Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Old-time stride

Away In A Manger: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

By John T. McFarland

  • Ab major
  • 2/4
  • 66 BPM
  • 1992
  • Tricky
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Left hand Kangaroo leapsRight hand Marching chordsChords worked out from the notes of the famous part

Play the full song with sheet music

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 Away In A Manger without reading music. The left hand plays kangaroo leaps (stride (2/4)) and the right hand marching chords.

The main tune of Away In A Manger 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
Ab
RC5+Eb5 C5+Eb5 Bb4+Db5 Ab4+C5
LAb2 Ab3+C4 Eb2 Ab3+C4
Bar 2
Ab
RAb4+C5 Ab4+C5 G4+Bb4 Gb4+Ab4
LAb2 Ab3+C4 Ab1 Bb1 C2
Bar 3
Db
RF4+Ab4 F4+Ab4 Eb4+G4 Db4+F4
LDb2 F3+Db4 Db2 F2
Bar 4
Ab
RC4+Eb4 C5 Db5 Eb5 F5 G5 Ab5
LAb2 Ab3+C4 Eb2 Ab3+C4

Away In A Manger accompaniment in letter notes

The Ab – Db – Ab loop with kangaroo leaps in the left hand and marching chords in the right. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
Ab
RC5+Eb5+Ab5 C5+Eb5+Ab5 C5+Eb5+Ab5 C5+Eb5+Ab5
LAb3 Eb4+Ab4+C5 Eb3 Eb4+Ab4+C5 Ab3 Eb4+Ab4+C5 Eb3 Eb4+Ab4+C5
Bar 2
Db
RF4+Ab4+Db5 F4+Ab4+Db5 F4+Ab4+Db5 F4+Ab4+Db5
LDb4 Ab4+Db5+F5 Ab3 Ab4+Db5+F5 Db4 Ab4+Db5+F5 Ab3 Ab4+Db5+F5
Bar 3
Ab
RC5+Eb5+Ab5 C5+Eb5+Ab5 C5+Eb5+Ab5 C5+Eb5+Ab5
LAb3 Eb4+Ab4+C5 Eb3 Eb4+Ab4+C5 Ab3 Eb4+Ab4+C5 Eb3 Eb4+Ab4+C5
Bar 4
Ab
RC5+Eb5+Ab5 C5+Eb5+Ab5 C7 Ab6 Eb6 C6 Bbb5 Ab5 G5 Gb5
LAb3 Eb4+Ab4+C5 Eb3 Eb4+Ab4+C5 Ab3 Eb4+Ab4+C5 Eb3 Eb4+Ab4+C5
Bar 5
Db
RF4+Ab4+Db5 F4+Ab4+Db5 F4+Ab4+Db5 F4+Ab4+Db5
LDb4 Ab4+Db5+F5 Ab3 Ab4+Db5+F5 Db4 Ab4+Db5+F5 Ab3 Ab4+Db5+F5
Bar 6
Ab
RC5+Eb5+Ab5 C5+Eb5+Ab5 C5+Eb5+Ab5 C5+Eb5+Ab5
LAb3 Eb4+Ab4+C5 Eb3 Eb4+Ab4+C5 Ab3 Eb4+Ab4+C5 Eb3 Eb4+Ab4+C5

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 Away In A Manger

What are the letter notes for the Away In A Manger 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 Ab – Db – Ab, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in Away In A Manger?

The loop is Ab – Db – Ab (I – IV – I) in Ab major, and the song ends on Db – Eb7 – Ab.

What key is Away In A Manger in?

Ab major, at about 66 beats a minute in 2/4.

What does the left hand play in Away In A Manger?

Kangaroo leaps: stride (2/4), a tricky pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Away In A Manger easy to play on piano?

It is a tricky one: learn the 3 chords as blocks first, then add the left hand, then the right, slowly.

Can I hear the real melody of Away In A Manger?

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

Made from 2 arrangements of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.