Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Waltz garden

Once Upon A Summertime: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

By Tony Bennett

Tuning the piano…
Learn it
Style

Left hand Waltz strideThe right hand sings the tuneChords the loop the song repeats most

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 Upon A Summertime without reading music. The left hand plays waltz stride (stride (3/4)), and the right hand sings the tune.

Once Upon A Summertime accompaniment in letter notes

The C7 – F – Dm – Gm loop with waltz stride in the left hand. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
C7
RC4+E4+G4
LC3 G3+E4 C4
Bar 2
F
RF4+A4+C5
LF2 C3+A3 F3
Bar 3
Dm
RD4+F4+A4
LD2 A2+F3 D3
Bar 4
Gm
RG4+Bb4+D5 G4 Bb4 D5 G5 Bb5 D6 G6 Bb6
LG2 D3+Bb3 G3
Bar 5
C7
RC4+E4+G4
LC3 G3+E4 C4
Bar 6
F
RF4+A4+C5
LF2 C3+A3 F3
Bar 7
Dm
RD4+F4+A4
LD2 A2+F3 D3
Bar 8
Gm
RG4+Bb4+D5
LG2 D3+Bb3 G3

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.

Play next

Questions about Once Upon A Summertime

What are the letter notes for the Once Upon A Summertime 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 C7 – F – Dm – Gm, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in Once Upon A Summertime?

The loop is C7 – F – Dm – Gm (V7 – I – vi – ii) in F minor, and the song ends on Gm – C7 – F.

What key is Once Upon A Summertime in?

F minor, at about 110 beats a minute in 3/4.

What does the left hand play in Once Upon A Summertime?

Waltz stride: stride (3/4), a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Once Upon A Summertime 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 one arrangement of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.