Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Old-time stride

Row, Row, Row Your Boat: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

By Traditional

Tuning the piano…
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Style

Left hand Little marchRight hand Marching 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 Row, Row, Row Your Boat without reading music. The left hand plays little march (lh chords (2/4)) and the right hand marching chords.

Row, Row, Row Your Boat accompaniment in letter notes

The C – F – C – F loop with little march in the left hand and marching chords in the right. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
C
RE4+G4+C5 E4+G4+C5 E4+G4+C5 E4+G4+C5
LF3+C4 C3 F3+C4 C3
Bar 2
F
RA4+C5+F5 A4+C5+F5 A4+C5+F5 A4+C5+F5
LBb2+F3 F2 Bb2+F3 F2
Bar 3
C
RE4+G4+C5 E4+G4+C5 E4+G4+C5 E4+G4+C5
LF3+C4 C3 F3+C4 C3
Bar 4
F
RA4+C5+F5 A4+C5+F5 A6 F6 C6 A5 Ab5 G5 Gb5 F5
LBb2+F3 F2 Bb2+F3 F2
Bar 5
C
RE4+G4+C5 E4+G4+C5 E4+G4+C5 E4+G4+C5
LF3+C4 C3 F3+C4 C3
Bar 6
F
RA4+C5+F5 A4+C5+F5 A4+C5+F5 A4+C5+F5
LBb2+F3 F2 Bb2+F3 F2
Bar 7
C
RE4+G4+C5 E4+G4+C5 E4+G4+C5 E4+G4+C5
LF3+C4 C3 F3+C4 C3
Bar 8
F
RA4+C5+F5 A4+C5+F5 A4+C5+F5 A4+C5+F5
LBb2+F3 F2 Bb2+F3 F2

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 Row, Row, Row Your Boat

What are the letter notes for the Row, Row, Row Your Boat 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 C – F – C – F, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in Row, Row, Row Your Boat?

The loop is C – F – C – F (I – IV – I – IV) in C major, and the song ends on F – G – C.

What key is Row, Row, Row Your Boat in?

C major, at about 105 beats a minute in 2/4.

What does the left hand play in Row, Row, Row Your Boat?

Little march: lh chords (2/4), an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Row, Row, Row Your Boat 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.