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Just because you play classical guitar doesn’t mean you have to limit yourself to hundred year old music! There are many modern pop songs that translate very well to the classical guitar.

One of the biggest challenges any classical guitarist faces is that of trying to assemble a repertoire of music that a wide audience will appreciate. After all, the majority of any musician’s audience will be fans of popular music. The classical guitar is capable of interpreting this popular music in a very distinct and pleasant way. Here is a selection of popular pieces that translate well, and sound well, on the classical guitar.

Stairway to Heaven – This is the anthem of a whole generation of rock music and the guitar arrangement by Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin is one of the best pieces of guitar music ever written. Don’t let the fact that this is a hard rock band scare you away from this piece of music. It is a stunningly beautiful piece of music.

Vincent – (Starry, Starry, Night) This is a beautiful song written by Don Mclean and it is a great piece for classical guitar. There are many interpretations of this song but I highly recommend you use the arrangement created by Chet Atkins. It is quite possibly the best piece of guitar music ever written.

Blackbird – by the Beatles – This is a perfect piece for a beginner to learn. It has some very unique sliding up and down the fretboard and some great interval playing.

Yesterday – Another piece by the Beatles and arguably one of the most beautiful melodies ever written.

If – by Bread – This is an old song written in the 70’s by a pop group. It has a haunting melody and a great arpeggio style of finger picking that sounds great on the classical guitar. This is a great intermediate level piece.

Your Body is A Wonderland – John Mayer borrows from the art of Flamenco the technique of tapping on the guitar for this song, which makes for some nice acoustic variety in your repertoire. It is a novelty but sounds great.

Unchained Melody – Alex North and Hy Zaret – This is a piece of music that has been performed for over 50 years now and for good reason. It is a beautiful and simple piece that can be quickly learned.

Hotel California – The Eagles – Originally written for the 12-string guitar this song plays extraordinary well on the classical guitar and really expresses that 70’s soft rock feeling.

Time In A Bottle – Jim Croce had a very unique style of playing folk guitar and this style translates well to the classical guitar. This piece is one of his best pieces in that it showcases some really beautiful, and unique, guitar phrasings.

Tears in Heaven – Eric Clapton is hailed as the king of rock and roll guitar and for good reason. He has the ability to play absolutely anything flawlessly. Tears in Heaven is the perfect slow pop piece to showcase how the classical guitar can cross genres into the world of pop music.

The Classical Guitar is an extraordinarily diverse instrument and it can sound good in almost any genre of music but learning a solid repertoire of popular music is something that can enable you to reach and connect with a very wide audience.

By: Will Kalif

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How many songs do you know on the piano? Would you like to have a larger repertoire at your command? How about entertaining friends and acquaintances at a party with a staggering knowledge of popular songs? From Chopin to Gershwin, from Thelonius Monk to Tori Amos, piano music in a variety of popular styles is increasingly available in music stores and online outlets.

For the beginning piano student, the variety of popular piano music is staggering. A simple search will place the sheet music for “Pomp and Circumstance” and Mahler’s funereal variations on Frere Jacques in his Symphony No. 1 in D Major directly on your computer monitor. Download the pieces, print them out and practice until you’ve mastered them. Soon you will be an expert at many diverse kinds of piano music.

Whether you invest time in learning every note and trill involved in a piece or you’re simply looking for a chord progression for accompaniment purposes, sheet music is likely available. Mesmerize onlookers with your knowledge of the entire Beatles catalog! Serenade sweethearts with a flawless take on Irving Berlin’s “Blue Skies.” Why stick to practicing dull scales over and over when friends will be more impressed with a hot rendition of “My Heart Will Go On?”

Jokes aside, the ease of obtaining popular piano music is making an extensive knowledge of entire song catalogs a breeze. The fake arrangement, which is a piece of sheet music outlining the basic chord progressions and melodies in a song, is invaluable to those wanting to play piano with modern ensembles. This kind of arrangement enables the pianist to know what is coming at him. It gives him the basic melodic theme with which to improvise, play behind another instrument or just play straight from the paper.

Perhaps a more thoroughly written piece is what you’re after. Don’t want the fake arrangement of Beethoven’s “Moonlight Sonata?” Piano music for popular pieces such as Claude Debussy’s “Clare de Lune” and Frederic Chopin’s Prelude in C Minor is a handy tool for the beginning pianist or the tutor to have on hand. The longevity and popularity of pieces such as these makes them fun to learn for any pianist, great or small.

So your skills on the instrument aren’t up to par with the virtuosos? Is that any reason to not enjoy a relaxing stay at the piano bench with the ivories at your fingertips? No, it’s not. Piano music doesn’t have to be difficult to be enjoyed. It shouldn’t always require a degree in music theory and performance. There are multitudes of pieces in the lexicon of popular piano music that are stunningly beautiful, yet don’t require years of rigorous practice. Elton John, one of the greatest pop composers in modern music, has songs that come in easy piano translations. Feel free to find a nice version of one of his songs, or perhaps a standard like “Singin’ in the Rain.” Plunk out the melody, find the bass line and play until your heart’s content.

Piano music is one of the most enduring forms of art and entertainment in the world. With the instrument’s multiple octaves and singular ability to produce melody, harmony and underlying chord progressions, the piano is a timeless wonder. So invite some friends over, find some great sheet music and have a sing along to some of your favorite songs.

By: Duane Shinn

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Ever wish songs just sang what was happening in the music video? Well now they do, in this second installment of literal videos! Lyrics/singing: Dustin McLean Voices: Jonah Ray, Priscilla McLean

By: DustoMcNeato

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I DID NOT MAKE THIS SO STOP ASSUMING I DID AND READ THE ENTIRE DESCRIPTION! — A ton of songs were acted out in this funny Halo 2 musical created by imSuck and HaloGrid. The credits at the end are very inaccurate, for instance the song called “Meaning of Life” by Disturbed is listed as “Get Psycho” Official website: www.halogrid.com Download link: files5.bungie.org SONG LIST: 1.Perfect Day – Hoku 2.Bohemian Rhapsody – Queen 3.The Deepest Lyrics – Sheryl Crow 4. Blue – Eiffel 65 5. Blinded …

By: Yackemflaber

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