Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Old-time stride

Swing 42: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

By Django Reinhardt

Tuning the piano…
Learn it
Style

Left hand Boom-chickRight hand Hopscotch bellsChords the loop the song repeats most

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 Swing 42 without reading music. The left hand plays boom-chick (boom-chick) and the right hand hopscotch bells.

Swing 42 accompaniment in letter notes

The C – Am – Dm – G7 loop with boom-chick in the left hand and hopscotch bells in the right. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
C
RC5 E4+G4 E4+G4
LC4 E4+G4 G3 E4+G4
Bar 2
Am
RA4 C4+E4 C4+E4
LA3 C4+E4 E3 C4+E4
Bar 3
Dm
RD5 F4+A4 F4+A4
LD3 F3+A3 A2 F3+A3
Bar 4
G7
RG5 B4+D5 G6 F6 D6 B5 Ab5 G5 F#5 F5
LG3 B3+D4 D3 B3+D4
Bar 5
C
RC5 E4+G4 E4+G4
LC4 E4+G4 G3 E4+G4
Bar 6
Am
RA4 C4+E4 C4+E4
LA3 C4+E4 E3 C4+E4
Bar 7
Dm
RD5 F4+A4 F4+A4
LD3 F3+A3 A2 F3+A3
Bar 8
G7
RG5 B4+D5 B4+D5
LG3 B3+D4 D3 B3+D4

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.

Play next

Questions about Swing 42

What are the letter notes for the Swing 42 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 – Am – Dm – G7, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in Swing 42?

The loop is C – Am – Dm – G7 (I – vi – ii – V7) in C major, and the song ends on Dm – G7 – C.

What key is Swing 42 in?

C major, at about 160 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Swing 42?

Boom-chick: boom-chick, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Swing 42 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.