Piano chords · Pop heartbeat
Babalu (from 'the Shape Of Water'): easy piano accompaniment in letter notes
By Margarita Lecuona
- E minor
- 2/2
- 140 BPM
- 1939
- Medium
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 Babalu (from 'the Shape Of Water') without reading music. The left hand plays double-skip footsteps (root bass · 1 · 2 · 2& · 3 · 4 · 4&) and the right hand pop stabs.
Babalu (from 'the Shape Of Water') accompaniment in letter notes
The D7 – G – D7 – G loop with double-skip footsteps in the left hand and pop stabs in the right. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.
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
Questions about Babalu (from 'the Shape Of Water')
What are the letter notes for the Babalu (from 'the Shape Of Water') 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 D7 – G – D7 – G, so the letters repeat with the chords.
What chords are in Babalu (from 'the Shape Of Water')?
The loop is D7 – G – D7 – G (bVII7 – bIII – bVII7 – bIII) in E minor, and the song ends on E – A7 – E.
What key is Babalu (from 'the Shape Of Water') in?
E minor, at about 140 beats a minute in 2/2.
What does the left hand play in Babalu (from 'the Shape Of Water')?
Double-skip footsteps: root bass · 1 · 2 · 2& · 3 · 4 · 4&, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Babalu (from 'the Shape Of Water') 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 2 arrangements of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.