Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Old-time stride

When I Leave The World Behind: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

By Irving Berlin

  • Eb major
  • 4/4
  • 110 BPM
  • Easy
Tuning the piano…
Learn it
Style

Left hand Stride jumpsRight hand Steady chordsChords 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 When I Leave The World Behind without reading music. The left hand plays stride jumps (stride) and the right hand steady chords.

When I Leave The World Behind accompaniment in letter notes

The Bb7 – Eb – Gm – C7 loop with stride jumps in the left hand and steady chords in the right. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
Bb7
RD4+F4+Bb4 D4+F4+Bb4 D4+F4+Bb4 D4+F4+Bb4
LBb2 F3+Bb3 Bb2 F3+Bb3
Bar 2
Eb
RG4+Bb4+Eb5 G4+Bb4+Eb5 G4+Bb4+Eb5 G4+Bb4+Eb5
LEb2 Bb2+Eb3 Eb2 Bb2+Eb3
Bar 3
Gm
RBb4+D5+G5 Bb4+D5+G5 Bb4+D5+G5 Bb4+D5+G5
LG2 D3+G3 G2 D3+G3
Bar 4
C7
RE4+G4+C5 E4+G4+C5 G6 E6 C6 Bb5 A5 Ab5 G5 F#5
LC3 G3+C4 C3 G3+C4
Bar 5
Bb7
RD4+F4+Bb4 D4+F4+Bb4 D4+F4+Bb4 D4+F4+Bb4
LBb2 F3+Bb3 Bb2 F3+Bb3
Bar 6
Eb
RG4+Bb4+Eb5 G4+Bb4+Eb5 G4+Bb4+Eb5 G4+Bb4+Eb5
LEb2 Bb2+Eb3 Eb2 Bb2+Eb3
Bar 7
Gm
RBb4+D5+G5 Bb4+D5+G5 Bb4+D5+G5 Bb4+D5+G5
LG2 D3+G3 G2 D3+G3
Bar 8
C7
RE4+G4+C5 E4+G4+C5 E4+G4+C5 E4+G4+C5
LC3 G3+C4 C3 G3+C4

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 When I Leave The World Behind

What are the letter notes for the When I Leave The World Behind 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 Bb7 – Eb – Gm – C7, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in When I Leave The World Behind?

The loop is Bb7 – Eb – Gm – C7 (V7 – I – iii – VI7) in Eb major, and the song ends on Ab – Bb – Eb.

What key is When I Leave The World Behind in?

Eb major, at about 110 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in When I Leave The World Behind?

Stride jumps: stride, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is When I Leave The World Behind 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.