The classic pop and soul hit “Killing Me Softly with His Song” has a nice bossa nova-influenced guitar part. It consists of some simple beginner chords as well as a barre chord and a few jazz chords. Here you can see a demonstration video of the accompaniment:
BOSSA NOVA RHYTHM Killing Me Softly
In addition to the chords mentioned at the beginning, the rhythmic pattern of the accompaniment is a decisive component. With the band’s entry (after the vocal intro), the guitar plays the following pattern:
The notes marked in red are played with the thumb, while the index, middle and ring fingers alternate between the top four strings and play the notes marked in blue. This interplay between a simple bass figure (in this case in half notes) and a strongly syncopated harmonic rhythm is typical of bossa nova.
Practice this pattern until you’ve internalized it before working on the rest of the song. If you have difficulty finding your way into this rhythm, try the introduction to the bossa nova basic rhythm first.
Bossa Nova Chords Killing Me Softly
The start of the verse is a long section with chords that change every bar. The rhythm from the introduction continues and is adapted to the chords where necessary.
The piece is in the key of Ab major/F minor, but is adapted to be guitar-friendly by the capo on the first fret. It’s likely that a capo was used in the recording because of all the open string chords. The majority of the these are easy to play and can also be found in the introduction to the bossa nova chords. Here is an example of the beginning of the chorus:
A few chords will require a little more practice. In addition to the chords already shown in the intro, there is a typical intermediate level seventh chord and a barre chord. The transition to the chorus is one of the more challenging passages:
Details of the guitar part
In addition to these chord passages, there are two interesting places where the guitar stands out.
- Halfway through the verse, the guitar plays a short melody in the upper register:
The interval used here is a Tenth. They are a popular stylistic device on the guitar from classical music (e.g. Tarrega – Lagrima) to pop music (Beatles – Blackbird).
- At the end of the chorus, the guitar part can be heard again with an arpeggio:
This section is harmonically interesting as it marks the only point at which the song deviates from the key. The progression of fifths, which dominates for long stretches, continues here via the diatonic chords of G major and C major up to the F chord. This resolves in a semitone step to E major. The sound of this passage is reminiscent of a flamenco cadenza.