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Desafinado (Slightly Out Of Tune): easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

By George Gershwin

  • C major
  • 2/2
  • 160 BPM
  • 1959
  • Medium
Tuning the piano…
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Left hand Island pulseRight hand Ticking clockChords the loop the song repeats most

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 Desafinado (Slightly Out Of Tune) without reading music. The left hand plays island pulse (root bass · tresillo 3-3-2) and the right hand ticking clock.

Desafinado (Slightly Out Of Tune) accompaniment in letter notes

The E – Fdim – F#m – B7 loop with island pulse in the left hand and ticking clock in the right. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
E
RE4 E4 E4 E4 E4 E4 E4 E4
LE2 E2 E2
Bar 2
Fdim
RF4 F4 F4 F4 F4 F4 F4 F4
LF2 F2 F2
Bar 3
F#m
RF#4 F#4 F#4 F#4 F#4 F#4 F#4 F#4
LF#2 F#2 F#2
Bar 4
B7
RB3 B3 B3 B3 D4 E4 E#4 G4 A4 B4 C5 D5
LB2 B2 B2
Bar 5
E
RE4 E4 E4 E4 E4 E4 E4 E4
LE2 E2 E2
Bar 6
Fdim
RF4 F4 F4 F4 F4 F4 F4 F4
LF2 F2 F2
Bar 7
F#m
RF#4 F#4 F#4 F#4 F#4 F#4 F#4 F#4
LF#2 F#2 F#2
Bar 8
B7
RB3 B3 B3 B3 B3 B3 B3 B3
LB2 B2 B2

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 Desafinado (Slightly Out Of Tune)

What are the letter notes for the Desafinado (Slightly Out Of Tune) 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 E – Fdim – F#m – B7, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in Desafinado (Slightly Out Of Tune)?

The loop is E – Fdim – F#m – B7 (III – ivo – #iv – VII7) in C major, and the song ends on F – G – C.

What key is Desafinado (Slightly Out Of Tune) in?

C major, at about 160 beats a minute in 2/2.

What does the left hand play in Desafinado (Slightly Out Of Tune)?

Island pulse: root bass · tresillo 3-3-2, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Desafinado (Slightly Out Of Tune) 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.