A lot of piano students are inspired by the music they hear from their video games. And for good reason! Most video games have lovely sound tracks or catchy theme songs that are fun to learn on the piano.
I’ve been collecting a variety of video game piano collections for my piano students. I always look for music that is written pedagogically so that it aligns well with concepts and skills that piano students are learning.
Here are five collections of video game piano arrangements that I have found that have worked well for my students.
Related: 10 Solos for Early Intermediate Piano Students
Collection: 10 Video Game Themes for Beginners By Chrissy Ricker
Click here to see 10 Video Game Themes for Beginners on musicnotes.com
I found this excellent collection on musicnotes.com and these arrangements by Chrissy Ricker are really great for beginners. I’ve noticed that even piano music labeled as “easy” is really not meant for beginners, which can be frustrating for them to have wait years before they are ready to play the “easy” stuff.
However, these arrangements by Chrissy Ricker are really designed with beginners in mind. They are written in a way that a student with 1-2 years of piano lessons should have the skills to figure them out. The rhythms are written with simplified notation and the pitches fall within a range that is readable for newer readers.
This collection of video game piano arrangements includes these 10 themes:
- Super Mario Bros. Main Theme
- Megolovania
- Korobeiniki (Tetris Theme)
- Song of Storms
- Pokemon Theme
- Drip Theme
- Minecraft (Calm 1)
- Gourmet Race
- Pokemon Theme
- Angry Birds Theme
Click here to find this collection on musicnotes.com.
You can also find another collection of later beginner arrangements, also by Chrissy Ricker here.
Video Game Hits for Easy Piano by Mona Rejino
Click here to find this book on Sheet Music Plus
This is a really nicely-arranged collection by Mona Rejino. It has a wonderfuly variety of video game tunes, plus a couple of anime themes.
This book is an example of music that’s labeled “easy” but I’d really save it for the early intermediate to intermediate students. The music is written in a variety of keys outside of C, there are some larger leaps and some of the pieces require some technical skills that aren’t necessarily “easy”.
Here is the song list from this book:
- Angry Birds Theme
- Bratja (Brothers)
- Dearly Beloved
- Dragonborn (Skyrim Theme)
- Eyes on Me
- Main Theme (Final Fantasy I)
- Sadness And Sorrow
Click here to find Video Game Hits for Easy Piano on Sheet Music Plus
Super Mario Series for Easy Piano
Click here to find Super Mario Series for Easy Piano on Sheet Music Plus
This is a really fun collection of 34 Mario themes from all of the Mario games over the years from Alfred Music. The “Easy Piano” version of this book is perfect for progressing students who are excited to learn Mario tunes. Once again, the “easy” label implies easier arrangements than the original transcriptions, but not necessarily music appropriate for your beginner piano students.
You’ll find a huge variety of music in this book. Some are multi-page arrangements of the main themes, while others are shorter snippets from different parts of the game like the star power music or the underground background music.
Click here to find Super Mario Series for Easy Piano on Sheet Music Plus
And, click here to find the original transcription that isn’t simplified.
The Legend of Zelda for Easy Piano
Click here to find The Legend of Zelda for Easy Piano on Sheet Music Plus
This is another Alfred publication that is really similar to the Mario collection. Just like the Mario series, these easy Zelda tunes are also a simplification of the original transcriptions, but not so simple that a beginner could read them.
This book as 33 arrangements from many of the Zelda games.
Click here to find The Legend of Zelda for Easy Piano on Sheet Music Plus
And, click here to find the original transcription that isn’t simplified.
Smart Game Piano on musicnotes.com
Click here to find Smart Game Piano arrangements on musicnotes.com
If you have intermediate or advancing students who are really inspired by video game music, Smart Game Piano is an excellent resource for you and your students. Sydney Kjerstad is the arranger behind Smart Game Piano and she has arranged hundreds of video game themes. Most of them are more intermediate levels and above, but some, like the ones pictured above are lesson challenging. You can also find YouTube tutorials of all of her arrangements.
You can find all Smart Game Piano arrangements on musicnotes.com
Leave a Reply