Piano chords · Pop heartbeat
Break It Off: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes
By Rihanna
- B minor
- 4/4
- 125 BPM
- i–bVI–bVII–i loop
- 2006
- Medium
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 Break It Off without reading music. The left hand plays double island pulse (root bass · 1 · 1a · 2& · 3 · 3a · 4&) and the right hand candle flicker.
Break It Off accompaniment in letter notes
The Bm – G – A – Bm loop with double island pulse in the left hand and candle flicker 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.
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Questions about Break It Off
What are the letter notes for the Break It Off 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 Bm – G – A – Bm, so the letters repeat with the chords.
What chords are in Break It Off?
The loop is Bm – G – A – Bm (i – bVI – bVII – i) in B minor, and the song ends on G – A – Bm.
What key is Break It Off in?
B minor, at about 125 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in Break It Off?
Double island pulse: root bass · 1 · 1a · 2& · 3 · 3a · 4&, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Break It Off 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.