Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Pop heartbeat

Alive: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

By Pearl Jam

Tuning the piano…
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Style

Left hand Pop heartbeatRight hand Heartbeat chordsChords 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 Alive without reading music. The left hand plays pop heartbeat (root bass · charleston push (1 · 2& · 3)) and the right hand heartbeat chords.

Alive accompaniment in letter notes

The A – Asus4 – A – Asus4 loop with pop heartbeat in the left hand and heartbeat chords in the right. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
A
RE4+A4+C#5 E4+A4+C#5 E4+A4+C#5
LA2 A2 A2
Bar 2
Asus4
RE4+A4+D5 E4+A4+D5 E4+A4+D5
LA2 A2 A2
Bar 3
A
RE4+A4+C#5 E4+A4+C#5 E4+A4+C#5
LA2 A2 A2
Bar 4
Asus4
RE4+A4+D5 E4+A4+D5 D4 E4 F#4 G#4 A4 B4 C#5 D5
LA2 A2 A2
Bar 5
A
RE4+A4+C#5 E4+A4+C#5 E4+A4+C#5
LA2 A2 A2
Bar 6
Asus4
RE4+A4+D5 E4+A4+D5 E4+A4+D5
LA2 A2 A2
Bar 7
A
RE4+A4+C#5 E4+A4+C#5 E4+A4+C#5
LA2 A2 A2
Bar 8
Asus4
RE4+A4+D5 E4+A4+D5 E4+A4+D5
LA2 A2 A2

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 Alive

What are the letter notes for the Alive 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 A – Asus4 – A – Asus4, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in Alive?

The loop is A – Asus4 – A – Asus4 (I – Isus – I – Isus) in A major, and the song ends on D – E – A.

What key is Alive in?

A major, at about 72 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Alive?

Pop heartbeat: root bass · charleston push (1 · 2& · 3), an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Alive 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.