Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Pop heartbeat

This Masquerade: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

Written by Leon Russell

  • F minor
  • 4/4
  • 100 BPM
  • 1972
  • Easy
Tuning the piano…
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Style

Left hand Pop heartbeatThe right hand sings the tuneChords from the chord symbols in the score

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 This Masquerade without reading music. The left hand plays pop heartbeat (root bass · charleston push (1 · 2& · 3)), and the right hand sings the tune.

The bass riff of This Masquerade in letter notes

The real notes from a score, both hands, bar by bar. R is the right hand, L the left; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
Fm → Bb
RAb4+C5+F5 F4+Ab4 Ab4+C5 F4+Bb4+D5
LF2 F3 C3 Bb2
Bar 2
Bb
Rrest
LBb2 Bb2 Bb2 Bb2
Bar 3
Fm → Bb
RAb3+C4+F4 F4+Ab4 Ab4+C5 F4+Bb4+D5
LF2 F3 C3 Bb2
Bar 4
Bb
Rrest
Lrest

This Masquerade accompaniment in letter notes

The Fm – Bb – Bb – Fm – Bb – Bb loop with pop heartbeat in the left hand. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
Fm → Bb
RF4+Ab4+C5 Bb3+D4+F4
LF2 F2 F2
Bar 2
Bb
RBb3+D4+F4
LBb2 Bb2 Bb2
Bar 3
Fm → Bb
RF4+Ab4+C5 Bb3+D4+F4
LF2 F2 F2
Bar 4
Bb
RBb3+D4+F4 Eb4 F4 G4 Ab4 Bb4 C5 Db5 Eb5
LBb2 Bb2 Bb2
Bar 5
Fm → Bb
RF4+Ab4+C5 Bb3+D4+F4
LF2 F2 F2
Bar 6
Bb
RBb3+D4+F4
LBb2 Bb2 Bb2
Bar 7
Fm → Bb
RF4+Ab4+C5 Bb3+D4+F4
LF2 F2 F2
Bar 8
Bb
RBb3+D4+F4
LBb2 Bb2 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 This Masquerade

What are the letter notes for the This Masquerade 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 Fm – Bb – Bb – Fm – Bb – Bb, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in This Masquerade?

The loop is Fm – Bb – Bb – Fm – Bb – Bb (i – IV – i – IV – i – IV) in F minor, and the song ends on Db – Eb – Fm.

What key is This Masquerade in?

F minor, at about 100 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in This Masquerade?

Pop heartbeat: root bass · charleston push (1 · 2& · 3), an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is This Masquerade easy to play on piano?

Yes. Both hands play easy patterns over 6 chords. Learn the chords first, then add one hand at a time.

Can I hear the real melody of This Masquerade?

Yes: "The part you know" plays the bass riff of the song from a score, with both hands.

Made from one arrangement of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.