Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Pop heartbeat

How to play Not Alone on piano

By Sara Bareilles

  • Eb major
  • 4/4
  • 100 BPM
  • 2010
  • Easy
Tuning the piano…
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Style

Left hand Stair stepsRight hand Hand-clap chordsChords the loop the song repeats most

Play the full song with sheet music

Learn Not Alone in 5 steps

The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.

  1. 1

    Chords: G7 – Cm – Ab – Eb

    How it goes

    Not Alone sits in Eb major: Eb is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: G7 is G, B, D and F; Cm is C, Eb and G; Ab is Ab, C and Eb; Eb is Eb, G and Bb. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.

    G7III7CmviAbIVEbI
    • G7G · B · D · F
    • CmC · Eb · G
    • AbAb · C · Eb
    • EbEb · G · Bb
  2. 2

    Left hand: Stair steps

    How it goes

    Three notes climb up the chord in the island rhythm. Musicians call it broken chord 1-3-5 (broken chord), an easy pattern heard in 438 songs of the library.

  3. 3

    Right hand: Hand-clap chords

    How it goes

    Rests on beat 1, then clap-clap on 2 and one more clap on 4. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.

  4. 4

    Both hands at 100 BPM

    How it goes

    Put the two hands together over the loop. Start at half speed with the player's speed control, and bring it up once every change is easy.

  5. 5

    Ending: Ab – Bb – Eb

    How it goes

    The last chords are IV – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.

    AbBbEb
    • BbBb · D · F

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Questions about Not Alone

What chords are in Not Alone?

The loop is G7 – Cm – Ab – Eb (III7 – vi – IV – I) in Eb major, and the song ends on Ab – Bb – Eb.

What key is Not Alone in?

Eb major, at about 100 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Not Alone?

Stair steps: broken chord 1-3-5, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Not Alone easy to play on piano?

Yes. Both hands play easy patterns over 4 chords. Learn the chords first, then add one hand at a time.

Made from one arrangement of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.