Getting to Grips with Octaves

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Exercises & Further Resources

Adapting Simple Two-Part Pieces There are plenty of exercises and studies in octaves, but many of these dive right into the deep end and may not always be interesting musically. Why not explore some very simple beginner repertoire in two voices, but play the little pieces in octaves? If the thumbs played the written notes, the 5th fingers can double in octaves. The first few pieces from Berens’ 50 Piano Pieces for Beginners, op 70 (click here for open domain scores) do the job just fine (see Resources for more ideas). Use the forearm touch as your default,...

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