Free Classical Piano Sheet Music
Free Piano Music is a Double-Edged Sword by Daniel E. Friedman
“Hey, while you’re here, here’s some old free piano music that I’ve had in my basement for the last few millennium. Take it. Have fun!”
Oh boy, that’s certainly an offer that I’m more than used to accepting. I guess you never know if you’re going to come upon a rare score that you and the top musicologists in the world have never seen before. In the back of my mind, and with a lot of suspension of disbelief, there’s this peculiar hope that I’ll find that rare score, which would mean retirement, secured investments for the future, and a primary worry consisting of where your next extremely decadent vacation would be.
Well, I haven’t hit the jackpot yet. What I have done is produced a blue bin with an enormous appetite. It’s almost as if my blue box is throwing verbal abuse at me the second I haven’t given it its weekly gorging of junk music.
Truth be told, rare scores are indeed named appropriately. They’re few and far between. On top of that, Music Books, like comic books, have to be in near mint or mint condition in order to be an acceptable item for a dealer to consider purchasing it from you. The best condition hand-me-down music that I’ve come across over the years has been in fairly good shape, certainly acceptable for piano readings and practice.
Another type of free music is, of course, arrangements through download. As a music teacher, I cannot control what my students do and don’t do on their personal computers. I’ve seen many pupils bring in arrangements from all styles and eras for my stamp of approval. Many times the works online are not arranged well. They often lack dynamics, phrasing and common sense.
Common sense? Now what on earth do I mean by that? I’ll tell you exactly what I mean. When I’m reading bass clef notes that have enough ledger lines to make me want to go to the eye doctor for a prescription change (and a stigmatism checkup), then we have on our hands what I had previously termed as a score with a lack of common sense.
These scores are often generated from midi files. I don’t even want to start talking about the copyright legalities of such scores. Suffice to say, I like to stay clear of this type of music, for legal and optical health reasons.
Some free music is advantageous. Scores from the Classical era and thereabouts are slowly being offered for free to the general public. I’m still a fan of a decent, store-bought book, but at least this type of free music has copyright clearance and some effort, in terms of decent editing and music spacing.
Of course, the best type of free piano music is the type that you pick up by ear. A well trained ear and some improvising skills will ultimately save you hundreds of dollars in music purchases. You know what? Sheet music is expensive. Let’s revise that and say that a good ear potentially saves a pianist thousands of dollars.
So what’s to be learned from all of this? Well, as we all know, words of wisdom stand the test of time, so remember that you do indeed ‘get what you pay for’ in terms of original music and score arrangements. Also, playing and figuring out music by ear is extremely economical. Start bothering your piano teacher for ear-training lessons. Theory lessons would be a worthwhile investment as well. Let the savings begin!
About the Author
Come and join Daniel E. Friedman at www.musicmasterstudios.com for assistance in music education and comprehension.
“Just The Way You Are” – BRUNO MARS Piano cover (free sheet music)
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10 for 10 Sheet Music Classical Piano Arrangements $10 (Piano Solos). For Piano. This edition: Piano Solos. Book; Masterworks; Piano Collection; Piano Supplemental. 10 for 10 Sheet Music. Masterwork Arrangement. Easy Piano. 40 pages. Published by Alfred Music Publishing |
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10 for 10 Sheet Music Classical Piano Favorites $9.99 (Piano Solos). For Piano. This edition: Piano Solos. Masterworks; Piano Collection; Piano Supplemental. 10 for 10 Sheet Music. Masterwork. Book. 52 pages. Published by Alfred Music Publishing |
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Encyclopedia of Classical Piano Music $18.95 By Robert Schultz. For piano. Robert Schultz Piano Library. Classical Period. Elementary – Intermediate. Book. Published by The FJH Music Company Inc |
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10 for 10 Sheet Music Classical Piano Solos $10 (Piano Solos). Edited by E. L. Lancaster and Kenon D. Renfrow. For Piano. This edition: Piano Solos. Book; Masterworks; Piano Collection; Piano Supplemental. 10 for 10 Sheet Music. Masterwork. Easy Piano. 32 pages. Published by Alfred Music Publishing |
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The Piano Treasury of Classical Music $29.95 “Edited by Amy Appleby. For solo piano. Piano Treasury Series. Over 125 great masterpieces from the Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and Modern eras. Classical. Collection and examples CD. Standard notation, fingerings and introductory text (does not include words to the songs). 399 pages. Amsco Publications #AM986348. Published by Amsco Publications” |
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The Piano Bench Of Classical Music $29.99 “(Piano Solo). Edited by Amy Appleby. For solo piano. Music Sales America. Renaissance, Baroque, Classical Period, Impressionistic and 20th Century. SMP Level 9 (Advanced). Collection (spiral bound). Fingerings (does not include words to the songs). 400 pages. Amsco Publications #AM961510. Published by Amsco Publications” |
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Anthology of Classical Piano Music $24.95 (Intermediate to Early Advanced Works by 36 Composers). Edited by Maurice Hinson. For Piano. Masterworks; Piano Collection. Alfred Masterwork Edition. Classical; Masterwork. Early Advanced; Intermediate; Late Intermediate. Book. 248 pages. Published by Alfred Music Publishing |
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Farewell to the Piano (Digital Sheet Music) $3.99 By Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827). For Easy Piano. Classical. 2 pages. Published by Alfred Music. Digital Sheet Music |
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Classical Gas (Digital Sheet Music) $2.99 By Mason Williams. For Piano. Pop/Rock. 5 pages. Published by Alfred Music. Digital Sheet Music |
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Classical to Contemporary Piano Music $9.99 (World’s Favorite Volume 13). By Various. For Piano Accompaniment. World’s Favorite (Ashley). Classical. Softcover. 160 pages. Ashley Mark Publishing Company #AS10013. Published by Ashley Mark Publishing Company |
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Piano Fantasy (Digital Sheet Music) $3.99 By William Joseph. For piano. Classical; New Age; Pop. 9 pages. Published by Hal Leonard – Digital Sheet Music |
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The Piano Bench of Easy Classical Music $29.99 Arranged by Amy Appleby. For Piano Solo. Music Sales America. Classical. Softcover. 400 pages. Music Sales #AM967549. Published by Music Sales |
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Classical Piano $8.95 (32 Great Classics by 13 Master Composers). Edited by Heskel Brisman. For Piano. Masterworks; Piano Collection. Alfred Masterwork Edition. Classical; Masterwork. Early Intermediate; Intermediate; Late Intermediate. Book. 64 pages. Published by Alfred Music Publishing |
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Performance Practices in Classical Piano Music $15.96 By Maurice Hinson. For Piano. Graded Standard Repertoire; Masterworks; Reference Textbooks; Textbook – Piano (DVD). Alfred Masterwork Edition. Classical; Masterwork. DVD. Published by Alfred Music Publishing |
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The Piano Treasury of Easy Classical Music $29.95 “Edited by Amy Appleby. For easy solo piano. Piano Treasury Series. Over 200 great masterpieces from the baroque, classical, romantic and modern eras. Classical. Collection and examples CD. Easy piano notation, fingerings and introductory text (does not include words to the songs). 400 pages. Music Sales #AM986359. Published by Music Sales” |
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Anthology of Classical Piano Music with Performance Practices in Classical Piano Music $27.96 (Intermediate to Early Advanced Works by 36 Composers). Edited by Maurice Hinson. For Piano. Masterworks; Piano Collection. Alfred Masterwork Edition. Classical; Masterwork. Early Advanced; Intermediate; Late Intermediate. Book & DVD. 248 pages. Published by Alfred Music Publishing |
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Classical Piano Music for the Christmas Season $9.95 (Selected Works by 20 Composers). Edited by Maurice Hinson. For solo piano. Masterworks; Piano Collection. Alfred Masterwork Library. Classical and Christmas. Early Advanced; Intermediate; Late Intermediate. Songbook. Standard notation. 72 pages. Published by Alfred Music Publishing |
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August Rush (Piano Suite) (Digital Sheet Music) $2.99 By Mark Mancina. Dave Metzger. For Piano. Classical. 5 pages. Published by Alfred Music. Digital Sheet Music |
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Piano Concerto No. 2 (Digital Sheet Music) $3.99 By Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943). For Easy Piano. Classical. 3 pages. Published by Alfred Music. Digital Sheet Music |
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Free (Digital Sheet Music) $3.99 “By Mya. James Harris III, Terry Lewis, Tony Tolbert, Mya Harrison, and Alex Richbourg. For Piano/Vocal/Chords. Pop/Rock; R&B/Soul. 8 pages. Published by Alfred Music. Digital Sheet Music” |
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Libertango – Piano (Digital Sheet Music) $2.99 By Astor Piazzolla (1921-1992). Arranged by Michael Philip Mossman. Jazz band. For Piano. Classical; Jazz. Individual instrument part. 4 pages. Published by Hal Leonard – Digital Sheet Music |
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Traumerei – Piano (Digital Sheet Music) $5.99 By Robert Schumann. Arranged by Robert Longfield. Orchestra. For Piano. Classical. Individual instrument part. 1 pages. Duration 2:00. Published by Hal Leonard – Digital Sheet Music |
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Concerto No. 1 For Piano And Strings (Digital Sheet Music) $3.99 By Alexander Peskanov. For piano. Classical. PNODT. 30 pages. Published by Hal Leonard – Digital Sheet Music |
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Piano Concerto No. 1 (Theme) (Digital Sheet Music) $3.99 By Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky. For piano. Classical. 2 pages. Published by Hal Leonard – Digital Sheet Music |
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The Classical Era (Intermediate Piano Duets) $11.95 By Various. For Piano 4-hands. Sheet Music. Published by Edition Peters |
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Free Fallin’ (Digital Sheet Music) $3.99 “By Tom Petty. For piano, voice, and guitar (chords only). Pop; Rock. Piano/Vocal/Guitar. 4 pages. Published by Hal Leonard – Digital Sheet Music” |
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Really Easy Piano: Classical $12.95 By Various. For Piano Solo (with Chord Symbols). Music Sales America. Classical. Softcover. 48 pages. Amsco Publications #AM980419. Published by Amsco Publications |
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Easy Classical Piano Duets $12.95 Arranged by Taeko Hirao. For Piano Duet. Music Sales America. Classical. Softcover. 64 pages. Amsco Publications #AM31949. Published by Amsco Publications |
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Humoresque (Digital Sheet Music) $3.99 By Antonin Dvorak. For piano. Classical. Piano. 4 pages. Published by Hal Leonard – Digital Sheet Music |
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150 Great Piano Scores $1.99 4+~~Lio Bright Technology~~Richard Li~~http://itunes.apple.com/app/150-great-piano-scores/id461693708?uo=5~~2011 Lio Bright Technology~~2.1~~4217472~~23916456~~http://www.liobright.com~~http://www.liobright.com |
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HS PianoC $0 4+~~Hao Staff Music Publishing (Hong Kong) Co. Ltd.~~Hao Staff Music Publishing (Hong Kong) Co. Ltd.~~http://itunes.apple.com/app/hs-pianoc/id408817884?uo=5~~Hao Staff Music Publishing (Hong Kong) Co. Ltd. ~~1.0~~3227992~~9492789~~http://haostaff.com~~http://haostaff.com |
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HS PianoC Plus $2.99 4+~~Hao Staff Music Publishing (Hong Kong) Co. Ltd.~~Hao Staff Music Publishing (Hong Kong) Co. Ltd.~~http://itunes.apple.com/app/hs-pianoc-plus/id408817144?uo=5~~Hao Staff Music Publishing (Hong Kong) Co. Ltd. ~~1.0~~3227991~~9493902~~http://haostaff.com~~http://haostaff.com |
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Learn to Play Piano in Six Weeks or Less $12.95 Many people wish they could sit down at the piano and simply play, their hands flying over the keys as melodies pour out. With this simple, achievable program that”s possible… in just six weeks. Using Dan Delaney”s innovative chord playing techniques, as opposed to more classical methods, musical newcomers and lapsed musicians can quickly and easily gain skills. Each of the six weeks” worth of lessons contains several exercises. The classes build on each other, becoming progressively more difficult as the player”s ability improves, and every lesson includes sheet music, practice advice, and an evaluation at the end. Plus, MP3 audios of the lessons will be available for free on Delaney”s website. |
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Piano Music Reading Free $0 4+~~Harmony & Melody Studio Inc~~Harmony & Melody Studio Inc~~http://itunes.apple.com/app/piano-music-reading-free/id317541102?uo=5~~Harmony & Melody Studio Inc.~~lite 1.0~~1721064~~1209106~~http://www.harmonyandmelodystudio.com~~http://www.harmonyandmelodystudio.com |
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Player Piano Plus $0 4+~~Barrett Productions, LLC~~Barrett Productions, LLC~~http://itunes.apple.com/app/player-piano-plus/id406044932?uo=5~~2010 Barrett Productions LLC~~1.1.3~~4477380~~46540124~~http://www.PlayerPianoPlus.com~~http://www.PlayerPianoPlus.com |
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ezPiano: 100+ Songs with Full Accompaniment $2.99 4+~~Eric Ching~~Eric Ching~~http://itunes.apple.com/app/ezpiano-100-songs-full-accompaniment/id436686941?uo=5~~2011 Innovae Solutions Inc.~~1.20~~4653190~~19668495~~http://www.ezpianoapp.com/iphone.html~~http://www.ezpianoapp.com/iphone.html |
