Interstellar - Hans Zimmer Piano Sheet Music from YouTube

About the piece

The main theme from Interstellar (2014) — sometimes called "Cornfield Chase", sometimes just "Interstellar Main Theme" — was composed by Hans Zimmer for Christopher Nolan's space epic. It's built around a slow arpeggiated piano figure with a rising chorale on top. Critics praised it on release; pianists immediately tried to learn it.

There's no official Hans Zimmer sheet music release for this theme. The dozens of YouTube covers are pianists' own arrangements, some closer to the film score, some more elaborate.

Why it's worth learning

Memorable melody — instantly recognizable

Slow tempo — about 60 BPM; gives you time to think

Repetitive harmonic pattern — once you learn the arpeggio, most of the piece is variations

Two-hand coordination practice — left-hand arpeggios under right-hand melody

Emotional payoff disproportionate to difficulty — it sounds harder than it is

Recommended YouTube covers to convert

Three popular covers, ordered by faithfulness to the film score:

Patrik Pietschmann's piano cover — closest to the official film recording, includes the rising chorale

Kyle Landry's arrangement — adds harmonic flourishes and runs, more challenging

Patrick Cohen's simple cover — stripped-down, easiest to learn

Pick whichever cover you fell in love with. Convert it to sheet music using our YouTube converter and you'll have a playable arrangement of that exact version.

Conversion walkthrough

Open [/youtube](/youtube)

Paste the YouTube URL of your chosen cover

Wait 60–90 seconds

The converted song opens in the player with falling notes, sheet music, MIDI, and PDF all available

How to practice it

Start at 50% speed in Top-Down view — the falling notes will arrive slowly enough that you can find each key. Don't worry about both hands yet.

Practice the left hand alone — the arpeggiated pattern is the foundation. Loop the first 16 measures and play just the bottom staff until it feels automatic.

Add the right hand — start with just the melody notes, ignore the inner voicing.

Build to full speed gradually — 50% → 70% → 85% → 100%. The piece is meant to feel slow and contemplative, so even "100%" is a manageable tempo for an intermediate beginner.

Switch to sheet music for memorization — once you can play it from falling notes, switch to Beginner Color-Coded view to start associating the visual notation with the keys. Eventually move to Full Notation.

Common stumbling points

The 5/4 time feel (in some arrangements) — Zimmer alternates between 4/4 and 5/4. Count out loud through transitions.

The ostinato in the left hand — easy to get sloppy as you add the right hand. Drop the right hand and check the left whenever you feel it slipping.

Pedal usage — the piece relies on sustain pedal for the ringing chord changes. If you have a digital piano, set the pedal up before you start. If you don't, hold notes longer with your fingers.

Difficulty rating

Depending on the cover:

Beginner — Patrick Cohen's simple cover (4–6 weeks of regular practice)

Intermediate — Patrik Pietschmann's faithful cover (2–3 months)

Advanced — Kyle Landry's elaborate arrangement (6+ months)

Other Hans Zimmer pieces to learn next

If Interstellar clicks for you, these have similar feel and are well-suited to the YouTube → sheet music workflow:

"Time" from Inception

"Cornfield Chase" (the soundtrack name for the same theme)

"Now We Are Free" from Gladiator (Lisa Gerrard wrote vocals; Zimmer the music)

"Day One" from Interstellar

Convert it

Open /youtube and paste a cover you want to learn. 90 seconds later you'll have the sheet music in your library, ready to practice at any speed.