Dark classical piano pieces for Halloween
Dark classical pieces to read at the keyboard in October, from level 3 to level 5: both of Chopin's funeral marches, Satie's three Gnossiennes, which he wrote without bar lines and marked with odd advice to the player, Schumann's Wild Rider and Knecht Ruprecht (the dark figure who comes with St Nicholas), Burgmüller's Restlessness, Chopin's Prelude in E minor, which was played at his own funeral, his slow Prelude in C minor and the first movement of the Moonlight Sonata. Each piece has easier versions made from the score itself (the right-hand melody alone, then with left-hand roots), so you can print the version that fits your reading now and play it as written later.
- Pieces
- 11
- Levels
- 3 to 5
- Key signatures
- 3 flats to 4 sharps
- Length
- 13 to 112 bars
Level 3
Both hands busy, the hand moves around, a sharp or flat or two. Most of the Notebook minuets, sonatinas, The Entertainer.
Level 4
Real independence between the hands and more accidentals. Bach's inventions and little preludes, Für Elise, Chopin's easier preludes.
-
Prelude in E minor, Op. 28 No. 4
Frédéric Chopin 1 sharp, 4/4, 26 bars -
Gnossienne No. 2
Erik Satie no sharps or flats, 12/8, 34 bars -
Gnossienne No. 3
Erik Satie no sharps or flats, 4/4, 54 bars -
Funeral March in C minor, Op. 72
Frédéric Chopin 3 flats, 4/4, 76 bars -
Knecht Ruprecht, Op. 68 No. 12
Robert Schumann no sharps or flats, 2/4, 112 bars
Level 5
The edge of early intermediate: dense textures, fast passages and far keys. The Moonlight Sonata, Maple Leaf Rag, Solfeggietto.
Open a piece to print any of its versions free, or to play it at your MIDI keyboard with every note marked. New to reading? The level 2 sight-reading exercises are a good warm-up.