Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Rock drive

Afterglow: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

Written by Vanessa Carlton

  • C major
  • 4/4
  • 80 BPM
  • 2004
  • Medium
Tuning the piano…
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Style

Left hand Power fifthsThe right hand sings the tuneChords the loop the song repeats most

The accompaniment with every note named, bar by bar: the bar sheet shows each note as a bar on the staff with its letter inside, so you can accompany Afterglow without reading music. The left hand plays power fifths (lh power fifths), and the right hand sings the tune.

Afterglow accompaniment in letter notes

The Am – F – G – F loop with power fifths in the left hand. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
Am
RA3+C4+E4
LA2+E3 A2+E3 A2+E3 A2+E3 A3+E4 A3+E4 A3+E4 A3+E4
Bar 2
F
RF4+A4+C5
LF2+C3 F2+C3 F2+C3 F2+C3 F3+C4 F3+C4 F3+C4 F3+C4
Bar 3
G
RG4+B4+D5
LG2+D3 G2+D3 G2+D3 G2+D3 G3+D4 G3+D4 G3+D4 G3+D4
Bar 4
F
RF4+A4+C5 A6 F6 C6 A5 Ab5 G5 Gb5 F5
LF2+C3 F2+C3 F2+C3 F2+C3 F3+C4 F3+C4 F3+C4 F3+C4
Bar 5
Am
RA3+C4+E4
LA2+E3 A2+E3 A2+E3 A2+E3 A3+E4 A3+E4 A3+E4 A3+E4
Bar 6
F
RF4+A4+C5
LF2+C3 F2+C3 F2+C3 F2+C3 F3+C4 F3+C4 F3+C4 F3+C4
Bar 7
G
RG4+B4+D5
LG2+D3 G2+D3 G2+D3 G2+D3 G3+D4 G3+D4 G3+D4 G3+D4
Bar 8
F
RF4+A4+C5
LF2+C3 F2+C3 F2+C3 F2+C3 F3+C4 F3+C4 F3+C4 F3+C4

How to read the bar sheet

The player above shows the treble staff (right hand) over the bass staff (left hand). Every note is a bar as long as it sounds, at its place on the staff, with its name inside, and the music scrolls past a line that marks now. The chord names run along the top.

Start with the left hand alone at a slow speed, then the right, then both. When the letters feel easy, try the sheet music.

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Questions about Afterglow

What are the letter notes for the Afterglow piano accompaniment?

Bar by bar, both hands: the bar sheet on this page names every note of the accompaniment (C4 is middle C) and plays along. The loop is Am – F – G – F, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in Afterglow?

The loop is Am – F – G – F (vi – IV – V – IV) in C major, and the song ends on C – Am – C.

What key is Afterglow in?

C major, at about 80 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Afterglow?

Power fifths: lh power fifths, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Afterglow easy to play on piano?

It is a medium one: learn the 4 chords as blocks first, then add the left hand, then the right, slowly.

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