Through the Arrange Me program at SMPPress, thousands of popular songs by famous performers can be arranged and posted for public use. This has been a boon for music teachers who want to entice their students into practicing their instruments by offering pieces that peak their interest. As a teacher and composer, I have started to take advantage of this opportunity, too.
I was introduced to The Beatles, like most of America, on the Ed Sullivan Show in the early 1960's. I was too young to really be impressed. (I actually thought that the thousands of screaming girls were very silly and disrupted the music! Apparently, The Beatles themselves thought so, too.) But my older brother was impressed enough to start buying their records. We would listen together in his room where we could hear the songs better. Through these listening sessions with my brother, I gained an appreciation of their music.
What was most interesting though, were the comments by my father about The Beatles songs. He said that he actually enjoyed their music when it was redone, or as we would say nowadays, when the songs were "covered" by different artists. My dad was specifically speaking in that instance of the Lennon McCartney song "The Fool on the Hill" as covered by the band Brazil 66. Dad told me that when he learned that that song was written by The Beatles, he was amazed. He actually liked it. (My dad was definitely an easy listening sort of guy, so this was a big revelation for him.)
As I became more versed in music theory, I learned how to qualify just why I liked or disliked songs from the popular music we heard on the radio. I knew that I liked songs that kept my interest through intriguing chord progressions, unique musical motives, beautiful melodic structure, meaningful words, and fun rhythms. I also discovered that I prefer clean, uncomplicated music that supported the singer. After all, I am a singer first and foremost. That's just my personal taste.
So, now these many years later, I just finished a few easy Early Intermediate level Piano Solos from The Beatles catalog. I needed to use songs that had strong melodic content, straightforward chord progressions and rhythms, and would translate well for piano. The older beginning piano student (with bigger hands) may enjoy these.
"I Will" - a tender love song written by Paul McCartney utilizing interesting syncopations in the melody played against straight beats in the accompaniment.
"Eight Days a Week" - a fun, up tempo Lennon McCartney song with a driving beat. Not all upbeat songs work well for piano, but this one does and is very fun to play.
"Here, There and Everywhere" - another introspective ballad written by Paul McCartney that introduces extended chord accompaniment patterns for the left hand.
I was introduced to The Beatles, like most of America, on the Ed Sullivan Show in the early 1960's. I was too young to really be impressed. (I actually thought that the thousands of screaming girls were very silly and disrupted the music! Apparently, The Beatles themselves thought so, too.) But my older brother was impressed enough to start buying their records. We would listen together in his room where we could hear the songs better. Through these listening sessions with my brother, I gained an appreciation of their music.
What was most interesting though, were the comments by my father about The Beatles songs. He said that he actually enjoyed their music when it was redone, or as we would say nowadays, when the songs were "covered" by different artists. My dad was specifically speaking in that instance of the Lennon McCartney song "The Fool on the Hill" as covered by the band Brazil 66. Dad told me that when he learned that that song was written by The Beatles, he was amazed. He actually liked it. (My dad was definitely an easy listening sort of guy, so this was a big revelation for him.)
As I became more versed in music theory, I learned how to qualify just why I liked or disliked songs from the popular music we heard on the radio. I knew that I liked songs that kept my interest through intriguing chord progressions, unique musical motives, beautiful melodic structure, meaningful words, and fun rhythms. I also discovered that I prefer clean, uncomplicated music that supported the singer. After all, I am a singer first and foremost. That's just my personal taste.
So, now these many years later, I just finished a few easy Early Intermediate level Piano Solos from The Beatles catalog. I needed to use songs that had strong melodic content, straightforward chord progressions and rhythms, and would translate well for piano. The older beginning piano student (with bigger hands) may enjoy these.
"I Will" - a tender love song written by Paul McCartney utilizing interesting syncopations in the melody played against straight beats in the accompaniment.
"Eight Days a Week" - a fun, up tempo Lennon McCartney song with a driving beat. Not all upbeat songs work well for piano, but this one does and is very fun to play.
"Here, There and Everywhere" - another introspective ballad written by Paul McCartney that introduces extended chord accompaniment patterns for the left hand.
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