Difficulty
Intermediate πͺ
Rate for accuracy
🎸
Key: B
πΈ Verse 1:
B E
My choir director was harsh but
G#m E
It made him the perfect teacher
B E
By waving a wand, he took folks
G#m F#
Who could sing and he made them singers
πΈ Pre-Chorus 1:
G#m E
I didn't enjoy it that much
B F#
Some things that he said really stuck
πΈ Chorus 1:
B E G#m E
He said music is sound and silence
B E G#m F#
Sound and silence
πΈ Verse 2:
B E
Paid too much for coffee to go
G#m E
And I wandered the lonely city
B E
I decided that I had grown deaf or
G#m F#
that God just gave up on speaking
πΈ Pre-Chorus 2:
G#m E
It felt like a permanent pause
B F#
But I think it was part of the song
πΈ Chorus 2:
B E G#m E
One half of the sound and silence
B E G#m F#
Sound and silence
πΈ Verse 3:
B E
Head in hands, I have sobbed on a pew
G#m E
To the sound of an empty church
B E
Where the echo of Sundayβs song dies,
G#m F#
Leaving silence too deep for words
πΈ Pre-Chorus 3:
G#m E
But every beautiful song has a break
B F#
Every pause holds a meaningful place
G#m E
And it sears when the silence begins
B F#
But it sings when the choir comes back in
πΈ Chorus 3:
B E G#m E
Music is sound and silence
B E G#m F#
Sound and silence
B E G#m E
Oh, music is sound and silence
B E G#m F# B
Sound and silence
Song History
Published: June 9, 2024
Last Updated: September 10, 2025