Learn how to play a timeless melody with La Vie en Rose violin sheet music.
La Vie en Rose is a popular, timeless melody that dates back to the 1940s. It might sound slow and easy, but it’s actually a challenging song to learn on the violin!
Learn more about the history of the song, purchase the violin sheet music, and download my free sheet music of exercises below.
La Vie en Rose Song History
Lyrics by French singer Édith Piaf, music by Louiguy (Louis Guglielmi).
The title literally translates to “Life in Pink,” but can also mean “Life in Rosy Hues,” or “Life through Rose-colored glasses.”
Édith Piaf started performing the song in 1946, and after it became a big hit with audiences, she released the vinyl single recording. It ended up being her signature song. The message of La Vie en Rose resonated deeply with those who experienced love during World War II.
This iconic song has been covered by other musicians for years, and today, it’s often played at weddings.
Violin Sheet Music
Purchase the digital sheet music here:
My arrangement includes all finger numbers and the names of each string to help you learn quickly, no matter what level you’re at!
Want to learn one of my free songs? Find my free sheet music available for download here.
Warm Ups for La Vie en Rose
I’ve created a couple of warm-ups to go along with La Vie en Rose. Download the free sheet music pdf below!
C Major Scale and Arpeggio
C Major Scales, Arpeggios
and a Bonus Exercise
La Vie en Rose is in the key of C Major. A great way to warm up before learning this song is by practicing the scale and arpeggio. The same finger patterns you practice here will also be in the song!
C Major has no sharps or flats. This means we play a low two on the D string for F natural, a low two on the A string for C natural, and another low two on the E string for G natural.
String Crossing Exercises
String Crossings Exercises
I included three very helpful string crossing exercises in the warm-up sheet music because La Vie en Rose actually has many tricky string crossings!
Exercise 1
The first string crossing exercise in the digital sheet music goes from open string to open string with a rest in between each one. The rest gives you just enough time to learn exactly where to place your bow to play the next open string.
Exercise 2
The second string crossing exercise also moves from open string to open string, but the rest in between each one has been removed. Now you instantly place your bow on the next open string and go. As you might expect, this exercise is a bit trickier than the first one!
Exercise 3
Finally, the third string crossing exercise actually involves the left hand. You’ll play two open strings and on the lower string, walk up the notes with your left-hand fingers 1-2-3, and back down again, 3-2-1.
Keep your left-hand fingers pressed down to create a beautiful hand hold. You’ll need to have a beautiful hold during this exercise to produce a clear, singing open string sound. If your left-hand hold isn’t just so, you’ll probably hear a squeaking sound on the open string. Adjust how your fingers sit on the string (be sure you’re on your fingertips!), and eventually you’ll start to find this hand position quicker.
How to Play La Vie en Rose on Violin
Watch my helpful tutorial where I first play the whole song, and then teach a practice session.
Finger Patterns
Every time we play a note with the second finger in this song, it’ll be a low 2. Since it’s written in C Major, we have F naturals, C naturals, and G naturals.
Again, practicing your C Major scale and arpeggio will help you get comfortable with this specific finger placement. Be sure to download my free sheet music of exercises to practice before looking at the full song!
C Major Scales, Arpeggios
and a Bonus Exercise
String Crossings Exercises
Uneven bowing patterns
Because of the dotted rhythm that happens over and over again in this music, you might find yourself stuck at the tip of the bow.
To avoid this, I play with a slow down bow on each long bow, and I make my up bows quick on the short notes. This helps to keep the bow a little more even.
String Crossings
If you’re finding that your string crossings sound sloppy, you’re not alone! Changing strings is one of the most difficult techniques we learn on any string instrument.
Try stopping the bow after each note, to really synchronize the bow changes with the left-hand note changes.
Also, make your bow movements between strings very small. I keep the bow parallel to my upper arm. You can see in my tutorial video that my upper arm angle changes just slightly to play each individual string.
Extra Practice Tip
Practice slowly, especially in any spot that’s hard for you! If you practice too quickly, you end up just practicing your mistakes, and they become a habit that’s hard to break. Practicing slowly gives you the time you need to process everything going on.
La Vie en Rose Play Through
Watch my play-through of this arrangement of La Vie en Rose with a backing track. Feel free to play along with me once you can perform the music up to tempo!
Final Notes
La Vie en Rose is a timeless song, and as such, it just sounds beautiful on the violin. No wonder so many couples choose to have this song played at their weddings! If you haven’t already, purchase and print violin sheet music, and download my free sheet music of exercises here.
Are you excited to learn this classic song? Let me know what your favorite recording of La Vie en Rose is down below!
