Piano chords · Waltz garden
Happy Xmas: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes
By John Lennon
- A major
- 12/8
- 99 BPM
- 1971
- 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 Happy Xmas without reading music. The left hand plays lapping waves (open arpeggio 1-5-10-5-10-5 (3/4)), and the right hand sings the tune.
The catchy part of Happy Xmas 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.
Happy Xmas accompaniment in letter notes
The A – Bm – E – A loop with lapping waves in the left hand. 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 Happy Xmas
What are the letter notes for the Happy Xmas 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 A – Bm – E – A, so the letters repeat with the chords.
What chords are in Happy Xmas?
The loop is A – Bm – E – A (I – ii – V – I) in A major, and the song ends on Bm – E – A.
What key is Happy Xmas in?
A major, at about 99 beats a minute in 12/8.
What does the left hand play in Happy Xmas?
Lapping waves: open arpeggio 1-5-10-5-10-5 (3/4), a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Happy Xmas 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.
Can I hear the real melody of Happy Xmas?
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.