Download sheet music for the English folk tune of Greensleeves: the melody commonly used with the Christmas lyrics of “What Child Is This?” written in 1865 by William Chatterton Dix.

Early Elementary (Hoffman Academy Units 1-4)

Late Elementary (Hoffman Academy Units 9-11)

Intermediate (Hoffman Academy Units 15-18)

Looking for the perfect Christmas sheet music collection for beginning piano players? Make merry music this holiday season with Hoffman Academy’s Christmas Favorites for Piano available in the Hoffman Academy Store (free download for Premium members)! Choose your level, Early Elementary (Units 1-4), Elementary (Units 5-8), or Late Elementary (Units 9-11). The Early Elementary and Late Elementary editions include arrangements of “What Child Is This?”

Who wrote “What Child Is This?”

The lyrics are said to be based on a poem by William Chatterton Dix called, “The Manger Throne.” Sir John Stainer first published the lyrics in 1871. Both texts contemplate the humble manger scene of Jesus’s birth in contrast with his divine role as the Son of God and King of Heaven in the Christian tradition. It’s one of the most beloved sacred Christmas carols.

William Chatterton Dix wrote the lyrics for “What Child Is This,” but he didn’t write the tune

The tune first appeared in the late 1500’s, making it about 300 years older than the lyrics. It was a popular romantic ballad in England in the late Middle Ages and during the Renaissance called “Greensleeves.” This song was so well known that it’s even mentioned in Shakespeare’s plays.

What is the difference between “Greensleeves” and “What Child Is This?”

The main difference between “Greensleeves” and “What Child Is This?” is the lyrics. Both songs use the same melody. Prior to about 150 years ago, it wasn’t unusual for multiple different songs to use the same melody, or for different melodies to be sung with the same lyrics. Tunes would often have their own names separate from the words that were being sung to that tune. For example, there are two different melodies that are commonly sung with the lyrics for the Christmas song “Away in a Manger” as well; one by William J. Kirkpatrick which starts with ascending notes, and one by James Ramsey Murray, which starts with descending notes.

What is the original key of What Child Is This?

“What Child is This” was originally published in the key of E minor, which is the relative minor of G major. You can see the original sheet music published in 1871 here. The original time signature was 6/8. In the original version, both D sharp and C sharp occur as accidentals, making this a melodic minor scale.

What makes the melody for this piece so special?

This beautiful, haunting melody uses a melodic minor scale. This means that sometimes the sixth and seventh tones of the scale are raised from the natural minor by a half step, and sometimes they are not. Take a look at the sheet music and see if you can spot the sharps and the naturals. When you play, pay close attention to the notes and make sure you’re playing them correctly.

A tune written with a melodic minor scale has a special way of holding the listener’s attention because of the unexpected sounds as certain notes shift up or down a half step from the last time they were heard. It gives the song an almost magical quality.

What are the chords used for this song?

The first section of the song has a simple descending chord progression. For the Early Elementary and Elementary arrangements, these chords are A minor, G major, F major, and E major. For the Intermediate arrangement, the chords are E minor, D major, C major, B major. In other words, i-VII-VI-V. Even though the song is written in a minor key, most of the chords are major! This gives the song a beautiful emotional texture as it moves between the sad sound of minor to the happy sound of the major chords.

What are the differences between these three arrangements of “What Child Is This?”

Early Elementary (Hoffman Academy Units 1-4) arrangement is the simplest of the three arrangements. It’s written with the melody line only. The key is A minor, with no sharps or flats in the key signature, and the time signature is ¾. This arrangement includes the first two phrases of the original song.

Late Elementary (Hoffman Academy Units 9-11) arrangement is in the same key and with the same time signature as the Early Elementary arrangement, but it includes an accompaniment of simple blocked chords for the left hand to play. There are also dynamic markings and phrase lines on the Late Elementary arrangement to give the musician some ideas for how to perform the song.

Intermediate (Hoffman Academy Units 15-18) arrangement is in the key of E minor, which has one sharp and is the relative minor for the key of G major. It’s also written in 6/8 time. This arrangement includes the entire melody for the song, while the Early and Late Elementary arrangements only include the first two phrases.

Where else is this melody used?

As mentioned above, the melody is the same melody used for the English folk song, “Greensleeves.” In modern times this tune was used by Ralph Vaughn Williams in his opera “Sir John in Love,” and also arranged into his famous orchestral piece, “Fantasia on Greensleeves.” There are a few other Christmas carols written for this tune, but “What Child Is This” is by far the most popular.