Piano chords · Rock drive
Once In Royal David’s City: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes
By Cecil F. Alexander
- G major
- 4/4
- 95 BPM
- V7–I–V7–I loop
- Medium
Play the full song with sheet music
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 Once In Royal David’s City without reading music. The left hand plays power fifths (lh power fifths) and the right hand pausing chords.
Once In Royal David’s City accompaniment in letter notes
The D7 – G – D7 – G loop with power fifths in the left hand and pausing chords in the right. 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 Once In Royal David’s City
What are the letter notes for the Once In Royal David’s City 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 D7 – G – D7 – G, so the letters repeat with the chords.
What chords are in Once In Royal David’s City?
The loop is D7 – G – D7 – G (V7 – I – V7 – I) in G major, and the song ends on G – D7 – G.
What key is Once In Royal David’s City in?
G major, at about 95 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in Once In Royal David’s City?
Power fifths: lh power fifths, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Once In Royal David’s City 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.