Turnarounds

Rhythm Changes A (I-VI-II-V)

The famous 'Rhythm changes' turnaround from 'I Got Rhythm'.

Key
C
Level
intermediate
Where
Rhythm changes, fast bebop

The changes

  1. Cmaj7
  2. A7
  3. D7
  4. G7

The hands

Left hand then right, as the source writes them. A pianist's voicing routinely carries a colour the chord symbol does not spell — a flat ninth over a dominant, a ninth on top of a seventh chord — so the notes printed under each keyboard are what is actually played, rather than what the symbol alone would predict.

Cmaj7

chord 1

LH C2 G2RH E4 B4 D5

A7

chord 2

LH A2 E3RH C#4 G4 Bb4

D7

chord 3

LH D3 A3RH F#4 C5 Eb5

G7

chord 4

LH G2 D3RH B3 F4 A4

Associated players

  • George Gershwin
  • Sonny Rollins