Major barre chord C# Major barre chord C#7 barre chord D#7 barre chord
F Major-LH F Major barre chord-LH F/A-LH F/C-LH Fmaj7-LH Fmaj7/A-LH Fsus4-LH Fsus2-LH Gm barre chord-LH Gm7 barre chord-LH Am-LH C Major-LH C/E-LH C/G-LH C7-LH Dm7-LH Dm7/A-LH Bb Major-LH Bb Major barre chord-LH

Chords in F# Major:

F# Major barre chord-LH G# Major barre chord-LH G#7 barre chord-LH B Major barre chord-LH C# Major barre chord-LH C#7 barre chord-LH D#7 barre chord-LH

Hark The Herald Angels Sing

Song Key is highlighted - Transpose to any other key 
             Fsus2    C/E      F      C/E 
Intro: 4/4 ‖       |       |       |       ‖

   F                         C/E     Dm7           F     C/E  F  
1. Hark the her-ald an-gels  sing    Glo-ry to the new - born King
   F                         C/E     Am      C/G         G   C 
   Peace on earth and mer-cy mild    God and sin-ners re-con-ciled
   F/C            Bb       C       F/C               Bb     C
   Joy-ful all ye nat-ions rise    Join the tri-umph of the skies
   Bb             D7  Gm                 C/G       Dm7/A   C       F
   With the an-ge-lic hosts pro-claim    Christ is born in Beth-le-hem
   Bb               Gm
   Hark the Her-ald An-gels sing
   C/G     Dm7/A         C             F      Fmaj7    F    Fmaj7
   Glo-ry  to   the |2⁄4 new-born |4⁄4 King |       |     |       |

   Dm7                Gm7               Bb               F/C  C   Dm7   
2. Christ by high-est heav'n a-dored    Christ the ev-er-last-ing Lord
   F/A             Gm7              C               C7    
   Late in time be-hold Him come    Off-spring of a Vir-gin's womb
   F/A       Fmaj7/A   Bb       C      F/A         Fmaj7/A  Bb       C
   Veiled in flesh the God-head see    Hail the in-car-nate De – i - ty
   Bb                  Gm7             C      F/A     Bb   F
   Pleased as man with men to dwell    Jes-us our Em-man-u-el
   Bb               Gm7
   Hark the Her-ald An-gels sing
   C      Dm7         Bb  C         F      Fsus4    F    Fsus4
   Glo-ry to the |2⁄4 new-born |4⁄4 King |       |     |       |

   (key change)

   Gb       Abm7        Gb        B        Gb              B          Gb
3. Hail the heav'n-born Prince of Peace    Hail the Son of righ-teous-ness
   Gb        Abm7    Gb       B             Db                  Ab     Db
   Light and life to all   He bri - ings    Ris'n with heal-ing in His wings
   Gb               Abm7      Db     Gb        B      Abm7     Db
   Mild He lays His glo – ry  by     Born that man no more may die
   B             Gb  Abm7             Db      Gb        B   Db  Gb
   Born to raise the sons of earth    Born to give them sec-ond birth
   B                Abm7  Eb7  Abm7    Db      Gb       Db  Db7  Gb
   Hark the Her-ald An - gels  sing    Glo-ry  to   the new born King

Beginners:

This version of the song may be a little out of reach for beginners as there are some pretty testing chords in this arrangement. D Major is a much easier key to play in, and there's a workaround you may like to try if you are playing with the video:

  • Press D on the Transposer
  • Place a capo on the 3rd fret
  • If you are not comfortable playing chords with leading bass notes, you can omit the bass notes and play the chords only.
  • Chords without leading bass notes: D, Dmaj7, Dsus2, Dsus4, Em, Em7, F#m, G, A, A7, Bm7
  • When you get to the key change, stop the video, move the capo to the 4th fret, press Db on the transposer, and continue playing the same chords.
  • If you prefer, you can download a copy of the entire song in the Key of D Major. If you are playing with the video, you will still need to make adjustments to the capo. Start with a capo on the 3rd fret and move it to the 4th fret after the key change (3rd verse).

Here are some easier variations of F#m and Bm7 in Tab Form:

    F#m    Bm7
e|---2------2---
B|---2------0---
G|---2------2---
D|---4------0---
A|---x------2---
E|---x------x---

Please Note: The piano on the video plays the chords quite sparsely in the first verse, with more additions in the following verses. If you are playing solo, you don't have to play the 4 bars of instrumental between verses, and you don't have to implement the key change.

Song Details:
  • Composer: Felix Mendelssohn
  • Original Key: G Major
  • Lyricist: Charles Wesley
  • Lyrics Begin: Hark the Herald Angels sing,
  • Performing Artist: Chris Tomlin
  • Album: Glory In The Highest
  • Released: 6 October 2009
Back to Christmas Carols Back To Top

Contact Me


Santa's baby reindeer