Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Blues & boogie

Down In New Orleans: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

By Anika Noni Rose

Tuning the piano…
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Style

Left hand Velvet jazzRight hand Push chordsChords the loop the song repeats most

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 Down In New Orleans without reading music. The left hand plays velvet jazz (lh shell voicings (1-7 / 1-3)) and the right hand push chords.

Down In New Orleans accompaniment in letter notes

The C – G7 – C – G7 loop with velvet jazz in the left hand and push chords in the right. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
C
RE4+G4+Bb4+C5 E4+G4+Bb4+C5 E4+G4+Bb4+C5
LE3+Bb3 E3+Bb3 E3+C4 E3+C4 E3+Bb3 E3+Bb3 E3+C4 E3+C4
Bar 2
G7
RB4+D5+F5+G5 B4+D5+F5+G5 B4+D5+F5+G5
LB2+F3 B2+F3 B2+G3 B2+G3 B2+F3 B2+F3 B2+G3 B2+G3
Bar 3
C
RE4+G4+Bb4+C5 E4+G4+Bb4+C5 E4+G4+Bb4+C5
LE3+Bb3 E3+Bb3 E3+C4 E3+C4 E3+Bb3 E3+Bb3 E3+C4 E3+C4
Bar 4
G7
RB4+D5+F5+G5 B4+D5+F5+G5 B4+D5+F5+G5 Bb4 B4 D5 E5 D5 B4 Bb4 G4
LB2+F3 B2+F3 B2+G3 B2+G3 B2+F3 B2+F3 B2+G3 B2+G3
Bar 5
C
RE4+G4+Bb4+C5 E4+G4+Bb4+C5 E4+G4+Bb4+C5
LE3+Bb3 E3+Bb3 E3+C4 E3+C4 E3+Bb3 E3+Bb3 E3+C4 E3+C4
Bar 6
G7
RB4+D5+F5+G5 B4+D5+F5+G5 B4+D5+F5+G5
LB2+F3 B2+F3 B2+G3 B2+G3 B2+F3 B2+F3 B2+G3 B2+G3
Bar 7
C
RE4+G4+Bb4+C5 E4+G4+Bb4+C5 E4+G4+Bb4+C5
LE3+Bb3 E3+Bb3 E3+C4 E3+C4 E3+Bb3 E3+Bb3 E3+C4 E3+C4
Bar 8
G7
RB4+D5+F5+G5 B4+D5+F5+G5 B4+D5+F5+G5
LB2+F3 B2+F3 B2+G3 B2+G3 B2+F3 B2+F3 B2+G3 B2+G3

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 Down In New Orleans

What are the letter notes for the Down In New Orleans 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 C – G7 – C – G7, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in Down In New Orleans?

The loop is C – G7 – C – G7 (I – V7 – I – V7) in C major, and the song ends on F – G – C.

What key is Down In New Orleans in?

C major, at about 90 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Down In New Orleans?

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 Down In New Orleans easy to play on piano?

Yes. Both hands play easy patterns over 4 chords. Learn the chords first, then add one hand at a time.

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