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!