2020-03-29
During this chaotic time of lock-down, you'll probably want to play some new pieces.
So, where to get great new pieces without spending any money?
1. ComposeCreate
Many of you are already playing some of Wendy Stevens' fabulous piano pieces, like Unicorn Gliding, Be Thou My Vision, Distant Blue, and Chased To The Edge (my favourite!)
Her pieces are very clever and creative; and as a bonus, they sound much harder than they actually are, so they're great for showing off with (not that we'd want to do that, would we?!?!)
She has a "Studio License" system, where I buy the pieces at a higher price, but I can then copy them freely for students.
And, during lock-down, she's given me permission to send out her original emails directly to students.
If you would like to choose a new piece from her, go to her website here:
https://composecreate.com/product-category/music/
You can then choose a green icon: Elementary is easiest; followed by Intermediate; and then Advanced.
You'll then be offered an additional choice, such as Early, Mid, or Late Elementary.
Now you can click on a song to see the sheet music, and listen to Wendy play and talk about the music.
If you like a particular song, just email me, and I'll send it to you!
Don't order or buy anything from her site - I've already bought them all! Just email me!
P.S. I've just bought all her latest Animal Pet pieces too!
Some quick points...
- I've bought Studio Licenses for most of her DOWNLOADABLE music, and her Rhythm Series.
- This means you can pick almost any song than can be downloaded (but NOT songs that are in printed books)
- You'll notice that the Studio License is US$10 which is AUD$18. Now multiply that by all the songs on her website, and add a few hundred more for all her Rhythm workbooks and - ouch! I've spent a lot buying music for students - you can see where some of your music fees go - this saves you LOTS of money!
2. SuperSonics Piano (Daniel McFarlane)
Many of you have also played Daniels pieces (Don't Let Go, Monsoon, Pegasus Soars).
Unfortunately, his website is in a state of flux at the moment, but you can look at pieces here:
https://archive.supersonicspiano.com/pages/aus-uk-levels
There are recordings of many of these pieces on YouTube.
I've purchased Studio Licenses for nearly every one of his Digital Books, so you're fairly safe choosing something and letting me know.
3. Musescore.com
I've just purchased a subscription for this site too.
This means that, at no cost to you, you can access thousands of songs here:
https://musescore.com/hub/piano
Each song is on it's own page, and (really useful!) you can see the sheet music for the whole song, AND hear it played.
If you find a song you like, copy the URL and send it to me in an email, (preferably a day or two before your lesson) and I'll get it for you.
If you're interested, there is a FREE music notation program to go with these files (called "MuseScore", not surprisingly), which you can get here:
https://musescore.org/en/download
One small issue: the songs aren't in any particular order, so you have fun exploring!
I already have students playing pieces as diverse as Thomas The Tank Engine, Studio Ghibli "Castle In The Sky", Star Trek Into Darkness, Carpenters, Plants vs Zombies and more.
4. YouTube Sheet Music
Ah, YouTube piano "tutorials"...
Almost entirely poor quality arrangements, with even worse sheet music. Sorry.
But...
There are exceptions!
Here are three excellent arrangers - just be aware that these are harder arrangements, and they start at about Grade 4
1. Teddy Leong-She
These are BRILLIANT! They are the hardest of the three I'm recommending today, but WOW!
https://www.youtube.com/user/TeddyLeongshe
Also, his sheet music is just about perfect.
2. The Human Chord
He has clever arrangements of many songs, but especially video game themes.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKuJ9zujn-pSZ2XdmwMNYrw
His sheet music is very good.
3. Panda Tooth
He has some lovely choices of music, and there are some easier arrangements. He is not quite as imaginative in his arrangements as Teddy or Human Chord, but they're still very cool.
https://www.youtube.com/user/ThePandaTooth
His sheet music is pretty good.
5. Musicnotes
This one isn't free, but their website is very well organized.
But best of all, for almost any tune you choose, there are almost always multiple levels you can choose from, like (roughly in order of difficulty):
- Beginner
- Big Note Easy Piano
- Lead Sheet
- Easy Piano
- Intermediate
- Piano
- Piano Solo
You can also print off the first page for free and try it out before you purchase it.
If you find a few songs on this site that you like, you might do the maths and see if it's worth getting a membership to save 10% on songs.
ForScore
OK, this isn't for free music (although it comes with some).
This app allows you to see your music on screen, rather than printing it out, which saves on ink and paper costs, and it's perfect if you're printer crashes during the lock-down.
You can read about it here:
If you have a newer digital piano, you can even turn the pages of your music with the piano pedals!
Yours,
Stephen Walter
(C)2020 Blue Mountains Piano School
