The Playground

Christmas time has traditionally always been a time for the gathering of loved ones and the playing of music. I felt it would be great to have a collection of carols that anyone in the family could pick up and play, even if they only…

• Written by Guest Contributor on Dec 4, 2013
• jingle bells, piano, piano tutorial, simply music, the playground, tutorial

Here’s a Simply Music way you can learn What Now by Rihanna. Gordon Harvey shows you how to play a version of the catchy piano riff to this great song, as well as an even simpler piano accompaniment. Watch the video and download the diagrams below.   Diagram One   …

• Written by Gordon Harvey on Oct 27, 2013

Circle of Life from The Lion King has always been popular for students to learn and its rich chords make it a particularly rewarding project using the powerful accompaniment skills Simply Music students learn very early in the curriculum. Across three projects, Laurie Richards starts us off…

• Written by SM Admin on Sep 17, 2013

We are going to head into the next section of Symphony No. 5 in C Minor by Beethoven. If you are using the version from Free Scores, it is going to be more complex than what I am demonstrating here. The book I am working…

• Written by SM Admin on Aug 6, 2013

This piece is hallmark and one of his most recognized pieces. Originally written for a symphony, it has been played as a piano solo successfully and even arranged into a popular rock instrumental in the 1970s called “A Fifth of Beethoven” by Walter Murphy. It…

• Written by SM Admin on May 19, 2013

With my Simply Music students, I do a lot of improvisation and composition. It’s one of my favourite aspects of being a musician, having been writing songs and creating instrumental pieces for most of my life. One of the most enjoyable and challenging things I do these…

• Written by Guest Contributor on Mar 27, 2013
• create, improvisation, improvise, kat koppett, mark meritt, mark s. meritt, mop and bucket, music, simply music

By popular demand, Ernest Amstalden, Simply Music Teacher and renowned ragtime player, has created a version of that perennial favorite, “The Entertainer,” that relatively inexperienced students can take on. In this video, Ernest leads you step-by-step through his arrangement. If you can read music, you…

• Written by Guest Contributor on Jan 30, 2013
• ernest amstalden, learn, music, piano, popular, ragtime, read, scott joplin, sheet music, simply music, the entertainer, the playground, tutorials, video

By Scott Jones Many of us love a Christmas song, but rather than dust off the same old arrangements, this year why not try a fresh perspective? Rudolph never sounded as fun as Scott Jones’ blues version. In this video tutorial he steps you through a set…

• Written by SM Admin on Dec 4, 2012

The great blues players spend most of their time working with riffs, little musical sentences you can throw in over the top of standard chord progressions. Our very own blues maestro Scott Jones has plenty of riffs up his sleeve, and in this video presentation…

• Written by SM Admin on Sep 28, 2012

  Hello again, Simply Music community! This is the third and final article in my Soulful Grace series. Here I’m presenting an introduction and an ending for Soulful Grace that, while relatively simple to play, give a quite sophisticated (and gospelly!) sounding result. Let’s begin!…

• Written by Guest Contributor on Sep 28, 2012
• amazing grace, coaching, jennifer lee, learn, music, piano, simply music, soulful grace, teaching, tutorial