Piano chords · Lullaby boat
Yesterday: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes
Written by Dan Reynolds, Wayne Sermon & others
- E major
- 6/8
- 78 BPM
- 2017
- Medium
Play the full song with sheet music
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 Yesterday without reading music. The left hand plays swelling 6/8 (open arpeggio 1-5-8-10-8-5 (6/8)) and the right hand rowing-boat chords.
The catchy part of Yesterday 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.
Yesterday accompaniment in letter notes
The A – E – E – A – E loop with swelling 6/8 in the left hand and rowing-boat chords in the right. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.
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.
Questions about Yesterday
What are the letter notes for the Yesterday 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 A – E – E – A – E, so the letters repeat with the chords.
What chords are in Yesterday?
The loop is A – E – E – A – E (IV – I – IV – I – IV) in E major, and the song ends on A – B – E.
What key is Yesterday in?
E major, at about 78 beats a minute in 6/8.
What does the left hand play in Yesterday?
Swelling 6/8: open arpeggio 1-5-8-10-8-5 (6/8), a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Yesterday easy to play on piano?
It is a medium one: learn the 5 chords as blocks first, then add the left hand, then the right, slowly.
Can I hear the real melody of Yesterday?
Yes: "The part you know" plays the catchy part 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.