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The Great Pumpkin Waltz: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

By Vince Guaraldi

  • C minor
  • 3/4
  • 144 BPM
  • 1969
  • Easy
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Left hand Oom-pah-pahThe right hand sings the tuneChords 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 The Great Pumpkin Waltz without reading music. The left hand plays oom-pah-pah (waltz oom-pah-pah), and the right hand sings the tune.

The Great Pumpkin Waltz accompaniment in letter notes

The Cm – Bm – Bb – Eb7 loop with oom-pah-pah in the left hand. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
Cm
RC4+Eb4+G4
LC3 Eb3+G3 Eb3+G3
Bar 2
Bm
RB3+D4+F#4
LB2 D3+F#3 D3+F#3
Bar 3
Bb
RBb3+D4+F4
LBb2 D3+F3 D3+F3
Bar 4
Eb7
REb4+G4+Bb4 G4 Bb4 Db5 Eb5 G5 Bb5 Db6 Eb6
LEb2 G2+Bb2 G2+Bb2
Bar 5
Cm
RC4+Eb4+G4
LC3 Eb3+G3 Eb3+G3
Bar 6
Bm
RB3+D4+F#4
LB2 D3+F#3 D3+F#3
Bar 7
Bb
RBb3+D4+F4
LBb2 D3+F3 D3+F3
Bar 8
Eb7
REb4+G4+Bb4
LEb2 G2+Bb2 G2+Bb2

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 The Great Pumpkin Waltz

What are the letter notes for the The Great Pumpkin Waltz 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 Cm – Bm – Bb – Eb7, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in The Great Pumpkin Waltz?

The loop is Cm – Bm – Bb – Eb7 (i – vii – bVII – bIII7) in C minor, and the song ends on Ab – Bb – Cm.

What key is The Great Pumpkin Waltz in?

C minor, at about 144 beats a minute in 3/4.

What does the left hand play in The Great Pumpkin Waltz?

Oom-pah-pah: waltz oom-pah-pah, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is The Great Pumpkin Waltz 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.