Are you looking for the perfect piano recital song to show off your hard-earned skills? Below, piano teacher Liz T. shares 10 great piano recital songs for beginners…
Preparing for your very first piano recital is exciting. Although it’s fun to show off what you’ve been working on during piano practice, piano recitals require lots of preparation.
When choosing the type of piano style you’ll be performing, it’s important that you pick a song that will best showcase your skills. After all, you want to choose a piano recital song you feel comfortable with.
That being said, below are 10 great piano recital songs for beginners. Also included are a few preparation tips and tricks to ensure that you’re ready for your shining moment on stage!
How to Prepare for Your Upcoming Piano Recital
1. Give yourself plenty of time
Pick your piece or pieces at least 4-6 months in advance of your piano recital. This will give you plenty of time to work those rhythm, melodic, and harmonic kinks out. Students will often struggle when they have only been working on their piece for two weeks. So be sure to plan ahead of time with your piano teacher.
2. Practice 1-2 hours a week
Practice at least 1-2 hours a week, working with a metronome and practicing both hands separately. Be sure to use your practice sessions wisely, and make the most of them. Discipline yourself and keep a practice journal to record specifically what you worked on; for example, fingering, pedal, trills, chords etc.
3. Rehearse staging
Start incorporating elements into your performance that will be used in your piano recital, such as using a microphone, practicing on an upright or grand piano, entering and exiting the stage. Plan a couple of dress rehearsals. If you aren’t able to get into the recital hall ahead of time, try practicing in front of a mirror or video record yourself to see what you can improve.
10 Piano Recital Songs for Beginners
1.The Entertainer- Scott Joplin (Genre: Ragtime)
2. Cannon in D- Pachelbel (Genre: Classical)
3. Hound Dog- Elvis (Genre: Blues)
4. Somewhere Over the Rainbow- Harold Arlen (Genre: Pop)
5. I Dreamed a Dream- Les Miserables (Genre: Broadway)
6. Misty- Erroll Garner (Genre: Jazz)
7. Piano Man- Billy Joel (Genre: Pop)
8. Great Balls of Fire- Jerry Lee Lewis (Genre: Rock)
9. Amazing Grace (Genre: Patriotic)
10. You Light Up My Life- Joe Brooks (Genre: Country)
Good Luck!
All of these songs can be played at the beginner or advanced level. I suggest finding “easy piano versions” that are published in many piano books today. Or you can sit down with your piano teacher to come up with an arrangement that works for you and the level you are currently at.
Post Author: Liz T.Liz T. teaches singing, acting, and music lessons online. She is a graduate of the Berklee College of Music with a B.M in Vocal performance and currently performs/teaches all styles of music including Musical Theater, Classical, Jazz, Rock, Pop, R&B, and Country. Learn more about Liz here!
Suzy S.