Song Transcriptions Today

I have always enjoyed playing accompaniments of the art song repertoire. However, since I'm not a trained singer, I find that my ability to fully enjoy the song is sometimes diminished because of the absence of the vocal line. Recently, I have found myself looking to song transcriptions to quench my thirst for song repertoire while providing engaging solo repertoire. It's the best of both worlds!

At its most basic level, a transcription is a piece for solo piano that is based on a larger work from the chamber, orchestral, song, or operatic repertoire. Most pianists are familiar with the masterful transcriptions by Liszt, but there are actually many more of them than you might expect in the classical realm. Clara Schumann has some lovely settings of many of her husband's best loved songs. Edvard Grieg transcribed his own songs as well. While many of the other transcriptions were provided by lesser known figures, the results are often quite nice -- especially since they were based on pieces that are considered standards of the repertoire.

We continue to stumble across transcriptions in modern settings as well. Often composed for mainly pedagogical purposes, music bins are filled with transcriptions of folk songs as well as current pop songs, show tunes, Disney songs, and themes from major movie soundtracks. Because the sounds are familiar to most students, the transcription can often be a motivating factor for the student who is struggling to make progress at the instrument.

In my own world, I find that I am learning new transcriptions on a fairly regular basis in the form of hymn arrangements. These compositions take the familiar tune -- in this case, the hymn tune -- rework its harmony, and embellish the melody while ensuring that the basic tune remains recognizable by the audience. The result is a work that can easily fit into most worship services without the need for additional explanation while allowing pianists to display their skill as an act of worship.

Whether you are looking to include standard works by master composers, contemporary songs, or classic hymn arrangements into your current repertoire, consider giving transcriptions a try. I think you are certain to find something in the genre that will appeal to your musical taste.