Piano chords · Blues & boogie
Do You Hear What I Hear: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes
By Gloria Shayne
- Ab major
- 4/4
- 85 BPM
- 1962
- Easy
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 Do You Hear What I Hear without reading music. The left hand plays velvet jazz (lh shell voicings (1-7 / 1-3)) and the right hand heartbeat chords.
The main tune of Do You Hear What I Hear 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.
Do You Hear What I Hear accompaniment in letter notes
The Ab – Ab – Fm7 – Ab – Ab loop with velvet jazz in the left hand and heartbeat chords 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 Do You Hear What I Hear
What are the letter notes for the Do You Hear What I Hear 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 Ab – Ab – Fm7 – Ab – Ab, so the letters repeat with the chords.
What chords are in Do You Hear What I Hear?
The loop is Ab – Ab – Fm7 – Ab – Ab (I – vi7 – I – vi7 – I) in Ab major, and the song ends on Eb – Db – Ab.
What key is Do You Hear What I Hear in?
Ab major, at about 85 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in Do You Hear What I Hear?
Velvet jazz: lh shell voicings (1-7 / 1-3), an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Do You Hear What I Hear easy to play on piano?
Yes. Both hands play easy patterns over 5 chords. Learn the chords first, then add one hand at a time.
Can I hear the real melody of Do You Hear What I Hear?
Yes: "The part you know" plays the main tune of the song from a score, with both hands.
Made from 6 arrangements of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.