Piano chords · Rock drive

How to play Summertime on piano

Tuning the piano…

Learn it

Learn Summertime in 5 steps

The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.

1
Chords: G – D – Em – C
How it goes
Summertime sits in G major: G is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: G is G, B and D; D is D, F# and A; Em is E, G and B; C is C, E and G. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
GIDVEmviCIV
- GG · B · D
- DD · F# · A
- EmE · G · B
- CC · E · G
266 songs go round the same chords
2
Left hand: Engine 8ths
How it goes
The lowest note on every eighth: the engine of rock. Musicians call it root bass · 8ths (root bass rhythm), a medium pattern heard in thousands of songs of the library.
Engine 8thsRoot bass rhythm · RockLeft handMedium
3
Right hand: Lub-dub chords
How it goes
Two quick chords, a pause, two quick chords: just like a heartbeat. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
Lub-dub chordsSyncopated chords · PopRight handEasy
4
Both hands at 96 BPM
How it goes
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: C – D – G
How it goes
The last chords are IV – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
CDG

What chords are in Summertime?

The loop is G – D – Em – C (I – V – vi – IV) in G major, and the song ends on C – D – G.

What key is Summertime in?

G major, at about 96 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Summertime?

Engine 8ths: root bass · 8ths, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is 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.