Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Pop heartbeat

Breathing: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

By Kate Bush

  • C major
  • 4/4
  • 100 BPM
  • 1988
  • Medium
Tuning the piano…
Learn it
Style

Left hand Double island pulseRight hand Double island chordsChords 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 Breathing without reading music. The left hand plays double island pulse (root bass · 1 · 1a · 2& · 3 · 3a · 4&) and the right hand double island chords.

The repeating figure of Breathing 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
Fmaj7
RC4+E4+A4 C4+E4+A4 G4 C4+E4+A4 G4
LF2 F2 F2 F2
Bar 2
G
RB3+D4 B3+D4+A4 G4 B3+D4+A4 G4
LG2 G2 G2 G2
Bar 3
Am
RC4+E4 C4+E4+A4 G4 C4+E4+A4 G4
LA2 A2 A2 A2
Bar 4
Am → G → C
RC4+E4 G4 D4+E4 E4+G4
LA2 A2 B2 C3

Breathing accompaniment in letter notes

The Fmaj7 – G – Am – Am – G – C loop with double island pulse in the left hand and double island chords in the right. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
Fmaj7
RA4+C5+F5 A4+C5+F5 A4+C5+F5 A4+C5+F5 A4+C5+F5 A4+C5+F5
LF2 F2 F2 F2 F2 F2
Bar 2
G
RB4+D5+G5 B4+D5+G5 B4+D5+G5 B4+D5+G5 B4+D5+G5 B4+D5+G5
LG2 G2 G2 G2 G2 G2
Bar 3
Am
RC4+E4+A4 C4+E4+A4 C4+E4+A4 C4+E4+A4 C4+E4+A4 C4+E4+A4
LA2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2
Bar 4
Am → G → C
RC4+E4+A4 C4+E4+A4 C4+E4+A4 E4 F4 G4 A4 B4 C5 D5 E5
LA2 A2 A2 G2 G2 C3
Bar 5
Fmaj7
RA4+C5+F5 A4+C5+F5 A4+C5+F5 A4+C5+F5 A4+C5+F5 A4+C5+F5
LF2 F2 F2 F2 F2 F2
Bar 6
G
RB4+D5+G5 B4+D5+G5 B4+D5+G5 B4+D5+G5 B4+D5+G5 B4+D5+G5
LG2 G2 G2 G2 G2 G2
Bar 7
Am
RC4+E4+A4 C4+E4+A4 C4+E4+A4 C4+E4+A4 C4+E4+A4 C4+E4+A4
LA2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2
Bar 8
Am → G → C
RC4+E4+A4 C4+E4+A4 C4+E4+A4 B4+D5+G5 B4+D5+G5 E4+G4+C5
LA2 A2 A2 G2 G2 C3

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 Breathing

What are the letter notes for the Breathing 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 Fmaj7 – G – Am – Am – G – C, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in Breathing?

The loop is Fmaj7 – G – Am – Am – G – C (IVmaj7 – V – vi – V – I – IVmaj7) in C major, and the song ends on Am – G – C.

What key is Breathing in?

C major, at about 100 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Breathing?

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 Breathing easy to play on piano?

It is a medium one: learn the 6 chords as blocks first, then add the left hand, then the right, slowly.

Can I hear the real melody of Breathing?

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

Made from 3 arrangements of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.