*New* Easy Harry Potter Sheet Music for Piano!
It’s finally here! The complete Harry Potter series book of sheet music for easy piano has finally been released by Alfred. You can grab the new series from Sheet Music Plus (my absolute favorite online retailer for sheet music). The 144 page book (awesome!) contains just about every piece of music from the 8 film series you could want so it’s definitely the one stop shop for music from the Harry Potter films. And best of all – there’s a 5 finger version for beginners! Definitely adding this one to my collection.
Some of the songs included: Diagon Alley * Family Portrait * Harry’s Wondrous World * Hedwig’s Theme * Leaving Hogwarts * Nimbus 2000 * Voldemort * The Chamber of Secrets * Fawkes the Phoenix * Buckbeak’s Flight * Double Trouble * Hagrid the Professor * Harry in Winter * Hogwarts March * Potter Waltz * This Is the Night * Dumbledore’s Army * Fireworks * Loved Ones and Leaving * Professor Umbridge * Dumbledore’s Farewell * Harry and Hermione * In Noctem * When Ginny Kissed Harry * Farewell to Dobby * Godric’s Hollow Graveyard * Harry and Ginny * Obliviate * Ron Leaves * Snape to Malfoy Manor * Courtyard Apocalypse * Harry’s Sacrifice * Lily’s Lullaby * Lily’s Theme * Severus and Lily * Statues.
Grab your copy here: Harry Potter — Sheet Music from the Complete Film Series
(The links in this post are affiliate links meaning that by clicking on them and making a purchase, NormanPianoLessons.com gets a small referral fee which allows me to purchase new music & supplies for my studio & students at no additional cost to you. Thanks for making your purchases through my link!)
My Top 6 Just For Fun Music Books for Beginners
We love things we know. They comfort us and help us know we are on the right track. To kids taking piano lessons, being able to play music they know is the only tangible benchmark they have to see progress. Having books around your house “just for fun” is an often overlooked piece of the music lesson pie.
image by: juliaf via sxc.hu
When I started taking piano lessons I remember being so stupid excited about playing Jolly Old St. Nicholas. It was the first song I could read music for that I actually recognized and I played it over and over and over again. That music coming out of the piano was MINE. I made it, with my own brain and 10 fingers. I owned that song and it made me feel awesome to play it. Then I went to the next lesson and back into the oblivious world of random songs about dogs. Sigh. I kept hoping another song I knew would come my way. It did, eventually, and every time it did it sparked my desire to play the piano and continue to improve.
What is it about being able to play a song we know that’s so powerful in the learning process? It’s real. It’s concrete. It’s the first honest to goodness event that proves to us that all those things we hear on the radio or iPod come from real people and that maybe, just maybe, we really could be one of those people someday. It proves reading those dots does actually make sense. It proves that my finger numbers really are important. It proves that we can do it. And that’s a powerful feeling.
You can help your child experience this “I can do it” moment by having Just for Fun music around your house. After all, isn’t the point of all this hard work and practice to make music fun?
It’s important that the Just for Fun music be easy for them to play and not discouraging. Many of the music books in the stores are just plain hard for young players so I’ve put together a list of books I think will appeal to a lot of kids. These are all 5-finger books which are appropriate for students in the first 2 years of lessons who are reading music on the staff. You can order them online from Amazon through my affiliate links below or you can print this out and take it with you to the store. Parents of current students: if you’d like any of these books, let me know and I can also grab them for you and have them at your next lesson!
You can find more of my selections of easy sheet music for beginners here.
Harry Potter Easy Piano Sheet Music Round Up
So this is it. This is the end of Harry Potter. To be honest, I’ve never been more excited to see a movie I already know the ending of and so completely sad at the same time. I started reading the books at the suggestion of one of my piano students in 2000. She was die hard in 4th grade even getting her mom and dad to take her to the bookstore for the midnight parties to get the latest adventures of Harry and his friends. She would come to lessons with her face buried in JK Rowling’s words, and when it was her time for piano, I would get the latest update on the Hogwarts gang as she unpacked her music books. I figured it must be pretty good stuff. I’m so glad she convinced me to read them!
So in honor of the end of Harry Potter, I thought I would put together a list of easy, beginner level piano sheet music books and pieces from each of the Harry Potter films.
There are only a handful of movie theme songs so easily recognized as this one. We only need to hear the first 8 notes to know we are about to enter the world of Harry Potter.
Themes from Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
A slightly more challenging book than the 5 finger ones. This book would work well for students who have completed 2 years of piano lessons (or are really ambitious first years)
Double Trouble from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
This book is a compilation of the first 5 films for easy, 5 finger piano. Students may still be challenged by this book, but the 5 finger versions really bring it down to a level they can relate to. *UPDATE* I’ve been using this book with kids in Piano Adventures level 1 Accelerated & level 1 of the Basic course with much success. They have really been excellent for teaching them some new rhythms!
Selections from Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
A Big Note book version means that it’s a simplified, but not of the beginner. Students completing years 2 and 3 will be the most successful here.
Selections from Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Another Big Note book. Recommended for students completing years 2 and 3 (and up).
“In Noctem” for 5 finger piano from Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
First years dive in! This 5 finger solo piece is right up your alley.
“Obliviate” from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 for 5 finger piano
Another one for the first years (and beyond). Solo piece.
UPDATE (2/2012): Alfred has just released a book that includes ALL 8 Harry Potter movies worth of music for easy piano! You can find more about the book in this post.
(The links in this post are affiliate links meaning that by clicking on them and making a purchase, NormanPianoLessons.com gets a small referral fee which allows me to purchase new music & supplies for my studio & students at no additional cost to you. Thanks for making your purchases through my link!)
Free Patriotic Sheet Music for Beginners
With the holiday weekend coming up, I thought this would be a good time to repost an arrangement of Yankee Doodle I did last year for my beginning students. It’s a simple, early elementary arrangement based around middle C. Students who just completed my Introduction to Piano class should be able to play this one!
Happy Fourth of July everyone! Have a safe and fun weekend!
NormanPianoLessons_YankeeDoodle – Early Elementary (Level 1A / Level 1)
Free Patriotic Sheet Music Download
Happy Fourth of July weekend! I hope you are all having a wonderful time with your families & friends!
Since we’re having a super soggy start to our holiday weekend here in Norman, I thought I would create a beginning piano arrangement of Yankee Doodle for you to download, print, and play!
Yankee Doodle for Beginning Piano (Easy)
To get your copy, head on over to The Taylor Studio Facebook Page and visit the Free Sheet Music tab!
Have a safe (and hopefully dry) holiday weekend!