Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Film & wonder

How to play My Star on piano

Written by Charles Strouse

Tuning the piano…
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Style

Left hand Rocket sweepThe right hand sings the tuneChords the loop the song repeats most

Learn My Star in 5 steps

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

  1. 1

    Chords: Eb – Cm – Eb – Ab

    My Star sits in Eb major: Eb is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: Eb is Eb, G and Bb; Cm is C, Eb and G; Ab is Ab, C and Eb. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.

    EbICmviEbIAbIV
    • EbEb · G · Bb
    • CmC · Eb · G
    • AbAb · C · Eb
    24 songs go round the same chords
  2. 2

    Left hand: Rocket sweep

    Climbs two octaves in two big leaps, soaring like a rocket. Musicians call it wide arpeggio 1-5-8-8-12-15 (wide arpeggio), a tricky pattern heard in 140 songs of the library.

  3. 3

    Right hand: the chords, held

    In this song the right hand mostly plays the tune itself. Hold the chords lightly, or play the melody over the left hand.

  4. 4

    Both hands at 120 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. 5

    Ending: Ab – Abm – Eb

    The last chords are IV – iv – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.

    AbAbmEb
    • AbmAb · Cb · Eb

Play next

Questions about My Star

What chords are in My Star?

The loop is Eb – Cm – Eb – Ab (I – vi – I – IV) in Eb major, and the song ends on Ab – Abm – Eb.

What key is My Star in?

Eb major, at about 120 beats a minute in 2/2.

What does the left hand play in My Star?

Rocket sweep: wide arpeggio 1-5-8-8-12-15, a tricky pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is My Star easy to play on piano?

It is a tricky one: learn the 4 chords as blocks first, then add the left hand, then the right, slowly.

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