Piano chords · Old-time stride
Purple Rain: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes
By Prince
- Bb major
- 4/4
- 56 BPM
- 1984
- Medium
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 Purple Rain without reading music. The left hand plays oom-pah (bass + chords) and the right hand ticking clock.
The main tune of Purple Rain 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.
Purple Rain accompaniment in letter notes
The Eb – Eb – Bb – Gm7 loop with oom-pah in the left hand and ticking clock 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 Purple Rain
What are the letter notes for the Purple Rain 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 Eb – Eb – Bb – Gm7, so the letters repeat with the chords.
What chords are in Purple Rain?
The loop is Eb – Eb – Bb – Gm7 (IV – I – vi7 – IV) in Bb major, and the song ends on Eb – F – Bb.
What key is Purple Rain in?
Bb major, at about 56 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in Purple Rain?
Oom-pah: bass + chords, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Purple Rain 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.
Can I hear the real melody of Purple Rain?
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.