Playing piano doesn’t have to be limited to practicing scales and chords. You can have a lot of fun if you find the piano notes for songs on the radio or classic pop and rock tunes you’ve always liked, and go from there! This is a great way to break up the monotony of rigorous practice, and keep yourself motivated and having fun as you learn how to play.
Finding piano notes for songs isn’t usually that hard, either – you just have to know the right places to look. Here are a few of our favorite resources:
Musicnotes.com
This website has a great selection of piano sheet music available. In addition to the top pop hits you hear on the radio today, you can also find piano notes for songs recorded a few decades ago. In fact, many of their top downloaded songs are from the 60s, 70s, and 80s. You can also find pieces based on playing level, ranging from beginner to expert. Be sure to check back often, as there are always new songs being added.
The cost to download the piano sheet music available on Musicnotes varies. Some songs are available for free, while others cost up to $10. Keep in mind that these songs cost money as they are technically property of the songwriter, and for each copy of the music there is a royalty associated with it. You can probably consider it a “get what you pay for” situation, as the sheet music is edited and proofread before it’s posted on the Musicnotes website.
Piano Street
With Piano Street, you have the world of piano sheet music at your fingertips! A membership costs $7 per month or $47 per year, but with that you get access to nearly 3,000 different pieces of sheet music, as well as recordings for most of the popular pieces. Their selection is mostly focused on classical and jazz compositions, so this might come in handy when you’re discussing which classical piece you want to play next with your piano teacher.
Not to worry though – if you need a break from practicing classical tunes, you can also head to their pop music section and search for piano notes for songs with a more contemporary feel. And with the professional members that frequent Piano Street, you can count on every submission being top quality.
8notes.com
Drawing its name from the number of notes in an octave, the 8notes.com website offers tons of sheet music, from classical to contemporary at beginner to expert levels. Best of all, a lot of the music available on the website is free to use!
The “Piano Licks & Riffs” section is also worth checking out, featuring contemporary songs and artists such as Adele, John Legend, and Coldplay. This is an easy way to get started with popular songs, since the majority of pop and rock tunes are based on a few simple chord patterns that are repeated throughout the entire chorus and verse. And once you have the basic chord progression figured out, it’s pretty easy to continue playing it and even sing along if you want!
There is a $20 per year fee to subscribe to the 8notes website, which gives you access to a large variety of full sheet music transcriptions, in addition to the free sheet music and chord progressions. There are also a few other benefits, such as higher-quality PDFs and transposition available.
Of course, before going out on your own to find piano notes for songs, you can also try asking your private instructor for their recommendations. Since he or she has been playing piano for much longer than you have, there may be websites or other sources of music that he or she is familiar with that can provide you with exactly the songs you’re looking for! It’s also a good idea to keep your teacher in the loop if you’re itching to practice different types of music. After all – music lessons are much more effective (and fun!) when they’re catered to your musical interests. Enjoy!
Photo by MaltaGirl
Megan L.