This lesser known French carol has a beautiful melody line written in Dorian mode for a minor feel with a raised sixth that creates a feeling of light and hope in dark times. It is arranged for LH melody in bass clef with rolled RH treble chords as a delicate ringing accompaniment. With many valuable teaching elements for late beginner/early intermediate level pianists, this arrangement is also a beautiful Christmas performance piece.
O Christmas Tree is a German carol about the beauty, constancy, and faithfulness of the evergreen tree that households around the world decorate for Christmas. This arrangement is written with RH treble melody supported by primary chords in the LH. The familiarity of the tune helps beginner pianists recognize what these more complex rhythms look like when reading sheet music. This Christmas carol arrangement works well for piano students of all ages.
Good King Wenceslas is an old Christmas carol that tells a story of generosity that warms both soul and body in the cold winter of Christmastime. This arrangement is written with RH treble melody supported by simple LH chords. The final verse includes additional accompaniment notes and some RH chords to build to a strong finish. This arrangement works well for piano students of all ages.
This beloved holiday carol “Carol of the Bells” is arranged here as a late intermediate to early advanced piano solo. The main 4-note motif is supported by a continually moving accompaniment that begins softly in 4/4 meter and transitions to 3/4 with increasing energy. You can hear the ringing bell tones throughout with changing octaves, crossovers, increasingly broader harmonies, chord modulations, and urgent rhythms that ultimately swell to a climax before returning to 4/4 meter once again for a softer, calming finish. Without question, the Ukrainian Bell Carol is a sure favorite for holiday performances and recitals.
Have you seen the ghost of John?! This spooky D-minor melody is one of the few surviving traditional folk songs for Halloween. It is arranged here for early beginner piano and will really help get you into the spooky spirit of the holiday.
You will receive 1 file with 2 versions (version 2 has the same music but different lyrics). Version 1 has the original lyrics about a ghost with long white bones and no skin on. Version 2 has new lyrics about a spooky ghost costume (for those students who would find the original lyrics a bit too scary!).
At the clang of a mysterious ringing bell, spooky spectres slowly rise from the ground… Before long, the tones of their ghoulish delight can be heard in cacophonous chords and swinging staccato singsong, which gradually compounds and accelerates to supernatural speeds until, with a final clang, the bell calls the spectres back to their resting places.
Spooky Spectres is a delightful Halloween piece that explores a wide range of musicality for the intermediate pianist, including meter changes, tempo changes, LH melody, precise articulations, and more. It combines the best of a full, advanced musical sound with the spooky fun of the Halloween season. A real crowd pleaser, Spooky Spectres is a great piece to perform, teach, and play just for fun!
Lament is a deeply emotional piano solo written for the early advanced pianist. Broad rolled chords develop into a pained, heartfelt melody with arpeggiated accompaniment, which ultimately progresses into quick and fluid arpeggiation in the Left Hand and large, full chords in the Right Hand. Written as rubato with lots of room for interpretation, this piece is a wonderful opportunity to explore the depth of your musical expression. Lends itself well to a beautiful and emotional performance piece.
* Both Licenses come with 2 versions: 1 with suggested fingerings and 1 with no fingerings if you prefer to write in your own.
What goes on in the pumpkin patch on Halloween night? All the pumpkins with their fierce jack-o-lantern faces come to life, grinning and cackling gleefully as they dance the Pumpkin Polka! This catchy, bouncy tune features a staccato melody with classic polka accompaniment in energetic cut time. It’s a great, jaunty choice for an early intermediate student at a Halloween music recital.
This fun, fast, foot-stomping boogie is perfect for a pianist looking to liven up the party. Written in F melodic minor, Banshee Boogie tells the story of an individual who comes across a banshee late a night when suddenly, she starts to dance…and before you know it, you’re joining in! Syncopated rhythms, upbeat stomps, tricky key signature, and tone clusters are sure to make this piece a fun challenge for early intermediate students during Halloween season. Great choice for a lively fall recital piece!
Full moon tonight… look out! This delightfully spooky Halloween waltz warns unsuspecting souls to beware the bite of the werewolf! The beginner-friendly melody line is accompanied by waltz style minor chord patterns and is a great way to get into the Halloween spirit while teaching minor chords and notation. Performs well as a recital piece or can be used as a fun seasonal supplemental piece.
This joyful Christmas carol is arranged here as a late intermediate to early advanced piano solo. It begins with a recurring theme of treble chords tinkling like ringing bells while the melismatic “Gloria” passage sings beneath. The traditional energetic verse and refrain are repeated several times and carried through melodic variations, unique chord progressions, and modulations before coming to a jubilant conclusion. This arrangement is perfect as a showy, yet time-sensitive Christmas performance piece. (Performance length: less than 3 minutes.)
While not originally associated with Christmas, “What Child Is This?” and many other holiday carols are set to this English folk melody. The beautiful, lilting tune is arranged here with a simple, single-note bass line accompaniment. Greensleeves lends itself well to teaching a new pianist about dotted quarter note rhythms and minor melodies.
A Christmas favorite arranged with jazzy flair! First- or second-year students with a solid grasp of rhythm and note reading will love learning this performance-ready rendition filled with syncopation, staccatos, and mini chromatic passages. Jingle Bell Jazz is an excellent choice for beginner students performing at a Christmas recital or for their families during the holiday season.
Deck the Halls is a popular Christmas carol even among young pianists. The familiar tune is a great tool for teaching dotted quarter note rhythms. Written in C Major position (with some RH movement), this arrangement is perfect for a beginner playing at their first Christmas recital.
The Cradle Song melody by William Kirkpatrick celebrates the arrival of the baby Jesus in the stable at Bethlehem. This arrangement is perfect for a beginner student’s first Christmas performance, with a single-note melody, an 8va repeat, and a few harmonies at the finish.
In this traditional arrangement, the heavenly hosts can be heard in joyous salute heralding the first Christmas. Perfect for a first-year student as a solo recital piece or simply to celebrate the season.
This spirited American patriotic march is a great piece for a developing pianist to master. In this arrangement, the right hand carries the energetic melody while the left hand plays in steady march style accompaniment.
One of the most well-known Christmas carols in the modern world, Jingle Bells is played at almost every Christmas piano recital anywhere. With the verse in Middle C Position and the chorus in C Major Position, this classic take on Jingle Bells is ideal for beginners learning to navigate their way around the keys.
Soft, broken chords and a sad refrain paint a picture of lonesome beauty in this 3-page piano solo. The melody passes from treble to bass with continual flowing accompaniment and develops a progressively deeper tone over the course of the piece before ultimately dying away.
By the soft light of a moonlit night, a melancholy strain resonates through a quiet cemetery as a lonely soul caresses the black and white keys. This technical composition is filled with broken chords led primarily by the Left Hand with cross-staff slurs for a more fluid movement.
Who doesn’t love the thrill of finding that one perfect pumpkin and planning how you’ll carve the best Jack-O-Lantern in your neighborhood? To help new pianists not “fear” a challenging key signature, “Pumpkin Patch” combines a rhythmic staccato feel with a catchy melody and lyrics that remind you of everything fun about visiting the pumpkin patch in autumn.
With flickering eyes like witch hats and a fearsome pointy-toothed grin, Jack-O-Lantern chants his scary song from the front porch steps as All Hallow’s Eve begins. This composition combines bass Left Hand minor melody, black keys, spooky seconds, minor triads, and staccatos to capture the delightfully frightful spirit of the holiday.
As Peer Gynt finds his way into the troll Mountain King’s hall, the energy and excitement build from whispered footsteps to tremendous cacophony. This intermediate level arrangement of a world-famous piece pulls out all the stops as it gradually builds in volume and intensity to a wild and chaotic finish.
Whether they’re raiding your candy bag or tying your shoelaces together, these mischievous little hobgoblins put the “trick” in “trick-or-treat”! You might feel a little hobgoblin coming out in you when you play this delightfully spooky composition.
