Piano chords · Pop heartbeat
Cry Me A River: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes
By Arthur Hamilton
- Eb major
- 4/4
- 85 BPM
- 1953
- 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 Cry Me A River without reading music. The left hand plays pausing footsteps (root bass · 1 · 2 · 3) and the right hand rocking thirds.
The catchy part of Cry Me A River 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.
Cry Me A River accompaniment in letter notes
The Cm – Ab – Cm – Cm7 – Fm7 – Bb7 – Ebmaj7 – Dm7 – G7 loop with pausing footsteps in the left hand and rocking thirds 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 Cry Me A River
What are the letter notes for the Cry Me A River 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 Cm – Ab – Cm – Cm7 – Fm7 – Bb7 – Ebmaj7 – Dm7 – G7, so the letters repeat with the chords.
What chords are in Cry Me A River?
The loop is Cm – Ab – Cm – Cm7 – Fm7 – Bb7 – Ebmaj7 – Dm7 – G7 (vi – IV – vi – vi7 – ii7 – V7 – Imaj7 – vii7 – III7) in Eb major, and the song ends on Ab – Bb – Eb.
What key is Cry Me A River in?
Eb major, at about 85 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in Cry Me A River?
Pausing footsteps: root bass · 1 · 2 · 3, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Cry Me A River easy to play on piano?
It is a medium one: learn the 9 chords as blocks first, then add the left hand, then the right, slowly.
Can I hear the real melody of Cry Me A River?
Yes: "The part you know" plays the catchy part of the song from a score, with both hands.
Made from 5 arrangements of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.