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β€Ή Accordion songs
SongsYankee Doodle
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Traditional, sung in the American colonies before the Revolution (18th century). Public domain. Written an octave up, so its low notes fit a 17-key.

41 keys Β· F3–A6 Β· 41 keys Β· The standard piano accordion: a 41-key keyboard, the same notes push or pull.

Tap a key, or slide along them to run from note to note on one breath of the bellows. On a keyboard the letters on the keys are the ones to press β€” A to ' are middle C up to F like a piano's white keys, W E T Y U O P the black ones; Z to / are ten bass notes and 1 to 0 their major chords (Shift for counterbass and minor); Space turns the bellows.

AccordionFree Β· printable Β· plays in your browser

Yankee Doodle β€” Accordion Letter Notes

Yankee Doodle, written out for the accordion as letter notes, phrase by phrase and set up above on the Piano keys. Press Play to hear it, Practice to learn it one note at a time β€” the accordion waits for you β€” or Play along to keep time with it.

  • Notes28, 7 pitches
  • RangeG4–F5
  • Key hereC major
  • Tempo120 bpm Β· about 16 s
  • LevelEasy

Can a accordion play Yankee Doodle?

Yes β€” every one on this page plays it. The check is made note by note against what each one can actually sound. Where the tune does not fit as the library writes it, another key or octave is tried, and the table says which; where nothing fits, it names the notes that are missing.

  • Piano keysβœ“ Plays as writtenIn C major, G4–F5 Β· loaded above
  • Buttons Β· C-systemβœ“ Plays as writtenIn C major, G4–F5 Β· load it
  • Buttons Β· B-systemβœ“ Plays as writtenIn C major, G4–F5 Β· load it
  • Diatonic Β· one rowβœ“ Plays as writtenIn C major, G4–F5 Β· load it

Yankee Doodle: accordion letter notes

The large line is the note; the small line under it is its number in the scale. A dash holds the note another beat, an underline is half a beat, and a dot beside a note makes it half as long again. Each line is one phrase.

β–Ά Play it above

Yankee Doodle β€” accordion letter notes (Piano keys) Β· tonalics.com

The 7 notes it uses

Lowest to highest, with how many times each is played. Learn these 7 and you can play the whole tune.

  • G5Γ—2
  • A6Γ—1
  • B7Γ—3
  • C1Γ—11
  • D2Γ—5
  • E3Γ—5
  • F4Γ—1

What to expect on a accordion

  • It runs from G4 to F5, a minor seventh, using 7 different notes. That leaves 14 semitones unused below and 16 above.
  • 78% of its moves are a step or a repeated note. The widest is a fifth, D5 to G4, at note 8.

About the tune

The tune was already old when British troops sang it to mock colonial militia before the American Revolution; the colonists took it up as their own, and it has been a patriotic song ever since. It is the state song of Connecticut.

Traditional, sung in the American colonies before the Revolution (18th century). Public domain. Written an octave up, so its low notes fit a 17-key. More about Yankee Doodle β†’

Yankee Doodle on other instruments

The same melody, in each instrument’s own notation. It is not offered for the guzheng or handpan, which do not have the notes.

More songs for the accordion

All 36 accordion songs Β· Christmas songs for accordion Β· The online accordion on its own

Playing it on a real accordion?

If it sounds wrong, check the instrument before the notes. The accordion tuner listens through your microphone and names what each note is actually sounding.

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