[Piano] Piano Accompaniment Patterns | A selection of arrangements useful for adding accompaniment and for piano-vocal performance
When adding accompaniment to a melody or doing piano-vocal performances while reading a chord chart, the element that has the biggest impact on the final result is the accompaniment pattern! For beginners, it’s important to get used to simple approaches like root note + melody or chords + melody.
But once you can switch between chords smoothly, you’ll probably want to try arrangements that sound a bit more lush, right? In this article, we’ve picked out several recommended accompaniment patterns that will take your accompaniment and piano-vocal playing up a notch.
They’re not overly complex, yet they all deliver solid musical impact—perfect references for your piano accompaniment.
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[Piano] Piano Accompaniment Patterns | A selection of arrangements useful for adding accompaniment and for singing while playing (11–20)
Double stops + arpeggio
Double stops refer to sounding two notes at the same time.
When there are three or more, it’s called a chord, though in many cases people call it a chord without distinguishing between two and three notes.
In piano accompaniment, an arrangement that adds double stops to parts of an arpeggio—where the chord tones are played broken up—the so-called “boon-cha-cha” pattern, is very handy.
For the “cha-cha” part, it’s fine not to keep the rhythm tightly and just let it ring! If you use only root-position chords, it’s hard to connect smoothly, so try using inversions as you incorporate this arrangement.
8-beat
An “8-beat” is a rhythm based on a steady stream of eighth notes.
It’s finer than straight quarter-note downbeats, which makes it easier to create movement in a song.
However, simply playing constant eighth notes can feel fidgety and noisy, with zero sophistication.
A great alternative is to insert eighth-note subdivisions only in specific spots—such as a pattern like “quarter note – eighth rest – eighth note.” By creating a sense of space, you get a groove that feels good and works perfectly for pop accompaniment while singing and playing.
16-beat
The “16-beat,” which subdivides more finely than an 8-beat that pulses in eighth notes, is a rhythm based on sixteenth notes—as its name suggests—and is also used in drum parts for songs that require detailed expression.
However, accompaniment that simply strikes the root or chords in continuous sixteenth notes tends to get loud, so it’s not recommended unless you really want to emphasize the harmony.
When incorporating a 16-beat into piano accompaniment, try mixing it with four-on-the-floor or 8-beat patterns—such as a sequence like quarter note–eighth note–sixteenth note–sixteenth note—to create a more natural sense of movement in the rhythm.
Arpeggio (ascending form)
An “arpeggio” is a playing technique in which the notes of a chord are played in sequence from the bottom up or from the top down.
By breaking up the notes that would be pressed simultaneously in chord playing, rhythm is added to the accompaniment, transforming it into a more lively performance.
In the ascending form, you trace the chord tones from low to high, as in “do–mi–so–do–mi–so.” If the right hand plays the melody, the left hand should play ascending arpeggios; for singing with self-accompaniment, it works well to hold the root with the left hand and play ascending arpeggios with the right hand.
Syncopation + chords
“Syncopation” refers to disrupting the natural pattern of strong and weak beats.
For example, in a meter that normally goes “strong-weak-strong-weak,” if you tie the weak second beat to the strong third beat, the emphasis shifts to the second beat, changing the feel to “strong-strong-resonance-weak.” Syncopation adds a nice accent to piano accompaniment, and when combined with chords it creates an even more impactful backing.
If you’re comfortable with chord playing and using both hands, give it a try.