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Diabelli - Allegretto in C (No. 3 from Die ersten 12 Lectionen, Op. 125)
ABRSM Grade 1 – A1
This pleasant Allegretto was intended as an instructional piece by its composer, Anton Diabelli. There is much the elementary player can learn from it. From forearm bounces to expressive drop-roll slurs, we learn to control the tonal balance between the hands so that the melodic line shines through. There is a satisfying symmetry in the phrase structure (2+2+4 bars) and a smooth modulation to the dominant key. Preview (please log-in or subscribe to see full video) Resources & links This piece is available for digital download individually... Read >>
Shruthi Rajasekar - Virginia Hall
ABRSM Grade 1 – C1
Dedicated to Virginia Hall, a famous secret agent, this piece uses a repeated ostinato motif to create suspense and a sense of busyness from beginning to end. What is going on in the storyline when the sinister left hand theme comes in? And what do the ff chords at the central climax tell us? Perhaps the detective stumbles across an important new clue in her investigation. The player has plenty of scope to come up with a narrative for this piece, allowing the imagination to aid the fingers in communicating its message. Loading... Read >>
M. Helyer - Dragonflies (from The Greenwood Tree)
ABRSM Grade 1 – A2
Marjorie Helyer’s Dragonflies comes from The Greenwood Tree, a suite of miniatures designed to conjure up musical images for young players. The piece is built from a line that passes smoothly from one hand to the other with some accompanying broken chords. We can clearly see the dragonflies darting gracefully up and down, zigzagging as they go. The main challenge is to shape both hands delicately at a prevailing dynamic of piano, maintaining physical freedom while avoiding avoid lumps and bumps. Preview (please log-in or subscribe to see full video)... Read >>
Andrew Eales - Fresh Air
ABRSM Grade 1 – B1
Andrew Eales’ Fresh Air features a gentle tune in the right hand with a chordal accompaniment in mostly long notes below. Here and there the lower right hand fingers are called upon to hold onto a harmony note, presenting a technical challenge that adds to the piece’s value. As the composer points out in the footnote, the chords mostly lack their bass note, which gives the music a sense of weightlessness, as if floating. Preview (please log-in or subscribe to see full video) Resources & links This... Read >>
F. Price - A Morning Sunbeam (No. 3 from Three Sketches for Little Pianists)
ABRSM Grade 1 – B2
There is much musical interest and teaching value in Florence Price’s A Morning Sunbeam! While the melody in the opening section is mostly in the right hand, it passes to the left hand in the answering phrases, thereby extending the melody’s range without moving out of the five-finger position. In the middle section, in the subdominant key of C, the melody is now varied and we find a new feature - some bouncy off-beat chords in the right hand accompaniment. Preview (please log-in or subscribe to see full video) ... Read >>
Caroline Tyler - Little Whale Explores the Calm Sea
ABRSM Grade 1 – C3
In this piece, we find an instruction at the start of the piece to hold the pedal down all the way to bar 21, with just a brief moment of clarity before we use the pedal again for the ending. The idea is to create the necessary echoing, underwater effect of the title. Plenty of imagination is called for and the player might come up with a storyline that describes what is happening in each new phrase, or perhaps series of images that captures the changing scenes. Preview (please log-in or subscribe... Read >>
Handel (arr. Bullard) - Fireworks Minuet (from Music for the Royal Fireworks, HWV 351)
ABRSM Grade 1 – A1
Preview (please log-in or subscribe to see full video) Resources & links This piece is available for individual purchase as a digital download here or in print as part of the Piano Exam Pieces 2025 & 2026 Grade 1 publication here. You can listen to a recording of this piece and others from this grade on Spotify using this link. ... Read >>
L. Köhler - Melody in F, Op. 190 No. 27
ABRSM Grade 1 – A3
Resources & links This piece is available for individual purchase as a digital download here or in print as part of the Piano Exam Pieces 2025 & 2026 Grade 1 publication here. You can listen to a recording of this piece and others from this grade on Spotify using this link. ... Read >>
Trad. German (arr. Blackwell) - Muss i denn
ABRSM Grade 1 – A2
Resources & links This piece is available for individual purchase as a digital download here or in print as part of the Piano Exam Pieces 2025 & 2026 Grade 1 publication here. Open domain editions are also available here. You can listen to a recording of this piece and others from this grade... Read >>