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Arctic Sonata
Peter Rudzik
Categories: Piano Collections/Books
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up)
Sonata for piano in three movements. 39 pages, advanced.
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Becoming: Suite for Solo Piano in Seven Movements
Amy Stephens
Categories: Piano Collections/Books, Rock, Jazz, Pop, and Blues
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up), Early Advanced/Advanced (Gr 8 - 9)
32 pages, 7 pieces. This suite for advanced players is written in Third Stream style, which combines jazz language and sensibilities with classical form. The pieces are fully notated, but two movements leave room for improvisation if the player chooses. The music is deep and introspective and allows for much expression and interpretation. The suite has won numerous awards in competitions, including The American Prize for solo/chamber compositions 2023, The Robert Avalon International competition 2020, SMP Press 2019, and Composers Today 2019. 1. Innocence, 2. Provocation, 3. Inquietude, 4. Prayer, 5. Celebration, 6. Serenity, 7. Thanksgiving.
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Chopsticks Variations for Two Pianos
Peter Rudzik
Categories: Piano Duo (2 Pianos, 4 Hands)
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up)
Five modern variations for two pianos based on the theme "The Celebrated Chop Waltz" by E.Allen.
29 pages, advanced.
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Dance, Danse, Danza Volume 2
Susan Griesdale
Categories: Piano Collections/Books
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up)
Advanced piano pieces that are imaginative and showy for those performers who what to stand out and capture everyone's attention!
Level 10 - Wayward Waltz - Light and graceful, this little waltz moves along effortlessly with its playful tonality. (CSS)
Level ARCT - Ophelia’s journey starting with her opening fragile state, then inner voices emerging, tension building, to darker more ominous erratic figures suggesting the chaos within, the fractured mind alternating with states of a trance-like delirium. Eventually a frenzied madness completes the end of Ophelia’s tortured journey. The final closing motive welcoming a calming serenity. (CSS)
Level 10 - Reveler's Dance - Wild, boisterous merrymaking, a circle dance in 5/8 time (CSS)
- CSS - Contemporary Showcase Syllabus
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Dance, Danse, Danza Volume 3 Scatter Dance
Susan Griesdale
Categories: Piano Collections/Books
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up)
Level ARCT/Diploma - Scatter Dance (CSS) A virtuosic showpiece that is wildly fun to play. Scatter Dance will make a striking impression with its high percussive energy and playful tonality.
- CSS - Contemporary Showcase Syllabus
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Everything Waits for the Lilacs
John Burge
Categories: RCM Syllabus (CA), Solo Sheet Music - Piano
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up)
This six-minute work was commissioned by Canadian pianist Janina Fialkowska, the title of which is borrowed from Margaret Avision's poem, "Thaws". The music makes expansive use of the entire keyboard and is tinged with a distant romanticism that in part reflects a frozen landscape waiting for the arrival of spring. At times the music echoes appropriately with a strong sense of longing and desire and ends with a very loud repeated chord that just can't seem to break free of the fading grasp of winter as each repetition increasingly reverberates with more ghostly overtones. This work is included on the RCM ARCT Piano Performance Diploma Repertoire List E and has been used by many students as a required Canadian composition in national and international piano performance competitions. 11 pages.
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O Canada - John Burge
John Burge
Categories: Anthem - O Canada
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up)
This arrangement of “O Canada” was first published in John Burge’s collection of solo piano pieces titled, Piano Reflections. The impetus to write down the arrangement came in 2015, when Adèle Barclay, a writer and former first-year harmony student of Burge’s, happened to mention Burge’s solo piano arrangement of “O Canada” in a Literary Review of Canada book critique. Indeed, the book that she was reviewing at the time was a biography of Calixa Lavallée, the composer of “O Canada”. As this arrangement had often changed character over the years due to its improvisational underpinnings, it seemed an ideal time to finalize the notes for the arrangement. This arrangement is not available in an individual hard copy edition and only a pdf of the arrangement can be purchased online. Please note that if a hard copy is desired, please purchase the complete Piano Reflections collection (JBComps-004).
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Outside My Window Volume 2
Janet Gieck
Categories: Piano Collections/Books
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up), Early Advanced/Advanced (Gr 8 - 9)
This volume illustrates scenes of the prairies, from unpredictable and sometimes torrential weather patterns, to glorious sunrises that fill the horizon as far as the eye can see. There is tranquility found on the prairies that can inspire spiritual reflection. I hope the music opens your musical lens to views that are uniquely stunning! Advanced. 28 pages. Updated edition (2010).
If you plan to make multiple copies of this music, please respect copyright and purchase a studio license.
Torrential Tantrum
In the Mist We Grow
Sunrise: A Portrait
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Piano Reflections
John Burge
Categories: Piano Collections/Books
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up), Early Advanced/Advanced (Gr 8 - 9)
Piano Reflections is a collection of eight Intermediate and Advanced piano solos. In many ways this collection is a follow-up to Parking an Octatonic Truck in that both books include compositions that were written in the late 1990's for use as quick-study pieces. Initially this new set was to consist of only six pieces but while assembling and editing the music, Burge was asked to write a composition for one of his colleagues at Queen's University in honour of the university's first Nobel Prize recipient in 2015. Although completely unanticipated at the time, the resultant tribute to Dr. Arthur McDonald titled, "Oscillations," became this collection's most significant work. There is a fine video of Burge performing this diploma-level composition on Youtube. Additionally, in 2015 Adele Barclay, a writer and former first-year harmony student of Burge's, happened to mention his solo piano arrangement of "O Canada" in a Literary Review of Canada book critique. As this arrangement often changed character due to its improvisational underpinnings, finally putting the notes down on paper made his setting of "O Canada" another ideal addition. 42 Pages.
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Rhapsody in Blue for Piano Quartet
Joanne Bender
Categories: NFMC Bulletin (US), Piano Quartets (2 pianos, 8 hands)
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up), Early Advanced/Advanced (Gr 8 - 9)
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Scenes of San Francisco
Amy Stephens
Categories: Piano Collections/Books, Rock, Jazz, Pop, and Blues
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up), Early Advanced/Advanced (Gr 8 - 9)
6 pieces, 28 pages. This Third Stream suite combines classical form with jazz language and rhythm in six sophisticated pieces depicting the composer's favorite places around San Francisco, one of the most fascinating cities in the world! These intricate pieces are great for recitals, competitions and adjudications. The collection has been an award-winner in the International Association of Women in Music's Search for New Music, American Prize, SMP Press and Composers Today composition competitions. 1. Golden Gate, 2. Race from Alcatraz, 3. Among the Mighty Redwoods, 4. The Lighthouse, 5. A Saturday Stroll, 6. The Setting Sun
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Seven Circles
John Burge
Categories: Piano Collections/Books
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up), Early Advanced/Advanced (Gr 8 - 9)
Seven Circles is a set of seven solo piano pieces, all based in some fashion on the sequential pattern referred to as “the circle-of-fifths”. Simply put, the harmonic design or broader tonal structure of each individual piece progresses by descending perfect fifth intervals, moving through the complete chromatic set of all twelve possible pitches, until arriving back at the opening key. In some of the shorter pieces, this underlying basis is clearly displayed on the surface of the music, but in the longer pieces, the circle-of-fifth points of arrival can be somewhat hidden (perhaps as an extended pedal point or even as a distinctive key area for an expanded passage). Probably the most important aspect of Seven Circles is that each of the pieces is highly distinctive, thereby emphasizing different approaches one can use when employing this sequence. 33 pages.
A short video compilation of the opening of each movement with music can be found in the Sound Samples & Scores, but if you want to hear a spoken introduction about the entire set followed by a complete performance by the composer, try this link:
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Sound Sculptures
Joanne Bender
Categories: Piano Collections/Books
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up), Early Advanced/Advanced (Gr 8 - 9)
SOUND SCULPTURES
(Level 9,10,ARCT)
For Advanced Piano
1. Coloured Glass
2. Sparkling Stones
3. Polished Metal
Spirals in the Sky from The Pianist's Guide to the Universe
Martha Hill Duncan
Categories: Piano Collections/Books
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up), Early Advanced/Advanced (Gr 8 - 9)
In this whimsical marriage of astronomy and music, my husband, astrophysicist, Dr. Martin Duncan and I have combined our talents to celebrate the beauty of the night sky and the magic of music. Vol. 4, Spirals in the Sky, for advanced piano, celebrates the beauty and majesty of the trillions of galaxies that illuminate the structure of the visible universe. Four advanced (Levels 9/10) titles include The Local Group, Redshift, Quasar and Starburst Galaxy.
M.H. Duncan
Individual E-Pieces available at http://marthahillduncan.com
Studies in Poetry - Volume 1
John Burge
Categories: Piano Collections/Books
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up)
The Studies in Poetry series is a collection of concert etudes for the piano that pay tribute to some of the composer's favourite books of poetry in the English language. In all cases, the poetry book's title has been used as both a point of inspiration and a subtitle for each study. The composition of the first three studies dates from 2000 and coincided with the purchase of a new grand piano with the writing process serving to both break in the instrument's stiffness, and provide an incentive to practice diligently with the goal of premiering these pieces later in the year. As additional studies have been added to the collection and premiered by the composer, the new pieces have always been grouped in sets of three, although it is perfectly acceptable to perform just one or two separately. These works are definitely written in the tradition of the Liszt concert etude and have a technical difficulty at the diploma level. Even the shorts pieces in a slower tempo, often demand a level of contrapuntal control and rhythmic independence between hands that can be challenging. 22 pages.
More information can be read about each individual study in the publication's introductory notes found in the samples below, but in many ways, the character of the music can be found in the title. The name of the poet from whom the title is borrowed provided in brackets.
No. 1 – Til My Fingers Bleed (Charles Bukowski)
No. 2 – No Time (Margaret Avison)
No. 3 – Riffs (Dennis Lee)
Check out the glowing review of all five volumes of the Studies in Poetry series in International Piano - July/Aug 2023.
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Studies in Poetry - Volume 2
John Burge
Categories: Piano Collections/Books
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up)
Continuing the Studies in Poetry series that began with Volume 1 in 2000, Volume 2 is also a set of three highly contrasting pieces that are really concert etudes. Volume 2 was completed and premiered by the composer in 2009 with each piece paying tribute to one of the composer's favourite books of poetry written in the English language. Although written as a set, each piece is designed to stand on its own. 37 pages.
More information can be read about each individual study in the publication's introductory notes found in the samples below. In many ways though, the character of the music can be found in the title for both the study/etude and the book of poetry. The name of the poet who wrote the book of poetry is provided in brackets.
No. 4 - Loop (Anne Simpson)
No. 5 - War Music (Christopher Logue)
No. 6 - Escape Velocity (David Breskin)
Check out the glowing review of all five volumes of the Studies in Poetry series in International Piano - July/Aug 2023.
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Studies in Poetry - Volume 3
John Burge
Categories: Piano Collections/Books
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up)
Continuing the Studies in Poetry series that began with Volume 1 in 2000, Volume 3 is also a set of three highly contrasting pieces that are really concert etudes. Volume 3 was completed and premiered by the composer in 2011 with each piece paying tribute to one of the composer's favourite books of poetry written in the English language. Although written as a set, each piece is designed to stand on its own. 41 pages.
More information can be read about each individual study in the publication's introductory notes found in the samples below. In many ways though, the character of the music can be found in the title for both the study/etude and the book of poetry. The name of the poet who wrote the book of poetry is provided in brackets.
No. 7 - Near Changes (Mona Van Duyn)
No. 8 - Anthem (Helen Humphreys)
No. 9 - Dancing with the Moon (Linda Frewin)
Check out the glowing review of all five volumes of the Studies in Poetry series in International Piano - July/Aug 2023.
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Studies in Poetry - Volume 4
John Burge
Categories: Piano Collections/Books
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up)
Continuing the Studies in Poetry series that began with Volume 1 in 2000, Volume 4 is also a set of three highly contrasting pieces that are really concert etudes. Volume 4 was completed and premiered by the composer in 2022 with each piece paying tribute to one of the composer's favourite books of poetry written in the English language. Although written as a set, each piece is designed to stand on its own. 25 pages.
More information can be read about each individual study in the publication's introductory notes found in the samples below. In many ways though, the character of the music can be found in the title used for both the study/etude and the book of poetry. The name of the poet who wrote the book of poetry is provided in brackets.
No. 10 - Pulse (Rajinerpal S. Pal)
No. 11 - Why Are You So Sad (David McFadden)
No. 12 - Ballistics (Billy Collins)
Check out the glowing review of all five volumes of the Studies in Poetry series in International Piano - July/Aug 2023.
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Studies in Poetry - Volume 5
John Burge
Categories: Piano Collections/Books
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up)
Continuing the Studies in Poetry series that began with Volume 1 in 2000, Volume 5 is also a set of three highly contrasting pieces that are really concert etudes. Volume 5 was completed in 2022 and played in public for the first time by the composer in January, 2024. As always, each study pays tribute to one of the composer's favourite books of poetry written in the English language. Although written as a set, each piece is designed to stand on its own. 46 pages.
It is perhaps worth pointing out that initially the composer imagined this set as consisting of just 4 volumes of 12 pieces in total. This overall design is primarily related to the centering of each piece on a different chromatic pitch that systematically moves up through the white notes by step, and then down the black keys by descending Perfect Fifths: C, D, E, F, G, A, B flat, E flat, A flat, D flat, G flat, and B. The isolation at home during COVID-19 protocols provided the composer with more than enough time and plenty of inspiration, to not only finish Volume 4, but to at least begin another anticipated set of 12 more studies by composing Volume 5 (which begins again with a pitch center of C but now moves up the white note keys by Perfect Fifths to start).
More information can be read about each individual study in the publication's introductory notes found in the samples below. As implied in the comments already, the character of the music finds resonance in the title used for both the study/etude and the book of poetry. The name of the poet who wrote the book of poetry is provided in brackets.
No. 13 - Left-Handed (Jonathan Galassi)
No. 14 - Ripple Effect (Elaine Equi)
No. 15 - Grief Sequence (Pragreeta Sharma)
The very insightful review published in the magazine, International Piano, of all 5 volumes completed to date, by the Scottish pianist, Murray McLachlan, is worth quoting in the way that he captures the essence of the last piece of this set: "Several are quite substantial, almost outgrowing the titled of 'study', but at 365 bars long perhaps the Bach Chaconne-influenced 'Grief Sequence' (Etude No 15, after Prageeta Sharma) dwarfs all the others. This is a quasi-symphonic work – a moving essay in concentrated power, a tone poem without orchestra rather than a conventional étude. It was written during the isolated days of the COVID lockdowns and its powerfully austere characterisation reflects the loneliness of that time."
Check out the glowing review of all five volumes of the Studies in Poetry series in International Piano - July/Aug 2023.
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The Mata Hari Suite
John Burge
Categories: Piano Collections/Books
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up)
The Mata Hari Suite, for solo piano, consists of six pieces that were written to provide background music during the opening run of One Last Night with Mata Hari. This one-woman show requires a male pianist with acting abilities and was created by John Burge (music) and Craig Walker (book and lyrics). Mata Hari (1876-1917) was renowned as an exotic dancer and courtesan in the early 20th century but it is her conviction and execution by France on charges of spying for Germany during World War I that accounts for much of her ongoing infamy. Her final days were spent in the Saint Lazure Prison in Paris and this show uses the prison setting to give her one last time to tell her side of the story in a kind of cabaret performance. The musical language employed in the show draws heavily upon the styles of many composers of the period including Claude Debussy, Kurt Weill and even Arthur Sullivan, but Strauss waltzes are often percolating near the surface. More specifically, the six movements of this collection were composed to provide incidental music to aurally engage the audience before each of the two acts by combining melodies taken directly from the show with original melodies coloured in the same stylistic vein. Each movement is designed to be performed separately and has the suggested difficulty level of Grade Ten repertoire. Playing two or more contrasting movements would be an ideal performance presentation. 32 pages.
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The Old Stone Church
Martha Hill Duncan
Categories: Piano Duets
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up)
Level 9-10: Inspired by a pencil drawing by Spencer Hope of the historic St. Paul's Anglican Church in Kingston, Ontario, this duet brings together the sombre, hopeful and joyful memories with bells, singing and community. My mother, Blanche Owen, grew up in East Texas surrounded by "old time religion" and music...her indomitable spirit and love of singing is honored in the middle song section. M.H. Duncan
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The Sunken Garden
Martha Hill Duncan
Categories: NFMC Bulletin (US), Piano Collections/Books, RCM Syllabus (CA)
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up)
Inspired by the Sunken Gardens and Theater in San Antonio, Texas, these three pieces have exciting cross-overs and cover the entire keyboard with an improvisatory and contemporary sound palette.
THE JAPANESE TEA GARDEN (RCM Level 10) is beautifully serene, set amidst limestone and water. Rising paths and steps wind from the bottom floor to the top edge.
THE RIVER (RCM Level 10) represents the timeless flow and the impact on the land by "the river" and is more improvisatory, as if the player is making it up as they go.
THE THEATER (RCM Level 10) The warm nostalgia and Hispanic flavour of my Texas heritage are embodied in this final piece of the set. M.H. Duncan
RCM: The Royal Conservatory of Music
Individual E-Pieces available at http://marthahillduncan.com
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Twenty-Four Preludes
John Burge
Categories: Piano Collections/Books, RCM Syllabus (CA)
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up), Early Advanced/Advanced (Gr 8 - 9)
This work also includes a number of diploma level compositions highly suitable for competition or examination use given their compact size and relatively short duration. The set reveals Burge's close affinity to the music of Chopin. Equally though, the Preludes of Debussy, with their expressive textural sonorities and colour, can also be considered touchstones, especially in the way that Burge provides subtitles for fourteen of his Preludes. Composed over the years 2011-2015, Burge personally premiered a few at a time so that the music had a long period of gestation, finally premiering the entire set in 2015 (a complete performance takes about one hour). The most unusual aspect of these Preludes is that eight of them use extended instrumental techniques such as strumming strings inside the piano. These techniques are very simple to execute and do not require any advance preparation of the piano but in most cases can only be realized successfully on a grand piano with the music stand removed. As a guiding principle, Burge tried to embrace each Prelude's tonic key in an audibly recognizable fashion so that at times the music is emphatically tonal, even in the Preludes that involve non-traditional performance practices.
While some of the Preludes have a difficulty level appropriate to Grades 8 and 9 repertoire ("Prelude No. 5" was published previously in Northern Lights Volume 8B), the majority of the Preludes are at a Grade 10 or Diploma level of difficulty and as such, have much potential for piano competition and examination use. The 2022 Royal Conservatory of Music 2022 Piano Celebration Series published Prelude No. 9 in C sharp minor in the Level 9 Etude Book and Prelude No. 1 in C major in the Level 10 Etude Book. Prelude No. 16 in B flat minor (subtitled, "The Hummingbird"), appears in the RCM 2022 Piano Syllabus as an ARCT Examination piece in List E. The music is beautifully printed with a coil binding hidden by a fold-over cover for lasting protection and durability. 80 pages.
The Scottish pianist, Murray McLachlan, reviewed these Preludes in the magazine: International Piano - Jan/Feb 2018
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Where the Aspens Grow - Piano Duo
Martha Hill Duncan
Categories: Piano Duo (2 Pianos, 4 Hands)
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up), Early Advanced/Advanced (Gr 8 - 9)
WHERE THE ASPENS GROW (Levels 9/10): My first experience in the mountains was the year I got married. My husband and I were lucky enough to "honeymoon" in Aspen, Colorado as part of a summer institute. I was entranced by the majesty of the snow-covered peaks, the delicacy of the alpine meadows and the amazing colours of the aspen groves. In 2017 I was invited to join the faculty of the Festival for Creative Pianists in Denver, Colorado. Through that wonderful festival, I have met so many talented composers and musicians. In particular, I met local piano teacher, Linda King, who encouraged me to compose a two-piano work.
M.H. Duncan, 2021
Cover image from © Tales by Trees
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Wild Rose Suite
Peter Rudzik
Categories: Piano Collections/Books
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up), Early Advanced/Advanced (Gr 8 - 9)
A musical tribute to the composer's adopted home, Alberta, Canada, whose official symbol is the wild rose. Contains seven pieces: Hot Springs, Smile Through Tears Waltz, Mountain Creek, Soaring, Oil Sands, Rocky Mountain Variations and New Day Toccata.
In 2015 the International Piano magazine organized a competition for the best recording of Hot Springs.
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Zarzamora Suite
Martha Hill Duncan
Categories: Piano Collections/Books
Levels: Advanced/Diploma (Grade 10, ARCT and up), Early Advanced/Advanced (Gr 8 - 9), Intermediate/Late Intermediate (Gr 5-7)
ZARZAMORA SUITE is loosely based on five Spanish street names that figured prominently in my life as a child and young adult in Austin and San Antonio, Texas. M.H. Duncan
Level 6: MARIPOSA
Level 9: ZARZAMORA, DOLOROSA
Level 10: BRAZOS, GUADALUPE
Individual E-Pieces available at http://marthahillduncan.com
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