Piano chords · Old-time stride

How to play Faded on piano

Tuning the piano…

Learn it

Learn Faded in 5 steps

The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.

1
Chords: Dm – Bb – F – C
Faded sits in D minor: D is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: Dm is D, F and A; Bb is Bb, D and F; F is F, A and C; C is C, E and G. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
DmiBbVIFIIICVII
- DmD · F · A
- BbBb · D · F
- FF · A · C
- CC · E · G
54 songs go round the same chords
2
Left hand: Stride jumps
Deep bass, then a chord in the middle: the left hand leaps. Musicians call it stride (stride & boom-chick), an easy pattern heard in 961 songs of the library.
Stride jumpsStride & boom-chick · StrideLeft handEasy
3
Right hand: Twinkle
Two notes twinkling back and forth. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
TwinkleTwo-note ostinato · BalladRight handMedium
4
Both hands at 90 BPM
Put the two hands together over the loop. Start at half speed with the player's speed control, and bring it up once every change is easy.
5
Ending: Bb – C – Dm
The last chords are bVI – bVII – i, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
BbCDm

What chords are in Faded?

The loop is Dm – Bb – F – C (i – bVI – bIII – bVII) in D minor, and the song ends on Bb – C – Dm.

What key is Faded in?

D minor, at about 90 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Faded?

Stride jumps: stride, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Faded 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.