These 7 Great Songs Make Piano Practice Fun Again
The hardest part of learning a new instrument is mastering the basic techniques that are required for more advanced pieces. Even though they are essential, practicing fundamentals can stop being fun fast, as repetition can seem pointless and more importantly, boring. But understanding techniques such as staccatos and arpeggios, and concepts such as triplets and odd time signatures can take you from a beginner to an expert in no time flat an essentially make piano practice fun!
Not to fear! The following songs are easy to learn, fun to play, and more importantly, are a good way to reinforce important fundamentals without driving you to tears!
Sara Bareilles – Love Song
A fun blast from the 2000s past, “Love Song” is a fun and catchy tune with a deceivingly easy piano part. The song is heavy on staccatos, or short, defined notes that give it a bouncy feeling. Staccatos are great ways to make parts of songs pack more punch, just like Beethoven’s fifth symphony!
Coldplay – Clocks
Another pop classic from 2004, “Clocks” is a great song to introduce yourself to triplets and the basics of arpeggios. These groups of notes that are played together, but separate from other notes are another key fundamental of music.Triplets are a great way to make a basic four-beat time signature sound unique and cool.
OneRepublic – Counting Stars
Another great song to master arpeggios, “Counting Stars” is a terrific, energetic piece that features some awesome riffs and nice changes of pace. The song is also a great way to practice playing different beats on both hands since the left is playing a steady beat all the way through.
The Beatles – Hey Jude
Every musician should know at least ONE Beatles song. “Hey Jude” is a simple track to learn, and doesn’t change much throughout, which is a great way to practice maintaining a steady beat the whole way through a piece of music. The building climax is also a great way to practice playing piano at different volume levels (piano, forte, and so on).
Avicii – Waiting for Love
For those more electronically inclined, Avicii’s “Waiting For Love” is another fantastic song to help master those tricky staccatos. The song’s easy piano structure makes it a quick learn, and you get to impress your friends with your piano-DJ abilities!
Alicia Keys – Fallin’
A phenomenal song for someone looking to master arpeggios, the piece’s wavy piano riff is entirely made of arpeggios, a great way to practice basic skills. It is also easy to learn and has very few different chords and notes.
Wiz Khalifa ft. Charlie Puth – See You Again
A cool song with a catchy piano-driven chorus, the simple piano riff of “See You Again” is a great way to familiarize yourself with multi-finger chords, and the simple chord progression makes it easy to catch on quickly. It’s also a fantastic way to start practicing using your left hand to accompany melodies.
These awesome songs are easy to play and put the “fun” in learning fundamentals! Want to learn how to play songs like these? Check out JoyTunes.com for more info!