When my sister got married years ago she really wanted to use the main title theme by Rachel Portman from the movie Emma (the 1996 version with Gwyneth Paltrow) for her processional. Since we couldn’t find any arrangements at the time, I agreed to write one for her. Thanks to the ArrangeMe platform, I was […]
Compositions
New Deck the Halls Christmas Piano Duet
Looking for a quick, fun, lively Christmas piano duet for a couple of students? This page and a half elementary piano duet of Deck the Halls sports a catchy intro, then shares the melody equally between both parts, concluding with a return to the theme from the intro. Simple to learn and fun to play!
Mary Did You Know Christmas Duet Arrangement Available
Thanks to the ArrangeMe publishing platform, another duet that my students and I have enjoyed playing for many years is now available! Mary, Did You Know? is a beautiful Christmas song that was written by Mark Lowry as series of questions to Mary as the mother of Jesus. Several of my students over the years […]
New O Holy Night Early Intermediate Piano Duet
In the process of going through and decluttering my music files, I came across folders full of various arrangements I’ve written for students over the years. They were inspired by specific students who had favorite pieces they wanted to play – often for our big Christmas recital – and/or combinations of students, levels, and instruments […]
It’s Psalms Project Time!
Those of you who have been around here for a while know that every spring in my studio we complete a composition effort called The Psalms Project. At the beginning of the semester I give students a worksheet with a step-by-step process that walks them through selecting a verse, setting it to music, and eventually […]
Teaching Composition to Students
Or this post could be titled, “Reason #47 Why I Love Piano Safari!” 🙂 When Alyssa first began piano lessons last fall we tried some simple improvisation activities, but she was reluctant to play anything without knowing that it was the “right” notes. As we’ve worked through my all-time favorite piano method – Piano Safari […]
