Soaring on the Wings of Stallions

The Gentle Giant, composed by Lisa Donovan Lukas, is an easy and elegant lyrical solo for late beginners. This piece is part of the Fantasies & Fairy Tales Volume Two songbook.

The Magical Unicorn, composed by Lisa Donovan Lukas, is an elegant waltz for late beginners. This piece is part of the Fantasies & Fairy Tales songbook.

Night Sounds is an easy lyrical solo for beginners composed by Sarah Reaser O’Brien that includes lyrics. This piece serves as a great introduction to ties and easy position shifts.

Morning Sounds is an easy lyrical solo for beginners composed by Sarah Reaser O’Brien that includes lyrics. This piece serves as a great introduction to playing in waltz-time, crossovers, and easy open-fifth position shifts with the left hand.

Out of the Blue is an easy, minor-key lyrical solo that will delight late beginners of all ages. A great way to get beginners moving into different octaves and an easy introduction to syncopated rhythms. Composed by Jennifer Eklund and part of the Spotlight Solos Plus songbook.

Enchanted Garden is a sparkling, contemplative showcase solo for late beginners by Jennifer Eklund. This piece is a gentle way to introduce the key of G-flat major, can easily be taught by rote, and provides an opportunity to work on rubato with students in the early stages of lessons.

Just Passing By, is an easy ambient multi-level solo by Jennifer Eklund for beginners and late beginners of all ages. This piece is part of the Level Up! songbook.

Sad Goodbye, by Rick Robertson, is an early-intermediate level lyrical solo. It was inspired by the loss of his longhair chihuahua Missy, and is dedicated to “Missy, and all of you who have lost fur babies.” It is an effective recital solo, and just might help a sensitive player cope with the loss of a pet.

A Song for You, composed by Rick Robertson, is a late elementary lyrical solo with a mature sound. As the title says, it is dedicated to whoever is playing it. The student can write their name on the line under the title.

Backyard Bash is a collection of solos written for beginning pianists who enjoy playing music with lyrics. With the exception of three pieces, Crazy Cat, Old Dog, and Tree Swallow, these songs describe actual events that have happened in my suburban backyard in Southwest Virginia. Crazy Cat combines the personalities of two of our family cats, Calhoun and Casper, into one. Old Dog is about our Golden Retriever, Clyde, who lived with us when we started our family and was the kindest and most gentle dog I’ve ever known. Tree Swallow is about a male tree swallow who behaved exactly as described in the lyrics, but in my father’s backyard rather than in mine. I have found that my students love playing these songs because they sound more difficult than they are, and they are fun to sing along with! I hope you enjoy these musical nature studies and learn to play them all! - Sarah O’Brien

Inspired by the paintings of Monet, this contemporary lyrical solo by Chrissy Ricker encourages artistic playing in late beginners and early intermediates of all ages.

Breath of Fresh Air, composed by Heather Nanney, is a gentle lilting waltz with a pop-style sensibility that will appeal to early intermediates of all ages. Includes MIDI and Mp3 backing tracks!

Sunny Day is a delightful, lyrical solo written at three different levels by Robyn Fehrenbacher. Includes two beginner versions with optional teacher duet, as well as a solo version for late beginners of all ages.

Cherry Blossoms, composed by Kevin Costley, is an ambient lyrical solo for late beginners. This piece serves as a great opportunity for students to work on shifting fifths in the left hand and melodic phrasing.

Night Skies, by Rick Robertson, is a late-elementary level lyrical solo. A plaintive melody is contrasted with a middle section based on broken chords with pedal. This would make an effective number for a recital program, and could even be used as a brief selection for a worship service.

Song for a Friend is an easy lyrical solo for late beginners of all ages by Robyn Fehrenbacher. This gentle, rhythmic piece is ideal for recitals and provides reinforcement for developing internal rhythm and reading treble notes in G position.

March of the Red Ants, composed by Kevin Costley, is an showcase solo for late beginners. This piece serves as a great opportunity for students to work on playing a steady bass line, triplets, and shifting between major and minor modes.

Unbreakable is an easy multi-level lyrical solo for beginners presented in three different versions to accommodate students using Piano Pronto Keyboard Kickoff, Prelude, Movement 1 or the Fired Up! series. This piece of part of the Level Up! songbook by Jennifer Eklund and includes orchestrated play-along tracks in Mp3 format.