Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Blues & boogie

Moonlight Sonata: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

By Ludwig van Beethoven

  • C# minor
  • 2/2
  • 56 BPM
  • Medium
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Left hand Jazz walkRight hand Rising bubblesChords worked out from the notes of the famous part

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 Moonlight Sonata without reading music. The left hand plays jazz walk (walking bass) and the right hand rising bubbles.

The main tune of Moonlight Sonata 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.

Bar 1
C#m
RE3 G#3 C#4 G#3 C#4 E4 G#3 C#4 E4 G#3+G#4 C#4 E4 G#4
LC#2+G#2+C#3
Bar 2
G#
RG#3+G#4 D#4 F#4 G#3 D#4 F#4 G#3 D#4 F#4 G#3+G#4 D#4 F#4 G#4
LB#2+G#2+B#3
Bar 3
C#m → F#m
RG#3+G#4 C#4 E4 G#3 C#4 E4 A3+A4 C#4 F#4 A3 C#4 F#4
LC#2+C#3 F#1+F#2
Bar 4
C#m7 → B
RG#3+G#4 B3 E4 G#3 B3 E4 A3+F#4 B3 D#4 A3+B4 B3 D#4
LB1+B2 B1+B2

Moonlight Sonata accompaniment in letter notes

The C#m – G# – C#m – F#m – C#m7 – B loop with jazz walk in the left hand and rising bubbles in the right. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
C#m
RE4 G#4 C#5 E4 G#4 C#5
LC#3 D#3 E3 E3
Bar 2
G#
RB#5 D#5 G#5 B#5 D#5 G#5
LG#2 A#2 B2 B#3
Bar 3
C#m → F#m
RE4 G#4 C#5 A4 C#5 F#5
LC#3 D#3 A2 A2
Bar 4
C#m7 → B
RE4 G#4 C#5 D5 D#5 F#5 G#5 F#5 D#5 D5 B4
LC#3 D#3 D3 D#3
Bar 5
C#m
RE4 G#4 C#5 E4 G#4 C#5
LC#3 D#3 E3 E3
Bar 6
G#
RB#5 D#5 G#5 B#5 D#5 G#5
LG#2 A#2 B2 B#3
Bar 7
C#m → F#m
RE4 G#4 C#5 A4 C#5 F#5
LC#3 D#3 A2 A2
Bar 8
C#m7 → B
RE4 G#4 C#5 D#4 F#4 B4
LC#3 D#3 D3 D#3

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 Moonlight Sonata

What are the letter notes for the Moonlight Sonata 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#m – G# – C#m – F#m – C#m7 – B, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in Moonlight Sonata?

The loop is C#m – G# – C#m – F#m – C#m7 – B (i – V – i – iv – i7 – VII) in C# minor, and the song ends on A – B – C#m.

What key is Moonlight Sonata in?

C# minor, at about 56 beats a minute in 2/2.

What does the left hand play in Moonlight Sonata?

Jazz walk: walking bass, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Moonlight Sonata easy to play on piano?

It is a medium one: learn the 6 chords as blocks first, then add the left hand, then the right, slowly.

Can I hear the real melody of Moonlight Sonata?

Yes: "The part you know" plays the main tune of the song from a score, with both hands.

Made from 2 arrangements of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.