Triplets

One Good Turn, composed by Jennifer Eklund, is an easy showcase solo designed to help students improve on playing fast ornamental figures in a challenging tonal center.

Fear Elise!, is a spooky spin on Beethoven’s iconic composition “Fur Elise.” This piece is ideal for late beginners and is part of the Easy Spooktacular Solos songbook by Jennifer Eklund.

The Chase is a fast piano solo with lots of flashy passage work that sounds much harder than it actually is to play! Music composed by Jennifer Eklund and part of the Spotlight Solos Volume 1 songbook.

The Chase is a fast and flashy showcase piano solo that is part of the Dog Days songbook. Music by Jennifer Eklund.

Triple Threat is a fast and flashy showcase solo ideal for early intermediates of all ages. This triplet study will serve as a great finger strengthener sure to be a hit at your next recital! Part of the Spotlight Solos Plus songbook.

Flying Solo is an easy flashy recital piece that reinforces ascending and descending arpeggios in both hands. Music for early intermediates Jennifer Eklund and part of the Songs I Love to Play Volume 2 songbook.

Guilty as Charged is a light-hearted pop solo ideal for early intermediate pianists of any age. Music composed by Jennifer Eklund and part of the Spotlight Solos Volume 2 songbook.

Guilty as Charged is a light-hearted contemporary lyrical solo ideal for late intermediate pianists. Words and music by Jennifer Eklund and part of the Dreamweaver songbook.

Sonata Theme from Mozart’s Piano Sonata K. 331 arranged for early intermediates by Jennifer Eklund. This piece is part of Piano Pronto: Movement 2 and includes a teacher duet part.

Waltz in A-flat by Johannes Brahms arranged for intermediates in a manner that stays true to the original work. Arranged by Jennifer Eklund and part of the Piano Pronto: Movement 5 method book.

Tropical Breeze is an intermediate level Latin style piano solo that is part of the Dog Days Songbook. Music by Jennifer Eklund.

Lemonade Stand is a sassy, minor-key primer level solo, from Roadtrip: Rockstar Rally, and includes a teacher duet part. This piece serves as a great introduction to playing eighth note triplets. Music and lyrics by Jennifer Eklund and Kris Skaletski.

Low Down, composed by Chrissy Ricker, is a bluesy rock solo for early intermediates. This piece is part of the Rock On! songbook.

Winter Winds, composed by Chrissy Ricker, is fast & flashy showcase solo for early intermediates. This piece is part of the Rhapsodies and Reveries songbook.

Extreme Measures is a fast and flashy minor-key solo composed by Chrissy Ricker. This showcase piece, part of the Easy Perfect Patterns songbook, is suitable for early intermediates of all ages!

Black Cat Capers, composed by Lisa Donovan Lukas, is a fast & flashy showcase solo for late beginners that serves as a great introduction to triplets. This piece is part of the Colorful Capers songbook.

Goodnight, Sweet Dreams is a Composers Today award winning composition by Lisa Donovan Lukas. An inspirational contemporary lyrical showcase solo, ideal for the advanced student.

Spooky Ooky! composed by Rick Robertson is an intermediate level showcase solo. Its staccato, jaunty rhythms, and sudden dynamic shifts make it an excellent spooky Halloween solo.

Toccata Lyrica, composed by Rick Robertson is an intermediate level showcase solo in a flashy, but lyrical style. It is very effective in performance, and makes an excellent recital or festival choice for a developing pianist.

This mysterious-sounding intermediate-level etude by Stacy Fahrion is ideal for introducing quarter-note triplets to students, and also is a wonderful recital piece. It eases students into playing 2 against 3 and 3 against 2 polyrhythms, and through playing it, students will learn how eighth-note triplets and quarter-note triplets relate. It begins in G Dorian and ends in D minor. Proxima Centauri is the closest star to the sun, but isn’t visible to the eye alone.

Echo Games are a playful way to help pianists of any age improve their listening skills, rhythm, and ease their way into improvisation. The games can be played between teacher and student, between two students, or students can play alone with the included Mp3s. Each game includes a wild card phrase that the leader can throw in at any moment to keep the follower on their toes. Both leader and follower should memorize the wild card phrase before beginning the game. The follower is encouraged to play these games without looking at the music. Stacy Fahrion hopes these games will inspire students to improvise, compose, and have fun at the piano!

A Wise Old Owl is inspired by a nursery rhyme of the same title and set here as a whimsically macabre solo for intermediates by Stacy Fahrion. If you’re playing on a grand piano, before beginning the piece you can silently depress the low F octave and sustain it throughout with the sostenuto pedal for an added mysterious effect. This is an optional effect, and the piece still works well without it. The damper pedal is often left down for extended periods of time as well for a swirling effect.

City Jazz Club, a selection from Sarah Reaser O’Brien’s Star City Solos songbook, is an upbeat jazzy solo ideal for intermediates of all ages.

October is an intermediate new age piece by Sarah Reaser O’Brien, NCTM. The constantly moving triplet figures in both hands are meant to evoke the swirling motion of colorful autumn leaves blowing about in the breeze. Rather than centering on a traditional melodic line, October allows students to create a mood or effect by experimenting with dynamic inflection and rubato to vary each performance. Dynamic indications in the score are merely suggestions – performers are meant to make this free-flowing piece their own.