Concept Collections from Colourful Keys

I was honored recently to be asked to write and arrange some pieces for a series of concept books published by the incomparable Nicola Cantan via her Colourful Keys Teaching Resource Shop.

Concept Collections are limited edition volumes intended for piano students from beginner to intermediate levels. Each collection focuses on a specific concept, and each collection typically features four different composers.

In the past several months, I was invited to write and arrange pieces for three collections: Portato (Concept Collection 11), Forgotten Melodies (Concept Collection 13), and Lefties (Concept Collection 14).

Colourful Keys gets exclusive rights to the pieces for two months, then they release the rights back to the composers. My pieces for left hand alone won’t be released back to me until June 1, but I thought I would share here the four pieces I wrote/arranged for the Portato and Forgotten Melodies collections.

PORTATO (Concept Collection 11)

Portato Soup is a lively, lilting ABA piece in 6/8 meter. Most of the melody in the A section is to be played with a portato touch. Right hand takes the melody for the first phrase, then left hand picks it up for phrase two.

Level: Late Elementary
Sheet Music: https://daniel-light.com/product/portato-soup/

Solace uses portato touch in conjunction with the damper pedal to create a lovely, bell-like effect that sounds quite different from a truly legato touch. While the pedal masks some of the separation, the non-legato articulation can still be heard. The piece asks for most of the right hand melodic line to be played portato in conjunction with pedal.

Level: Intermediate
Sheet Music: https://daniel-light.com/product/solace/

FORGOTTEN MELODIES (Concept Collection 13)

I chose to arrange two tunes by Amy Beach for this collection: Waltz, from Children’s Album, Op. 36, and a lovely melody from the second movement of Beach’s Gaelic Symphony.

Waltz, Op. 36, No. 3 by Amy Beach

Waltz is the third of five short, elegant dances in Amy Beach’s Children’s Album, Op. 36, composed in 1897. The original piece is suited for intermediate piano students, but the arrangement here is intended for elementary-level pianists, splitting the lovely melody evenly between the hands. This short setting uses only the opening theme from the original solo. The piece can be played as a solo or with the optional duet.

Level: Elementary
Sheet Music: https://daniel-light.com/product/waltz-amy-beach/

Theme from Gaelic Symphony by Amy Beach

This lyrical theme comes from the second movement of Amy Beach’s Symphony No. 3 in E Minor, often referred to as the Gaelic Symphony. Amy Beach herself assigned this subtitle.

The oboe plays this tranquil melody at the start of the second movement, evoking a peaceful, pastoral mood. The melody is an adaptation of the Irish folk tune, The Little Field of Barley.

Level: Late Intermediate
Sheet Music: https://daniel-light.com/product/theme-from-gaelic-symphony/

Lyric Pieces for Solo Piano, by William Gillock

Lyric Pieces for Solo Piano by William Gillock was first published in 1994, but it remains one of my favorite collections of piano solos for early intermediate students.

I’m drawn to these pieces, primarily because they abound with beautiful harmonies and a level of chromaticism beyond what is often found in piano music of this level. Plus, they provide a fantastic vehicle for students to work on the art of rubato playing.

Seven of the pieces are only one page long. The others span only two pages, so they can be learned quickly. My students always seem to relish these and often select them as recital pieces.

Here are two of my students, Ben and Logan, playing two of the 11 pieces from the book.

Ben plays On the Champs-Élysées:
(Enjoy the bonus inclusion of bird chirps and a visit from Oscar, the cat.)

Sheet Music (Downloadable PDF): https://bit.ly/3MUzHKw.

Printed book, Lyric Pieces for Solo Piano: https://amzn.to/42TpHXj.

Logan plays Slumber Song:

Sheet Music (Downloadable PDF): https://bit.ly/3ICmQtB

Printed Book: https://amzn.to/42TpHXj

Before today, I didn’t realize that these pieces had been made available as digital downloads. While I typically prefer to purchase the entire book for students, a digital download can be very helpful when you need something quickly and don’t happen to have an extra copy of the book on hand.

If you haven’t used these pieces, I encourage you to give them a try. I find them absolutely delightful!

Double-Duty Music

Since I work both as a piano teacher and as a church musician, I enjoy the challenge of composing music that I can use at both jobs. I think the piece I’ve used the most in that way would be my Nocturne in B-flat Major. I’ve had many students learn it. It’s appeared on numerous recitals. I’ve played it for church services during communion. I’ve played it at memorial services and even as prelude music for weddings.

It’s an excellent piece for introducing intermediate students to a 3 against 2 polyrhythm. The 3 against 2 pattern happens six times in the first five measures and a total of 16 times in the entire two-page piece, so students get lots of practice with it.

The largest hand span is a 7th, so it’s also a good piece for students who can’t yet span an octave.

If you haven’t used this piece, I hope you’ll give it a listen and consider it for your students or for your own playing. It’s a great piece for spring recitals.

The piece is available here with either a studio license (so that it can be used with any students you personally teach) or with a single-user-license. I also offer it bundled with my Nocturne in E Major at a reduced price.

“Mashed Potato Clouds” by Diane Hidy

“Mashed Potato Clouds” by Diane Hidy

 

“My dream has

finally come true!

I get to play Mashed Potato Clouds.”

–Logan, 2nd grader

 

Logan had heard her older brother play Mashed Potato Clouds, and she loved it! More than a year later, I suggested that she might like to learn it, too.

“Will I be able to play it for recital?” she asked excitedly.

“That was my exact plan,” I responded.

Students love Mashed Potato Clouds! It has a catchy tune with a pop kind of vibe. It sounds harder than it is, and the repeated melodic and rhythmic patterns make it easy to learn.

Every time I have a student play it on a recital, another student asks to learn it.

Find it in Diane Hidy’s Attention Grabbers, Book 2, published by Kjos. All four of the books in this set are fantastic, but the biggest hit from them in my studio (so far) has been Mashed Potato Clouds.

“Incognito” by Jason Sifford

“Incognito” by Jason Sifford

Incognito, a jazz nocturne, is a piece I’ve discovered only recently, but I loved it from the first time I played it. With its haunting G minor melody and flashy 16th note riffs, it’s just fun to play. It’s been an easy sell for several of my early advanced students, and has quickly  become a studio recital favorite.

Find it in the FJH Music Company’s In Recital for the Advancing Pianist: Original Solos, Book 2.