Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Rock drive

Alive: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

By Rebecca St. James

  • A major
  • 4/4
  • 130 BPM
  • 2005
  • Medium
Play the full song with sheet music
Tuning the piano…
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Style

Left hand Engine 8thsRight hand Offbeat skankChords from the chord symbols in the score

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 engine 8ths (root bass · 8ths) and the right hand offbeat skank.

The catchy part of Alive in letter notes

The real notes from a score, both hands, bar by bar. R is the right hand, L the left; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
F#m → D → ARF#4+A4+C#5 C#5 B4 F#4+A4+C#5 E5 E4+A4+C#5
LF#2 F#2 F#2 F#2 D2 D2 D2 A1
Bar 2
ARB4 E4+A4+C#5 B4 C#5 A4+C#5+E5
LA1 A1 A1 A1 A1 A1 A1
Bar 3
F#m → D → ARF#4+A4+C#5 B4 F#4+A4+C#5 E5 E4+A4+C#5
LF#2 F#2 F#2 F#2 D2 D2 D2 A1
Bar 4
ARB4 E4+A4+C#5 B4 C#5 C#4+F#4+B4
LA1 A1 A1 A1 A1 A1 A1

Alive accompaniment in letter notes

The F#m – D – A – A – F#m – D – A – A loop with engine 8ths in the left hand and offbeat skank in the right. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
F#m → D → ARA4+C#5+F#5 A4+C#5+F#5 F#4+A4+D5 C#4+E4+A4
LF#2 F#2 F#2 F#2 D2 D2 D2 A2
Bar 2
ARC#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4
LA2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2
Bar 3
F#m → D → ARA4+C#5+F#5 A4+C#5+F#5 F#4+A4+D5 C#4+E4+A4
LF#2 F#2 F#2 F#2 D2 D2 D2 A2
Bar 4
ARC#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4 C#7 A6 E6 C#6 Bb5 A5 G#5 G5
LA2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2
Bar 5
F#m → D → ARA4+C#5+F#5 A4+C#5+F#5 F#4+A4+D5 C#4+E4+A4
LF#2 F#2 F#2 F#2 D2 D2 D2 A2
Bar 6
ARC#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4
LA2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2
Bar 7
F#m → D → ARA4+C#5+F#5 A4+C#5+F#5 F#4+A4+D5 C#4+E4+A4
LF#2 F#2 F#2 F#2 D2 D2 D2 A2
Bar 8
ARC#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4
LA2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2 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.

Play next

More by Rebecca St. James

All 9 songs

The same left hand: Engine 8ths

About this pattern

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 F#m – D – A – A – F#m – D – A – A, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in Alive?

The loop is F#m – D – A – A – F#m – D – A – A (vi – IV – I – vi – IV – I – vi – IV) in A major, and the song ends on D – E – A.

What key is Alive in?

A major, at about 130 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Alive?

Engine 8ths: root bass · 8ths, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Alive easy to play on piano?

It is a medium one: learn the 8 chords as blocks first, then add the left hand, then the right, slowly.

Can I hear the real melody of Alive?

Yes: "The part you know" plays the catchy part of the song from a score, with both hands.

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