Digital Access
Against the Rule
… an advanced, jazz-facing, quirky solo, using only minor chords, and being an arrangement of a well-known traditional children’s song. Link includes video of a performance and details of the full bundle.
Blackberry Jam
… has recently been listed in the Grade 6 syllabus for London College of Music exams. Available as a single copy purchase, studio licence, or complete studio package at the link, above.
It was originally published in Getting to Grade Five (and is still available in that collection).
Breathe
… a late elementary solo, designed to be taught by rote, and written as a response to events in March-June 2020.
the 44th Street Suite Emergency Bundle
… a collection of 17 variations on a 16-bar blues, each variation featuring an interval (perfect 5ths, minor 3rds, major 7ths, augmented 4ths, etc), covering every interval inside an octave. Varying degrees of difficulty, the suite makes for a stunning early advanced recital event, while individual pieces are delightful explorations of each specific interval. Additionally useful as a prompt for composition… Available as a mini-bundle (5 pieces) or the full suite. Written in April 2020.
Hard Questions
… is a short canon, Grade 1/2 standard (depending on exam board), using the “Simpsons Scale”. Preview of the score included.
Little Mouse
… is a quirky late elementary solo, exploring the melodic minor ascending scale pattern. The bundle comes with keyboard maps and ideas for delight-bringing transposing activities.
Rawahi
… is a lush early intermediate solo, also available in the Getting to Grade Two New Mix collection.
All pieces published by Faber Music are available as individual digital solo downloads from the Faber Music shop site. Each collection can be accessed here (once you are on the page of the collection, you can browse individual solos):
Very Easy Little Peppers
Easy Little Peppers
Little Peppers
More Little Peppers
Even More Little Peppers
Pepperbox Jazz 1
Pepperbox Jazz 2
The Little Peppers series
Five volumes of original compositions, exploring and developing contemporary pianistic skills and techniques, and introducing students to an array of contemporary sounds, rhythms, and structures. These pieces are designed to be used as recital performance pieces, as a foundation for improvising, as a starting point for analysis, and as a catalogue of sounds and skills pianists create and require at the start of the 21st century.
Roughly graded from late elementary (ABRSM Grade 1 standard) through to late(?) intermediate (ABRSM Grade 5), many of these pieces have been included in examination syllabuses and publications.
Available world-wide.
The Pepperbox Jazz series
Two volumes of original compositions, deliberately focussing on the sounds and energy of popular music from the late 20th/early 21st century, from funk through tango to ballads and blues, this collection includes atmospheric miniatures, energetic etudes, lounge music masterpieces, quirky textures, heart-rending melodies, addictive bass-lines, and showstopper duets.
A large number of these pieces have also featured in various exam syllabuses and publications around the world.
Available world-wide.
The “Getting to…” series
These series of repertoire collections were created especially for the Australian piano teaching context, and are correlated with the Australian Music Examination Board gradings and assessment requirements. Highly popular in Australia from the moment the series was first launched in 2003, there are now 10 volumes in two series, with more publications planned.
The first series features a traditional/classical approach to repertoire, with the best of the Baroque, Classical and Romantic periods, along with an extremely generous inclusion of 20th century and contemporary works. This series currently runs from Preliminary through to Grade 5.
The second series, titled “The New Mix”, is a mixture of the best of contemporary and 20th century pedagogical writing, and of stunning arrangements of film music, orchestral themes, pop songs, folk tunes, jazz standards, themes from opera and ballet, songs from musical theatre, as well as classic tv themes. This innovative series matches the Australian Music Examination Board Piano For Leisure syllabus, and as such the music in these volumes is at least half a grade more difficult than the corresponding grade in the “classical” Getting to series. Currently available from Preliminary through to Grade 3 standard.
In addition, there are three teacher guides available, for Preliminary, Grade 1 and Grade 2. These teacher guides include ideas for improvisation, collaborative performance, analysis games, and a few cheeky teacher accompaniments.
Available only through retailers in Australia and New Zealand.
The P Plate Piano series
This three-volume series was commissioned by the Australian Music Examination Board to bridge the musical experiences of beginners from the end of the first method book through to Preliminary standard. The series features contemporary pedagogical composition from around the world, as well as a number of pieces I composed especially for this series (including some duets). But P Plate Piano is more than just a repertoire collection – activities developing keyboard musicianship and creative engagement are included throughout, and the learning emphasis is squarely placed on exploration and discovery.
These three books are supported by non-graded assessments provided by the Australian Music Examination Board, where students present any three pieces from their level, and then have a conversation with the examiner about their opinions and experiences – no right or wrong questions are allowed!
Explore more about this series at the dedicated P Plate Piano website.
Available only through retailers in Australia.
In theory, this series is available in New Zealand, but, sadly for my Kiwi colleagues, it is rarely kept in stock.
Trinity Repertoire Collection
Seven original pieces were commissioned for inclusion in the Creepy Crawlies!, Bewitched!, and Dinosaurs! collections published by Faber Music, which feature the music of four or five other composers as well. These are some of my favourite compositions, just quietly, because they’re a little more unusual.
Available world-wide.
Various Repertoire Collections
My music has also been included in various repertoire collections published in the UK, Europe and North America, starting with the various examination board publications which have featured my music since 2001 and including a number of “best of” collections.
Most of these collections are available world-wide.
Elissa Milne 