Piano duets like Chopsticks, but not Chopsticks

March 13, 2014 4:56 AM

Hi mefites! I would like to learn to play some piano duets with my almost six-year-old. Ideally they would have the same form as Chopsticks, that is, one player plays a more complicated, two-handed part while the other plays a very simple one-hand tune. Has anyone got any suggestions? Bonus if the piece is fun/silly etc. Classical/jazz/popular is fine. Thanks!
posted by low_horrible_immoral to Media & Arts (8 answers total)

Best answer: Heart and Soul! Then for a party trick, learn to play both parts yourself. It's possible if you modify the lower part a little and can reach an octave.

While searching I came across this book of easy duets. No idea what the arrangements are like, but Hal Leonard is a big name publisher so any music store could order you a copy to look at.
posted by Flannery Culp at 5:16 AM on March 13, 2014 [4 favorites]

Take any piece of sheet music that your six-year-old can play the melody of, and have them play it an octave higher than written. (You might need to rewrite just the melody for them on a separate sheet of music if they have trouble picking out the melody from among the other notes as written.) You play everything *but* the melody, as written.
posted by Bentobox Humperdinck at 6:32 AM on March 13, 2014

How are you at fake-booking? You could get one a fake-book of 1000+ pop/showtunes/classical tunes and play the harmony while the 6-year old plunks out the melodies.
posted by Lutoslawski at 9:47 AM on March 13, 2014

The Entertainer
posted by Room 641-A at 1:17 PM on March 13, 2014

I'm a little confused - I thought chopsticks was two-handed with symmetrical movements. I've never heard it played the way you describe.

However my friends and I played Heart and Soul a lot together! Crap, now that is stuck in my head.
posted by radioamy at 3:42 PM on March 13, 2014 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Thanks for the responses guys! Flannery that book is on amazon, so I'll check it out.

radioamy - I used to play Chopsticks with my Dad and he played a lower accompaniment, alternating G and C chords. He made it up maybe?
posted by low_horrible_immoral at 2:32 AM on March 14, 2014

Stravinsky, Five Easy Pieces
posted by lokta at 10:29 AM on March 14, 2014

You need to google "duets for piano teacher and students" and you'll find a lot of books that have one pretty hard page and another ridiculously easy page. I don't have a specific recommendation, but this this what my kids' teacher did with them.
posted by CathyG at 12:28 PM on March 15, 2014