Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Old-time stride

Portrait of Jennie: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

By Brent Edstrom

  • Db major
  • 4/4
  • 92 BPM
  • 1948
  • Easy
Tuning the piano…
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Style

Left hand Stride jumpsRight hand Soft chordsChords the loop the song repeats most

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 Portrait of Jennie without reading music. The left hand plays stride jumps (stride) and the right hand soft chords.

Portrait of Jennie accompaniment in letter notes

The Gbm – Cb7 – Fm – Bbm loop with stride jumps in the left hand and soft chords in the right. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
Gbm
RDb5+Gb5+Bbb5 Db5+Gb5+Bbb5 Db5+Gb5+Bbb5
LGb2 Db3+Gb3 Gb2 Db3+Gb3
Bar 2
Cb7
RGb4+Cb4+Eb5 Gb4+Cb4+Eb5 Gb4+Cb4+Eb5
LCb2 Gb3+Cb3 Cb2 Gb3+Cb3
Bar 3
Fm
RC5+F5+Ab5 C5+F5+Ab5 C5+F5+Ab5
LF2 C3+F3 F2 C3+F3
Bar 4
Bbm
RF4+Bb4+Db5 Db7 Bb6 F6 Db6 Bb5 A5 Ab5 G5
LBb2 F3+Bb3 Bb2 F3+Bb3
Bar 5
Gbm
RDb5+Gb5+Bbb5 Db5+Gb5+Bbb5 Db5+Gb5+Bbb5
LGb2 Db3+Gb3 Gb2 Db3+Gb3
Bar 6
Cb7
RGb4+Cb4+Eb5 Gb4+Cb4+Eb5 Gb4+Cb4+Eb5
LCb2 Gb3+Cb3 Cb2 Gb3+Cb3
Bar 7
Fm
RC5+F5+Ab5 C5+F5+Ab5 C5+F5+Ab5
LF2 C3+F3 F2 C3+F3
Bar 8
Bbm
RF4+Bb4+Db5 F4+Bb4+Db5 F4+Bb4+Db5
LBb2 F3+Bb3 Bb2 F3+Bb3

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 Portrait of Jennie

What are the letter notes for the Portrait of Jennie 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 Gbm – Cb7 – Fm – Bbm, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in Portrait of Jennie?

The loop is Gbm – Cb7 – Fm – Bbm (iv – bVII7 – iii – vi) in Db major, and the song ends on Ebm – Ab7 – Db.

What key is Portrait of Jennie in?

Db major, at about 92 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Portrait of Jennie?

Stride jumps: stride, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Portrait of Jennie easy to play on piano?

Yes. Both hands play easy patterns over 4 chords. Learn the chords first, then add one hand at a time.

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