“Joyful, all ye nations rise! Join the triumph of the skies!” This arrangement of Hark, the Herald Angels Sing is jubilant and bold, filled with brilliant chord harmonies and a broad, open accompaniment sound. Occasional scale passages and a key change add variety while careful pedal use adds substance and fullness. This arrangement is perfect for a Christmas religious service or holiday recital.
Here We Come A-Wassailing (sometimes called Here We Come A-Caroling) is arranged here as a delightful late intermediate to early advanced piano solo. The arpeggiated LH accompaniment feels like riding a sleigh over snowbanks. This arrangement features 6/8 meter throughout with steady moving LH, and the chorus is written in tuplets. The use of polyrhythms provides an added challenge while retaining the traditional feel of the carol.
This intermediate piano solo is cheery and welcoming. It begins with a warm and simple introduction that develops into progressively more involved accompaniment and harmonies to a fortissimo finish! With a key change, octave changes, and an ever-building natural momentum, this arrangement is fun and rewarding without being overly challenging for mid-intermediate students. It’s a great Christmas concert showpiece!
Kirkpatrick’s Cradle song melody for the Away in a Manger is a soothing lullaby. It has been arranged here for intermediate piano, with gently rocking broken chords and inverted chord harmonies. Surprising modulations and unique chord choices add variety to this humble carol. This arrangement is a beautiful sacred piano solo for church service or Christmas performance.
The beautiful English folk melody “Greensleeves” was immortalized as a Christmas carol by William Chatterton Dix. This arrangement for late intermediate to early advanced piano features a somber sound supported by more minor chords than are commonly used with this melody. The arrangement begins simply and grows in complexity; at its climax, rolled chords and rich harmonies are supported by moving LH arpeggios that eventually transition back to the simpler style of the beginning. It is perfect for a holiday church service or Christmas performance.
These musical themes from Gurlitt’s etude (“The Storm” or “Night Escape”) and Mozart’s Great G Minor Symphony are famously recognized for their intense, dramatic energy. This medley combines them into an early intermediate piano classical performance piece. Starting with Gurlitt’s etude, it weaves in the motif from Mozart’s symphony, transitions fully into the symphony theme, then concludes with a robust merger of the two for a bold finish. It is an excellent choice for a classical piano recital piece for intermediate level.
This popular Christian song is a favorite at Christmas time. It is arranged here for early intermediate pianists with a steady rocking pattern LH bass and RH melody with harmonies. Its full sound and natural swing feel make this arrangement an excellent choice for a Christmas recital or worship meeting.
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.
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.
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.)
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.
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.
A classic arrangement of a German Christmas carol, this rendition of a quiet Christmas night is ideal for sharing the Christmas spirit and story in Christmas recitals, performances, and church settings. This arrangement consists of gently rocking accompaniment, a softly singing melody, and delicate, harmonious chords. A key change warms up the sound for the last radiant verse, building to resplendent, full chords before peacefully echoing the final lines.
The all-famous Hallelujah Chorus from Handel’s Messiah oratorio – countless people have told me they wish they could play this masterpiece! That’s why I’ve arranged this Hallelujah Chorus piano solo – so you can play it at Christmastime for your family, during Easter season, or anytime you feel like shouting, “Hallelujah!”
This flowing arrangement embraces the medieval sound of this Christmas carol while adding modern elements. The accompaniment feels like traveling on camelback across the desert sands, while the melody builds from a single note strain into grand, ascending chords that reflect the majesty of the three kings bearing gifts to the Christ child.
