What's This? (From The Nightmare Before Christmas)

by Danny Elfman
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Lyrics

What’s (C)this?

What’s this?

There’s col or ev ’ry (B)where.

What’s this?

There’s white things in the (C)air.

What’s this?

I can’t be lieve my (Em)eyes.

I must be (Cmaj7)dream ing.

Wake up, (Em6)Jack, this is n’t (B)fair!

(G)What’s (C)this?

What’s this?

What’s this?

There’s some thing ver y (B)wrong.

What’s this?

There’s peo ple sing ing (C)songs.

What’s this?

The streets are lined with (Em)lit tle crea tures (Cmaj7)laugh ing.

Ev ’ry (Em6)bod y seems so (B)hap py.

Have I (Em)pos si bly gone (G7)daf fy?

What is (F#dim7)this?

(G7)What’s (C)this?

There’re (Am)chil dren throw ing snow balls in (Em)stead of throw ing heads.

They’re (Am)bus y build ing toys and ab so (Em)lute ly no one’s dead.

There’s (Gm)frost on ev ’ry win dow.

Oh, I (Bbm)can’t be lieve my eyes.

And (A)in my bones I feel the warmth that’s (C#m)com ing from in (A)side.

(A7)Oh, (D)look!

What’s this?

They’re hang ing mis tle (C#)toe.

They kiss?

Why, that looks so u (D)nique, in spired!

They’re gath er ing a (F#m)round to hear a (Dmaj7)sto ry, roast ing (F#m6)chest nuts on a (C#)fire.

(A7)What’s (D)this?

What’s this?

In here they’ve got a lit tle (C#)tree.

How queer!

And who would ev er (D)think, and why?

They’re cov ’ring it with (F#m)ti ny lit tle (Dmaj7)things, they’ve got e (F#m6)lec tric lights on (C#7)strings and there’s a (F#m)smile on ev ’ry (A7)one.

So now, cor (Ddim7)rect me if I’m wrong.

This looks (A)like (D)fun!

This looks like (F#)fun!

Oh, could it (Bm)be I got my (Bb)wish!

(A7)What’s (D)this?

Oh my, what now?

the chil dren are a (C#)sleep.

But look, there’s noth ing un der (D)neath.

No ghouls, no witch es here to (F#m)scream and scare them (Dmaj7)or en snare them, (F#m6)on ly lit tle (C#)co zy things se (F#m)cure in side their (F#m6)dream land.

(sigh) (A7)What’s (D)this?

The (Bm)mon sters are all miss ing and the (F#m)night mares can’t be found, and (Bm)in their place there seems to be good (F#m)feel ing all a round.

In (Am)stead of screams, I swear I can hear (Cm)mu sic in the air.

The (B)smell of cakes and pies is ab so (Ebm)lute ly ev ’ry (Bb)where.

The (Eb)sights, the sounds, they’re ev ’ry where and (D)all a round.

I’ve nev er felt so (Eb)good be fore.

This emp ty place in (Gm)side of me is (Ebmaj7)fill ing up.

I (Gm6)sim ply can not (D)get e nough.

I (Gm)want it, oh, I (Bb7)want it.

Oh, I (Adim7)want it for my own.

I’ve got to (Eb)know.

I’ve got to (G7)know.

What is this (Cm)place that I have (B)found?

(Ebm)WHAT (B)IS (Cdim7)THIS?!

(CN.C.)Christ mas town?

Hmmmm...

What's This? (From The Nightmare Before Christmas) — Falling Notes Piano Tutorial

Watch "What's This? (From The Nightmare Before Christmas)" by Danny Elfman in falling notes style — like Synthesia. Color-coded notes fall onto the keyboard in real time. Practice left hand, right hand, or both. Key of C, 120 BPM.

Tip: Start at 50% speed to get comfortable with the fingering, then work your way up to full tempo.

About “What's This? (From The Nightmare Before Christmas)

What key is "What's This? (From The Nightmare Before Christmas)" by Danny Elfman played in?
What's This? (From The Nightmare Before Christmas) is arranged in the key of C on Super Simple Piano. You can transpose to any other key live in the player.
What's the tempo (BPM) of "What's This? (From The Nightmare Before Christmas)"?
The arrangement plays at 120 BPM. Use the speed control (10-200%) to practice slower or play faster.
Is "What's This? (From The Nightmare Before Christmas)" easy to play on piano?
Yes — this is one of our beginner-friendly arrangements with simplified chords and color-coded notes.
Can I download sheet music for "What's This? (From The Nightmare Before Christmas)"?
Yes — registered users can download PDF sheet music, plus MIDI and MusicXML files for use in other notation software.
Who composed "What's This? (From The Nightmare Before Christmas)"?
"What's This? (From The Nightmare Before Christmas)" was originally performed by Danny Elfman. The Super Simple Piano arrangement is simplified for beginner-to-intermediate players.
What other songs by Danny Elfman can I play here?
Try "KIDNAP THE SANDY CLAWS", "THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS", "THIS IS HALLOWEEN". All are in our player with color-coded notes; pick the one matching your level.

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