Are you determined to master the notes of Lean On Me on the piano? You’ve come to the right place!
Lean on Me was written and performed by the talented American Bill Withers. Released as a single on April 21, 1972, this musical nugget immediately captured the hearts of listeners, topping the Billboard Hot 100 and earning the highly honored gold disc.
The story of this song goes back to when Bill Withers bought a Wurlitzer piano. This piano provided him with the ideal inspiration to accompany the phrase he had in mind with “Lean on Me”. This melody evokes the feeling of being able to count on someone in difficult times, a theme drawn from the artist’s personal experiences. Lean On Me sounds like a message of mutual support and friendship.
This article has been specially created to guide you step by step through the notes of Lean On Me on the piano. We’ll start by learning the notes for the right hand, followed by those for the left. Finally, we’ll show you how to play both together. Each step will be accompanied by tips and a tutorial to help you perfect your interpretation of this song. The pun is easy, but don’t hesitate to “lean on us”!
At the end of this article, you’ll find a link to a free download of the sheet music for Lean On Me.
Are you ready to play these notes and convey the song’s message of friendship? Let’s get started!
Bonus : you can also learn to play this song at your own pace on our interactive piano learning app La Touche Musicale.
Free download: >> >> The guide to learn 10 easy piano pieces.
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Before you start playing the notes of Lean On Me on the piano, it’s essential to make sure you can easily find your way around the keyboard. If you’re having trouble locating the notes, take the time to study the keyboard layout we’ve designed especially for you:
The name of the notes on a piano keyboard.
Have you taken a good look at this diagram? Then you’ve certainly noticed that the piano keyboard is always made up of the same sequence of black notes: we have two black notes, then three black notes, then two black notes, then three black notes, …
Let’s make a little allegory linked to the message conveyed by this Bill Withers song: the black keys on the piano keyboard represent friendship and mutual support. As in a beautiful friendship where everyone finds their place, the black keys are there to guide us along the musical path. They become a symbol of friendship and mutual support, reminding us that we are never alone on our journey!
The C will be your best friend, your point of reference. This is a general truth, valid for all keyboards. We know that the note C is always to the left of the group of two black notes. So, if you’re looking for your C, first analyze the groups of two black notes, then press the key to the left of the first note in that group: you’ve found your C!
Each series of seven notes on the keyboard corresponds to an octave. An octave comprises the notes C, D, E, F, G, A and B, then returns to C. These series are repeated along the entire length of the keyboard, from the lowest to the highest notes.
So practice identifying each note on a keyboard quickly and simply by scrolling down the octaves from C and then randomly searching for notes. This will be a great help before you play the notes of Lean On Me.
So, if you’re feeling lost, don’t forget your best friend and ally: C!
Now that you’ve got the basics down, let’s dive into learning the song Lean on Me.
To begin this melody, let your right hand play the first note on your piano keyboard: the C note.
The note C is the first note to be played with your right hand for the song Lean On Me on piano.
Have you managed to locate the first C note of the song on your keyboard? Excellent! Now we can move on to all the other notes in the right hand.
When you see two notes with a “+” sign, e.g. G + C, this means that both notes must be played at the same time. You’ll need to press the G key and the C key at the same time.
Press each of these keys on your keyboard in turn:
C – C – D – E – F – F – E – D – C – C – D – E – E – D – G + C – G + C – A + D – B + E – C + F – C + F – B + E – A + D – G + C – G + C – A + D – B + E – B – C – E – D – C – E – D – D – C – G – C – B – A – G – C – D – E – E – F – D – C – D – E – C – E – D – D – D – C – A – C – C – C – B – A – G – E – D – C – C – B – D – C – C – C – D – E – F – F – E – D – C – C – D – E – E – D – G + C – G + C – A + D – B + E – C + F – C + F – B + E – A + D – G + C – G + C – A + D – B + E – B – C – E – D – C – E – D – D – C – G – C – B – A – G – C – D – E – E – F – D – C – D – E – C – E – D – D – D – C – A – C – C – C – B – A – G – E – D – C – C – B – D – C – A – C – C – C – A – C – G – E – G – A – C – E – D – C – E – E – D – C – C – B – D – C – G – A – C – C – C – A – C – G – E – G – A – C – E – D – C – E – E – D – C – C – B – D – C – E – D – C – E – D – D – C – G – C – B – A – G – C – D – E – E – F – D – C – D – E – C – E – D – D – D – C – A – C – C – C – B – A – G – E – D – C – C – B – B – D – C – E – D – C – C – B – D – C
Practice this sequence of notes several times in a row until you feel comfortable. You now have all the keys you need to interpret the right-hand notes for Lean On Me on the piano. Congratulations on your progress!
Lean On Me on the piano: the notes of the right hand.
To perfect your mastery of right-hand notes on the piano, we’re sharing a video tutorial that details each note to be played successively and rhythmically. These are the notes you spotted earlier.
Follow the instructions carefully to learn how to play them, and repeat the exercise several times if necessary. Now it’s your turn!
So this video has been your faithful ally?! Great! You’ve now mastered the right-hand notes of Lean On Me!
Now let’s concentrate on the left-hand notes.
La Touche Musicale app waits for you to play the right note with your right hand on your piano before moving on to the next one.
For left-hand notes, we’ll proceed in the same way as for right-hand notes. Before tackling the entire left-hand accompaniment, we’ll first identify the first note to be played.
Your best friend, C, won’t let you down: the first note is a C.
C is the first note to be played with your left hand for Lean On Me on piano.
Have you found the C note on your keyboard? Well done!
Now you’re wondering how to place your left hand. If your keyboard has more keys, you don’t have to choose the last C on your keyboard as shown in the picture. Choose a C just to the left of the C played with your right hand!
Now let’s move on to the whole sequence to be played with your left hand:
C – C – D – E – F – F – E – D – C – C – D – E – C – E – C – B – G – E – E – F – G – A – A – G – F – E – E – F – G – G – F – D – C – C + E – C + E – D + F – E + G – F + A – F + A – E + G – D + F – C + E – C + E – D + F – E + G – E + G – D + G – C + E – C + E – D + F – E + G – F + A – F + A – F + A – E + G – D + F – C + E – C + E – D + F – E + G – D + G – C + G – G – A# – C – C – D – E – F – F – E – D – C – C – D – E – C – E – C – B – G – E – E – F – G – A – A – G – F – E – E – F – G – G – F – D – C – C + E – C + E – D + F – E + G – F + A – F + A – E + G – D + F – C + E – C + E – D + F – E + G – E + G – D + G – C + E – C + E – D + F – E + G – F + A – F + A – F + A – E + G – D + F – C + E – C + E – D + F – E + G – D + G – C + G – C – C – A# – C – C – A# – C – C – A# – C – E – F – F# – G – C + E – C + E – D + F – E + G – F + A – F + A – E + G – D + F – C + E – C + E – D + F – E + G – E + G – D + G – C + E – C + E – D + F – E + G – F + A – F + A – F + A – E + G – D + F – C + E – C + E – D + F – E + G – D + G – C + G – C + G – D + G – C + G
This series of notes forms the entire accompaniment to Lean On Me, played with the left hand on the piano.
Play this sequence repeatedly until you feel comfortable with it. Then you can move on to the next section!
Lean On Me on the piano: the notes of the left hand.
As with the right hand, you can rely on our video tutorial to learn how to play the left-hand notes for this song.
If you’re having trouble keeping up with the scrolling notes, don’t hesitate to pause the video to take the time to reposition your fingers on the keyboard:
The La Touche Musicale app waits for you to play the correct note with your left hand on your piano before moving on to the next.
Well done! You’ve fully integrated the rhythmic notes played by the left hand of Lean On Me on the piano!
Now let’s move on to the next step: playing this song with both hands simultaneously on the keyboard.
Can’t wait?
Now we come to the heart of the matter: playing with both hands at the same time! All pianists have gone through this stage, which requires a little practice and patience. Let’s have a little fun with this coordination test, where the challenge is really to repeat several times as required:
To attack the two-handed notes of Lean On Me on the piano, we advise you to start slowly. Divide the piece into smaller sections and work each section separately with both hands. Once you’ve mastered each section, gradually bring them together to play the track as a whole.
Sometimes we make mistakes, but that’s how we learn!
Lean On Me on the piano: the notes of both hands.
Discover this video guide that will teach you how to play the notes of Lean On Me on the piano, using both hands.
It takes patience and practice, but you can do it. Make sure you coordinate both hands, taking into account the various rhythms and the moments when the notes are played simultaneously or successively.
Don’t hesitate to pause the video to adjust your fingers on the virtual keyboard and play each note at the right moment.
These videos are taken from our La Touche Musicale app, which offers several options to help you focus on the essentials. You can choose the learning mode, which advances the music only when you play the notes correctly. What’s more, the application displays the notes in scrolling bars, so you can disable this feature to suit your preferences, or even choose Anglo-Saxon notation (C, D, …) as in the video, or Latin notation (C, D, …).
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The La Touche Musicale app waits for you to play the right notes with both hands on your piano before moving on to the next.
Magnificent! You brilliantly rose to the challenge of playing all the notes of Lean On Me on the piano with both hands simultaneously! Your perseverance and determination have guided you to success!
But don’t stop there! We’ve got more songs in our repertoire, and our tutorials are waiting for you on La Touche Musicale. Explore our collection and discover new songs that will showcase your passion for music!
We’ve put together a small selection just for you:
Mission accomplished! You can now magnify this accessible version of Lean On Me on the piano, with both hands. We’re glad we could guide you this far! Keep on playing, learning and growing with the piano!
As promised at the start of this article, here’s the link to download the score of Lean On Me in PDF format, free of charge. Now you’re free to play this piece wherever you are.
And don’t forget that you can also continue to perfect your skills in a user-friendly way with the La Touche Musicale app!
See you soon!
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