Last Updated on 2023-06-17 | Originally Posted on 2022-03-22
I created this page primarily so that my piano students can easily find recordings I reference in my lesson notes. It’s purposely a small list since I only add pieces that I think I’ll reference multiple times. If you need to find a particular pianist playing a particular piece, just search it in YouTube!
Many of the repertoire books I recommend, like the Alfred Masterworks and FJH Festival, have recordings available on the included CD or via a download code. Please check those resources first.
One general caveat is that the tempos might be a lot faster than you can play now, or might even eventually play them when well-learned. Don’t be discouraged! Click on the gear icon at the bottom of the YouTube window to adjust the playback speed.
Piano Safari Students: Please check out the Piano Safari YouTube Channel. Choose a Piano Safari book from the list, and then you’ll see an entire list of pieces from that book on the right side of the window.
| ID | Composer | Title | Comments | Artist | URL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | Adams, John C. | Nixon in China: Excerpts from Act 1 | Great example of contemporary compositional style called minimalism | Metropolitan Opera | https://youtu.be/rFnQrbVV3_U |
| 28 | Andre (André), Johann | Sonatina in C Major, Op. 34, No. 1, Mvt. 1 | UI Piano Ped Project | Alan Huckleberry | https://youtu.be/iibhBsU5Hf8 |
| 29 | Andre (André), Johann | Sonatina in C Major, Op. 34, No. 1, Mvt. 2 | UI Piano Ped Project | Alan Huckleberry | https://youtu.be/r9m91ynRuTo |
| 17 | Attwood, Thomas | Sonatina in G Major, Mvt 1 | UI Piano Ped Project | Jason Sifford | https://youtu.be/DLYMKBR0Adw |
| 18 | Attwood, Thomas | Sonatina in G Major, Mvt 2 | UI Piano Ped Project | Jason Sifford | https://youtu.be/KEBFU_Ja2S0 |
| 19 | Attwood, Thomas | Sonatina in G Major, Mvt 3 | UI Piano Ped Project | Jason Sifford | https://youtu.be/RFMTNiaEF54 |
| 4 | Bach, CPE | Solfeggietto | RIAM Exams (Royal Irish) | Réamonn Keary | https://youtu.be/QbsRmGBTBc8 |
| 30 | Bastien, Jane | Mini Sonatina in C Major | Very few choices, but this one on a Yamaha Clavinova will do just fine. | Stephanie's Studio | https://youtu.be/KZVxXJCrkiM |
| 21 | Beethoven, Ludwig von | Sonatina in F Major, Anh. 5, No. 2 | Very few adult choices; this one is good! | Clark Bryan | https://youtu.be/SbbXLi5dQ4U |
| 12 | Beethoven, Ludwig von | Turkish March from The Ruins of Athens, Op. 113 | An arrangement of this is found at the end of the Faber 2B Lesson Book. | Berlin Philharmonic / Claudio Abbado | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6j61TVbCj_w&t=1038s |
| 8 | Bernstein, Seymour | Elegant Torreador, The | It's a bit quick, but as always a solid performance from the UI Pedagory Project. | Alan Huckleberry | https://youtu.be/ZItt6kSqTJw |
| 22 | Biehl, Albert | Sonatina in C Major, Op. 57, No. 1, Mvt. 1 | UI Piano Ped Project | Alan Huckleberry | https://youtu.be/plmFNfwbhoU |
| 23 | Biehl, Albert | Sonatina in C Major, Op. 57, No. 1, Mvt. 2 | UI Piano Ped Project | Alan Huckleberry | https://youtu.be/zczA3pRvk90 |
| 33 | Burgmuller (Burgmüller), Friederich | 25 Progressive Etudes, Op. 100 | UI Piano Ped Project - Links are available on this page for each of the 25 études. | Alan Huckleberry | https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL1EF6ADC4BB93D8E4 |
| 15 | Carmichael, Hoagy | Heart and Soul (4 Hands, 1 Piano) | Nice informal performance with some nice planned improvisation. | Side Tracked Musicians | https://youtu.be/vPdVgxfNr3Q |
| 1 | Clementi, Muzio | Sonatina Op. 36, No. 1 in C Major | This is a solid recording on a Steinway Model L. | Cory Hall | https://youtu.be/0_Ksi2qmW0A |
| 2 | Diabelli, Anton | Sonatina Op. 151, No. 1 in G Major | It's rare to find a celebrated concert pianist recording a piece that's mostly played by piano students. Enjoy! | Cyprien Katsaris | https://youtu.be/9N324zJWwXg |
| 3 | Diabelli, Anton | Sonatina Op. 151, No. 1 in G Major | This recording is processed with MIDI to sound like it's played on a fortepiano, even though it was recorded on a modern piano. | Salvatore Nicolosi | https://youtu.be/jrNTAcY8BfU |
| 6 | Dvorak (Dvořák), Antonin | Symphony No. 9, Mvt 2 | The first theme, with English Horn solo, is often arranged in beginner piano books. | Münchner Philharmoniker, Sergiu Celibidache | https://youtu.be/pHyN3izk38c |
| 10 | English Folk Song | Bah Bah Black Sheep | Fun video for younger kids playing the piece in Piano Safari Book One. | Cocomelon | https://youtu.be/MR5XSOdjKMA |
| 34 | Fuchs, Robert | Timid Little Heart, Op. 47, No. 5 | UI Piano Ped Project | Alan Huckleberry | https://youtu.be/_keCLQf9hA8 |
| 11 | Garner, Erroll | Misty | It's hard to pick just one, so I picked the version that sounded most like the one I could hope to achieve. It's simple with lots of technical licks that are properly stylized. | Jeff Williams | https://youtu.be/s-UjwvJ0eeA |
| 13 | Granados, Enrique | Cuentos de la Juventud, Op. 1 (Stories from Childhood) | Decent recording, albeit with that squeaky bench. Larrocha's recordings are split into 10 separate files, so I posted this instead. | Jeremy Weissmann | https://youtu.be/gmJDz_nPa8k |
| 14 | Gurlitt, Cornelius | Murmuring Brook, Op. 140, No. 5 | Love the sound of this recording and simplicity of interpretation. | Norma Meis | https://youtu.be/mZ15fhF46Xc |
| 42 | Gurlitt, Cornelius | Allegretto in C Major, Op. 117, No. 9 aka Kitten Play | UI Piano Ped Project | Jason Sifford | https://youtu.be/ETD4DC40tcU |
| 43 | Gurlitt, Cornelius | Night Journey, Op. 82, No. 65 | Decent recording a young piano student | Anonymous | https://youtu.be/X-SU8l6LmqE |
| 7 | Hague, Julie | Fred the Fish | Great recording with very creative improvisation. | Luke | https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/644949249 |
| 35 | Hummel, Johann N. | Allegro, Op. 52, No. 2 | House pianist for PianistMagazine.com | Chenyin Li | https://youtu.be/QxMHdzE-tEM |
| 36 | Kabalevsky, D. | Scherzo, Op. 27, No. 14 | I enjoyed this energetic performance. | Stephen Fung | https://youtu.be/7bdJi5p9iFE |
| 44 | Kabalevsky, D. | Clowns, Op. 39, No. 20 | UI Piano Ped Project | Jason Sifford | https://youtu.be/2XrYlCWpRuo |
| 45 | Kabalevsky, D. | Galop, Op. 39, No. 18 | UI Piano Ped Project | Jason Sifford | https://youtu.be/TkiGTCSCDBA |
| 40 | Mozart, Leopold | Bourlesq | UI Piano Ped Project | Alan Huckleberry | https://youtu.be/5ny3Tt4p_Sc |
| 16 | Mozart, W.A. | Sonata in C Major, K. 545 | Late career performance but still amazing control. Notice slow and even pacing of 1st mvt! | Sviatoslav Richter | https://youtu.be/qknbWY_i_1A?t=952 |
| 31 | Mozart, W.A. | Sonata in A minor, K. 310 | Historic 1964 recording at Radio Canada in Toronto | Claudio Arrau | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaVQ3wZK3cE&t=112s |
| 32 | Mozart, W.A. | Sonata in A minor, K. 310 | Young American pianist; 3rd place in Chopin International Competition 2016 | Kate Liu | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNPpmyCDOVE&t=467s |
| 24 | Olson, L.F. | Sonatina No. 5 in D Major, Mvt. 1 | UI Piano Ped Project | Alan Huckleberry | https://youtu.be/X4XspYXgUIw |
| 25 | Olson, L.F. | Sonatina No. 5 in D Major, Mvt. 2 | UI Piano Ped Project | Alan Huckleberry | https://youtu.be/AKPyFErJJTw |
| 26 | Olson, L.F. | Sonatina No. 5 in D Major, Mvt. 3 | UI Piano Ped Project | Alan Huckleberry | https://youtu.be/OXNVBXOfUCQ |
| 27 | Olson, L.F. | Sonatina No. 2 in F Major, Complete | Decent child recording. Listen to the UI Piano Ped Project for comparison. | Noah Ying | https://youtu.be/bATud9-CHco |
| 37 | Olson, L.F. | Sonatina No. 3 in A minor, Mvt. 1 | UI Piano Ped Project | Alan Huckleberry | https://youtu.be/z47_shRcqeo |
| 38 | Olson, L.F. | Sonatina No. 3 in A minor, Mvt. 2 | UI Piano Ped Project | Alan Huckleberry | https://youtu.be/DZHKqAxZUws |
| 39 | Olson, L.F. | Sonatina No. 3 in A minor, Mvt. 3 | UI Piano Ped Project | Alan Huckleberry | https://youtu.be/VPZ8OrENlzY |
| 5 | Reinagle, Alexander | Allegro in D Major, Op. 1, No. 18 | Good student performance | Caroline Wang | https://youtu.be/_gwX-HU4Zgc |
| 41 | Reinagle, Alexander | Allegretto, Op. 1, No. 5 aka Scherzino or Dance | UI Piano Ped Project | Alan Huckleberry | https://youtu.be/MeAjvh_YFx8 |
| 9 | Stegman, John | Greg and Alice and Their Dog | Highly repetitive, but it's cute an memorable to learn three of the white notes instantly. | Juliet Lyons and Friends | https://youtu.be/N46FFgxE6ns |