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Pianoscales.org eBook

SHEET MUSIC FOR PIANO

PIANOSCALES.ORG MEMBERSHIP MATERIAL

Classical Music Sheet Music for Piano

Intermediate Level

© Pianoscales.org

No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means without permission from

the publisher except for personal use.

CONTENTS

Intro .................................................................................................................................... 4

Air in D Minor – Purcell ................................................................................................... 5

Toreador's Song – Bizet .................................................................................................. 7

Triumphal March – Verdi ................................................................................................ 9

Liebestraum No. 3 – Liszt ............................................................................................. 11

Sonatina – Clementi ...................................................................................................... 13

Allegro – Mozart ............................................................................................................ 16

Étude No. 3 – Chopin .................................................................................................... 18

Pomp and Circumstance – Elgar ................................................................................. 20

Melody – Schumann ...................................................................................................... 22

Gymnopédie 1 – Satie ................................................................................................... 24

INTRO

About this e-book

This e-book contains selected classical pieces arranged for piano. The purpose

with the arrangements is to satisfy players on intermediate levels looking for

classical piano music to play.

If you find these arrangements to hard, here are a few suggestions:

1. Isolate the most challenging parts and play through these several times.

When try again to play through the whole piece.

2. Always try to look as little as possible at the keyboard to increase your

fingers’ ability to find the right keys without eye contact.

3. Keep on training, playing piano notes isn’t easy. You will get better by time

and don’t forget to enjoy the journey.

Air in D Minor - Purcell

Bio of the composer

Henry Purcell, born 10th September 1659 in London was the most noticeable

English composer during the 17th century and one of the greatest in the history

of the nation.

Among his most influential works is the opera Dido and Aeneas. The oeuvre

features also solo piano works in several forms, such as airs (from the Italian aria

and is a song-like vocal or instrumental composition).

About playing Air in D Minor

This is a relatively simple piece arranged in D Minor. Notice the AABA structure

in the 16-bar composition and you will get familiar with the piece faster.

Toreador's Song - Bizet

Bio of the composer

Georges Bizet, born on the 25th October 1838 in Paris is one of the most famous

French composers of the Romantic era. He is best known for his operas,

especially Carmen from 1875, named from the main female character. Carmen

is one of the most beloved operas and is frequently performed in opera houses

over the world.

Bizet who suffered from health problems during his life, which he combined with

smoking and endless working, died in 1st June 1875, only 36 years old.

About playing Toreador's Song

Toreador's Song is a famous aria from the opera Carmen and is here arranged

for solo piano.

The tempo is relatively high (allegro moderato; approximately 120 bpm), which

makes it relatively challenging. It should, however, be learned slowly at first.

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Triumphal March - Verdi

Bio of the composer

Giuseppe Verdi was born 10th October 1813 in Bussto, North Italy. He would

become one of the most famous opera composers in the world (he should not

be confused with another famous Italian opera composer, Claudio Monteverdi).

When Verdi died 27th January 1901 his list of opera works was long; among the

most recognized are Rigoletto, La Traviata, Don Carlos and Falstaff.

About playing Triumphal March

Triumphal March is from the second act of the Aida opera and is here presented

for solo piano in the key of Eb.

Notice the triplets of eighth notes appearing five times. These triplets are equal

in duration to one quarter note. Also notice the ABAB structure: the 1-3 bars (the

pick-up bar in the beginning is not included) are similar with the 7-9 bars as well

as the 4-6 bars are similar with the 10-12 bars.

Liebestraum No. 3 - Liszt

Bio of the composer

Franz Liszt, born 22nd October 1811 in Hungary, started to play piano at age seven

with his father as his first instructor. The child’s talents were obvious and just a

few years later he performed his first concerts.

He would become known as a composer and a virtuoso pianist. Many of his

pieces are very demanding, including the famous final part of his “Liebestraum

No. 3” (the version presented in this e-book is shortened and this part is

excluded).

Liszt become one of the most known composers and pianists during the 19th

century and was perhaps the foremost representative of the New German

School, a radical movement which clashed with the Romantics ideas in music.

Franz Liszt passed away on 31st July 1886 and have been remembered as one of

the most skillful pianists ever.

About playing Liebestraum No. 3

“Liebestraum No. 3” is played in a slow tempo and the left hand is mostly playing

chords.

Notice the ties (the curved lines), which indicates that the two connected notes

should be played as a single note. In the fourth bar, however, the curved line

indicates a legato, which mean both notes should be played smooth.

Sonatina - Clementi

Bio of the composer

Muzio Clementi was born 23th January 1752 in Rome, but moved as a teenager

to England where he as a talented pianist studied and performed music.

Besides from being a music prodigy, once involved in a contest with Mozart, he

would excel as a composer. He was one of the first to write musical pieces

exclusively for the piano, which enabled him the nickname “Father of the

Pianoforte”.

About playing Sonatina

Notice the time signature 2/2, which is fairly unusual.

The piece is for many a reasonable challenge to improve the ability to play a

rather fast piece in which both hands are busy. The advice is to focus on parts

you have problems with by playing these over and over and when take on the

whole piece again.

Allegro in Bb Major - Mozart

Bio of the composer

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is not only one of the most famous pianist and

composer in history, he has become a symbol of the prodigy and a cultural icon

that is constantly referred to. The broad public recognition was bolstered even

more by the celebrated biopic Amadeus in 1984.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born in the Austrian city of Salzburg in 1756. The

young Wolfgang was trained by his father from a very young age at piano and

violin. Five years old, he made his first composing and started to perform his first

concerts – he would do exhibition tours in which his elder sister Nannerl

participated in as well.

As a teen, Wolfgang would leave Salzburg to try to earn a living from his music.

Vienna became his new home and here he composed a great variety of works in

the following years. He would become famous during his lifetime, but was often

in economical struggle. He died at the age of 35.

About playing Allegro in Bb Major

One thing to notice in this piece is the grace notes, occurring in 9th and 27th bars.

A grace note is a smaller note preceding another and denote a musical

ornament. It has no time value and is played slightly before the “real” note.

Étude No. 3 - Chopin

Bio of the composer

Frédéric Chopin is Poland’s most famous piano composer. He was born on the

1st of March 1810 to a middle-class family residing in the village of Zelazowa

Wola, Poland. His interest in music is evident early in his life, he was only 7 years

old when he published his original composition. From there, Chopin rapidly

developed his skills and crafted more piano compositions, earning him the

reputation of a child prodigy.

He received formal education in music in the Warsaw Conservatory of Music, but

it did not take long for him to seek to hone his skills further by traveling to

countries famous for being great musical hubs at the time like France (Paris),

Austria (Vienna) and Germany.

He ultimately settled in Paris where he acquired a sizable income working as a

recitalist and teacher. This is also where he produced most of his enduring

compositions and where he will spend most of his life until his death due to

tuberculosis on October 17th, 1849.

His most famous and timeless works include the Preludes, Nocturnes and Études,

plus specific pieces such as, “Polonaise in A-flat major”.

About playing Étude No. 3

Chopin’s “Étude No. 3” is originally composed in the time signature 2/4, but to

make it easier the time signature 4/4 is used in the version presented here.

The piece is written in E major key, which includes four sharps: F#, G#, C# and

D#.

Notice the ties (the curved lines), which are many and indicates that the

connected notes should be played as a single note.

Pomp and Circumstance - Elgar

Bio of the composer

Sir Edward Elgar, one of the greatest self-taught music composers, was born on

the 2nd June 1857 in Broadheath, England. His earliest encounter with music was

at his father's music shop in Worcester where he taught himself to play a wide

array of instruments.

At the age of 15, Edward Elgar dropped out of school to pursue a musical career.

He replaced his father in playing the organ at St George's Roman Catholic Church

in Worcester, and got by through teaching piano and violin lessons, directing

amateur orchestras and playing in local festivals.

In 1899, Elgar composed the highly acclaimed “Enigma” Variations, Op. 36

orchestral piece that gave him the much need musical breakthrough. He went

on to create other famous works such as the choral cantata, Caractacus (1898),

the song cycle for contralto, Sea Pictures (1899) and his greatest religious

masterpiece the oratorio The Dream of Gerontius (1900).

At the beginning of the 1930s, Sir Edward Elgar set out to complete his third

symphony in the trilogy of his religious oratorio, The Apostles (1903) and The

Kingdom (1906). This was however left unfinished when he passed away on the

23rd February 1934.

About playing Pomp and Circumstance

This is a bombastic and stirring musical piece in the form of a march. The version

presented in this collection has been simplified and shortened.

Your left hand will play mainly chords; therefore, knowledge in this area will

help you to play without too much focus on single notes. It is also a benefit if

you have knowledge about inverted chords.

Melody - Schumann

Bio of the composer

Robert Schumann (1810-1856) was not only a great composer, but the was also

an influential music critic. He was a musician during the Romantic Era of classical

music. Although during the early years of his career, he focused exclusively on

the piano, he later began composing orchestral Lieder music, with many of his

works created with love for his wife, Clara Schumann, who so happens to be a

fellow pianist herself.

The enigmatic German Robert Schumann was most notably a miniaturist when

it came to his compositions, and until after he got married, his works mostly

composed of short piano pieces, including Kinderszenen (Scenes from

Childhood), which he is probably most known for. With the influence of his wife,

he later embarked on a new phase of his music career in the orchestra.

About playing Melody

“Melody” (“Melodie”) was included in the Album for the Young (Album für die

Jugend), which consisted of 43 short pieces that Schumann composed for his

three daughters.

The left hand will be most tested this time and if you feel it is difficult to keep

up with all notes in the lower part of the note system (notice that both staves

have a G-clef), you could play the lower part separately a few times.

Gymnopédie 1 - Satie

Bio of the composer

Éric Satie was born on the 17th May 1866 in Honfleur. In 1887, he moved to

Montmarte, which at this time was the home to many famous artists, including

Amedeo Modigliani, Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Henri de Toulouse-

Lautrec and Piet Mondrian.

Éric Satie died on the 1st July 1925. The work of Satie would be influential to later

movements such as minimalism and repetitive music.

About playing Gymnopédie 1

“Gymnopédie 1” is Satie’s most famous piano piece and is characterized by its

repetitious and gentle motion. The note pattern is complex, but the slow tempo

makes it still possible to play this piece for many intermediate players. There are

large jumps for the left hand and here you should use the sustain pedal.

In the beginning “pp” is visible between the staves and is an abbreviation for

pianissimo, meaning “very quiet”. The lines forming horizontal arrows are

indications for dynamic changes. Crescendo pointing to the left is an indication

for play gradually louder, and decrescendo pointing to the right is an indication

for play gradually softer.

If you aren’t already familiar with the piece, the best way is always to listen to

it.