Snake Charmer
for Beginner Piano

You may recognize the Snake Charmer from your school days.

Sometimes it's called "Harem Dance." The minor melody is mysterious and scary-sounding...one reason kids love this song! 

Because this piece is such great music, but I didn't like the dumb words I remembered singing as a kid, I invented new words for the melody that seem to go with its title...

I find that my students enjoy songs more, and learn them faster, if they have compelling words or a story!  I think words help them travel in their imaginations when they are making music. 

Snake Charmer song for piano beginners at Middle C position

Please scroll down the page for the download links.

What makes Snake Charmer different from similar pieces set around Middle C are the "skips" or intervals of thirds.  

For beginners, these take concentration to spot.  Sometimes, I give in and put fingering on the notes the first time the skip pattern occurs.

Before they attempt this piece, I like to know that my students can easily read all the lines in Snakes Go for a Walk (also called Crickets Go Hopping), a page of short little exercises that test kids' ability to spot skips in a line of step-wise moving notes.

A harder version of Snake Charmer (a very popular piece in my studio for beginners) puts the melody all in the right hand in the key of Dm, and uses a plain open chord for the left hand.  That's the arrangement shown at the top of this page!

Your students might enjoy this short video of an actual snake charmer, playing his flute in the ordinary way.  Look at this fellow handle a real live snake! This is not the tune "Snake Charmer," but this is the story that the song tells: 


The link for the piano sheet music:


Free easy sheet music Snake Charmer


Interested in songs from the Bible for your students or church?  Check out my other website, SingTheBibleStory.com!

SingTheBibleStory.com clickable logo link

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Kim in Washington:
My son is hooked...I've been introducing piano to my son on and off for a year or so, but he's not had much interest. Then I gave him "Monsters Everywhere". He loved playing it with the organ sound on our piano. He memorized it that week and I'm printing off the other Halloween songs to keep him going. I love the detailed instructions on teaching since he is my first student! Thanks so much.
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About the Author

Dana Thynes

Hi, I'm Dana!  (Say that like "Anna".)  I'm the owner of Music-for-Music-Teachers.com, and a newer site, SingTheBibleStory.com.

Like some of you, I've been playing the piano since early childhood, and have added a few other instruments along the way, plus an interest in arranging and composing music.

You can find out more about me and the reason for this website at my About Me page.