Piano chords · Pop heartbeat
How to play Que Lio on piano
By Hector Lavoe
- F minor
- 4/4
- 90 BPM
- 1968
- Medium
Learn Que Lio in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: Fm – Db – Gb – Fm
Que Lio sits in F minor: F is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: Fm is F, Ab and C; Db is Db, F and Ab; Gb is Gb, Bb and Db. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
FmiDbVIGbbIIFmi- FmF · Ab · C
- DbDb · F · Ab
- GbGb · Bb · Db
- 2
Left hand: Groovy roots
Notes jump around the “ands”, giving the bass a funky bounce. Musicians call it root bass · syncopated 8ths (root bass rhythm), a medium pattern heard in 363 songs of the library.
- 3
Right hand: Pumping chords
A chord on every eighth note, driving the song forward. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
- 4
Both hands at 90 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
Ending: Db – Eb – Fm
The last chords are bVI – bVII – i, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
DbEbFm- EbEb · G · Bb
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Questions about Que Lio
What chords are in Que Lio?
The loop is Fm – Db – Gb – Fm (i – bVI – bII – i) in F minor, and the song ends on Db – Eb – Fm.
What key is Que Lio in?
F minor, at about 90 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in Que Lio?
Groovy roots: root bass · syncopated 8ths, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Que Lio 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.