Contents

Performance notes 2

Dunhill Sheep on the Downs 5

Bart6k lmitation and Inversion (no.23 from Mikrokosmos vol. 1) 6

Nottingham/Human You and Mex B

Walshaw Train Ride 10

Yandell Square Dance . .11

Davey Autumn Waltz lz

Loeff ler/Siegler arr Misri Pok6mon Theme IJ

Trad. arr Hussey Korobeiniki 14

1-
Manderson/Ba rnes/Koh n/ Kel leher/ Read All About lt, Pt, lll (Emeli Sand6) tf
James/San d6 arr. Sainio
4a
Vicari Dandy Lion to

Ellington/Strayhorn arr Sheriff Satin Doll 17

Rollins arr Treweek St Thomas 18

Exercises 19

x The duet part in 'You and Me' may be performed in the exam by a teachel another adult or another student, or
may be pre-recorded.
Metronome markings are given as a useful guide and are not def initive. Repeats of more than a few bars should be
omitted in the exam unless otherwise instructed, as indicated in this book. All da capo and dalseEtno instructions
should be observed.

Please refer to the Piano Syllabus from 2023 for details on all sections of the exam.
Check trinitycollege.com/piano to make sure you are using the current version.

Sight reading examples can be found in Sighf Readinq Piano: lnrtial-Grade 2 (ICLO2O482)
Practice aural tests can be found in Aural Iesfs book 1 (lnitial-Grade 5) from 2017 (ICL 015808)
A range of resources to support teaching and learning is available at trinitycollege.com/piano-resources
For guidance on improvisation and musical knowledge, please visit trinitycollege.com/supporting-tests or refer to the syllabus

The repertoire in this publication can be used for either Trinity's face-to-face or digital grades.
Please check trinitycollege.com/dgd for more details.
TRINITY
COLLEGE LONDON PRESS

INITIAL

12 Pieces Plus Exercises for

Trinity College London Exams
from 2023

Published by
Trinity College London Press Ltd
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Copyright @ 2023 Trinity College London Press Ltd

First impression, September 2023

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 Performance notes
Sheep on the Downs / Dunhill Page 5 See if you can spot these cool tricks happening in this charm-
ing piece. Other pieces you might want to enjoy exploring that
Romantic use the same techniques are : 'Musette' from Anna Magdalena
Unison and contrary-motion passages Notebook bv Johann Sebastian Bach or'Old MacDonald Had a
Dynamic contrast Canon' bv various composers, (YC)
Dunhill was an English Romantic pianist and composer who
studied composition with Stanford, and who specialised in You and Me / Nottingham/Human Page 8
performing the works of his British contemporaries.
Fun duet with technical basis
This piece invites you to look over the rolling, grassy Downs, Projection of melody/accompanying texture
taking in the panoramic view of nature, and of the sheep Simple syncopation
which are grazing there. The long smooth slurs in this music
could represent the fact that on a clear day, you can see for This was conceived with the aim of combining a strict sense of
pulse, control of rhythm (including syncopation), singing line,
miles and miles around!The sheep seem happy and content in
this bright, major key piece. They're not moving very quickly, contrast in articulation and dvnamic, and sensitive accompa-
just chewing the cud and enjoying the view. nying skills.

At the start, your hands play together in unison, so you can The words provide a helpful tool to enable the rhythms to be
balance them nicely with one another. The next two bars go learned away f rom the keyboard, They also ref lect exactly
into contrary motion, where the music goes in different direc- what is happening in the music at the time. A mixture of clap-
ping and speaking (with and without a metronome), extending
tions, and both hands are still important. In bar 5, however, the
left hand starts to take on a more supporting/accompanying into each hand tapping its own rhythm, can set up a confident
role, so you may like to make sure it doesn't sound too loud rhythmic approach before learning the notes.
against the right hand's tune. The f irst phrase requires projection of tone with f irm f ingers
Whilst the music in the second half is quite similar to the and a loose wrist; the second phrase needs strong listening
first, the piano dynamic gives you a chance to show that you skills and a sense of pulse to place the notes accurately, with
can create a completely different sound on the piano, Maybe light sfaccafo touch and a sense of humour. The third phrase
we've moved further away, and the sheep are even further in has a sudden change of dynamic that will need plenty of
the distance? (DB) practice together to judge the balance; the fourth phrase is
a celebration of the rewards that can be had playing togeth-
er. After all, pianists do spend a lot of time on their own and
lmitation and Inversion (no. 23 from Mikrokosrnos vol.l) I duets ARE great fun!
Bart6k Page 6
After all the hard work, singing along will enable the players to
2Oth centurv celebrate their instrument and their partnership. (LN)
' Two voices
lmitation and inversion
Train Ride / Walshaw Page 10
B6la Bart6k was a composer and pianist f rom Hungary. Bart6k
was special because he mixed traditional folk music with Contemporary character piece
classical, making his music sound exciting and different. He Sta ccato / eqafolaccents
I

composed for large orchestras, small groups of musicians, and Sharing the melody between the hands
for the piano. Some of his famous works include Concerto for
This is about a journey. How does it start? What happens on
Orchestra and Mikrokosmos, This piece is called 'lmitation and
the way? Where are we going?
Inversion' and these are two music techniques that composers
love to use as they add a special twist to a piece. First of all, the driver of the train has to 'whistle off ' (Toot
Toot!), which means they will pull the lever for the whistle in a
lmitation is like playing a game of musical copycat! lt's a bit steam train, or press the button for the air horn in a modern
like when you repeat what someone has just said, but with
train, to let everyone know the train is leaving the station.
music. This makes the different voices sound like they're
Whichever image we choose, the player needs to make a
talking to each othen and it also makes the piece feel more
really good accent, getting right to the bottom of the keys, to
exciting and connected. make evervone take notice.
Inversion is when a musical idea gets turned upside down,
Once the train sets off, the hands take turns to play the qua-
just like f lipping a picture! lmagine if you drew a picture of a
ver couplets, which need a relaxed down/up approach in the
smiley face and then f lipped it over, it would look like a frowny wrist. They also play sfaccafo quavers together, wrists stay-
face, that's the inversion. In music, when a melody goes up,
ing loose. A strong pulse is needed so that the train trundles
inversion makes it go down, and when it goes down, inversion along smoothly and the crotchet rests provide a clear ending
makes it go up.
to each phrase. Watch out for the dynamic differences along
the way. What happe^s'- c3rs 15 and 16 may be something
exciting on the journey. ls something blocking the line? How- Pok6mon Theme / Loeff ler/Siegler arr Misri Page 13
ever it seems that the train gets to its destination safely.
Game/animation music
You might like to try a swing rhythm for the quavers as a fun Dynamics
way to practise this piece. How does this change the feel of Solid pulse
the music? (LN)
Pok6mon was f irst introduced as computer game in Japan in
the mid 1990s and become a huge international phenome-
Square Dance / Yandell Page 11
non. This piece of music is the theme song f rom the animated
New commission Pokdmon television series.
Tune switching between the hands
The starting dynamic is piano (soft) however the underlying
Exciting contrasts pulse should be quite solid with a sense of intrigue and antic-
Naomi Yandell is a teacher and composer who is based in ipation; the song was originally performed with a driving rock
Cambridge, U.K. This is a brand new piece that she has written beat.
for this Trinity Piano syllabus.
The opening bars are repeated with a slightly stronger
A sguare dance is a type of traditional dance for four couples, mezzo forfe dynamic (moderately loud) with a crescendo into
so eight people in total. This is a f un piece that plays on the forfe (loud) and an exciting climax at the end.
idea of a couple dancing - look how the tune starts off in the
The final bar ends on the very last quaver; this may seem a
left hand but passes almost immediately over to the right little challenging at f irst, but a tip here is to imagine how this
hand; you can almost imagine your hands are a pair of danc-
would be sung for a strong, punchy ending - the last three
ers as you play. Dancing a square dance is also an energetic quavers are simply the word Po-k6-mon! (MR)
activity, and there are lots of exciting dynamic contrasts to
explore here between forfe and piano.
Korobeiniki / Trad. arr. Hussev Page 14
Articulation is really important in this piece too - make sure
that you bring out the difference between the sfaccafo and Folk song
legato notes throughout. Enjoy playing the dramatic f inal line Hands playing together
where the music slows down and gets quieter; almost coming Dvnamics
to a complete halt, before a f inal burst of loud energy con-
'Korobeiniki'(translation: 'The Pedlars') is a Russian folk song
cludes the dancel
from the 19th century which tells the story of a young man
See if you can f ind a video of a square dance online, here you meeting a young woman. lt found a new global audience r,,,hsir
should see lots of people having fun, swapping hands, chang- it was adapted for the Nintendo Game BoV version of the
Ing places and directions - much like the phrases of this piece. game Iefris in'1989.
(WV)
The right and left hands answer each other with their mei-
odies.ln the first eight bars, when one hand plays the r-:t-
Autumn Waltz lDavev Page 12 ody the other hand plays long notes. lt will be importart ::
consider the balance between these parts:you can shc',,, ,', :-
Elegant dance
Tuneful
your playing where the musical interest is. Then the t,,,,c ^:-::
play similar rhythms in the last four bars. This musical 'c: ^ ,:--
Lilting fl time
sation'which results in two parts moving as one acts ou:::e
The warmth in this piece comes f rom both the fl dance feel folk-tale of the peddler and the young girl meeting, speak:n;
and the evocation of Autumn. Although written by a contem- and agreeing.
porary composel the genre of pianists playing waltzes and
There are three distinct dynamic levels in the piece: the mezz:
minuets is significant, from Bach to Chopin to modern day,
forte at the beginning, then piano at bar 5 followed by bar
and this piece is a perfect introduction to such works.
9'sforte. Be sure to bring these out, as it will help to give the
Mastering playing in ? time is helped by the tuneful line of piece more character and structure for the listener. (GD)
this piece, where the phrases often extend over the bar lines.
Counting a couple of bars of three, firm crotchets before Vou Read All About lt, Pt. lll (Emeli Sand6) / Manderson/Barnesr'
start will help to regulate the tempo and practising hands Kohn/ Kelleher/ James/Sand6 arr. Sainio Page 15
separately with the metronome will also cement achieving a
smooth f low. Pop
Dynamic changes
Moving to a new hand position at the end of bar 8 and man- Rif.
aging the B f lats and C sharp in the following bars should be
carefully managed; it is always worth starting your practice Taken from her debut album Our Version of fvenfs, Emeli
f rom half way through a piece to ensure that the ending is as Sande's'Read AllAbout lt, Pt.lll'was performed at the clos nq
conf ident and well learnt as the beginning. ceremony of the London Olympics in2012 and achieved nurn-
ber one placing in the UK singles chart. Sande's lyrics are f u
Explore the genre of the waltz to discover the amazing reper- of defiance, determination, and a rallying cry for change.
toire that awaits you on your piano journey! lt would be well
worth your time to delve into recordings of Strauss, Chopin
and Tchaikovskv. (SL)
This piece sounds best performed with a consistent pulse This music was written for Ellington's big band with the inten-
without speeding up or slowing down (apart f rom the marked tion of getting people dancing! lt sounds best when performed
rif. at the end). There should be a strong sense of groove, with a consistent pulse without speeding up or slowing down.
paying attention to the articulation and rests in the melody Most importantly, it wants to swing!
line. For a piece to groove, you might like to imagine people
dancing to it! The marking 'jaunty swing' is achieved by making the f irst
note of each quaver pair slightly longer than the second. You
The piece begins at a moderately soft dynamic, but it's possi- can use scat-like sounds, such as'doo-bee'to get a sense of
ble to shape the melody line giving some notes more weight how to play these notes, but the best solution is to listen to
than others. lt is a good idea to try to sing the melody out loud recordings of jazz f rom this era and pay close attention to how
to really understand the shape of the phrases, and to work out the performers make it swing.
the best way to bring it to life. The crescendo and diminuendo
markings f rom bar 8 to the end are important in bringing the In addition to the swing feel, the syncopation in this music is
music to life. integral to the sound of jazz. The most obvious example being
the quaver rest at the start of bars 2,4 and elsewhere in this
In bars 13 and 14, the melody line is passed f rom the right piece. Similarly, the 'pushed' note leading into bar 15. The best
hand to the left. lt's a good idea to have your left hand in way to play these syncopated rhythms is to make sure you
position early for this moment. The final phrase sounds best count as you play. lt is a good idea to keep counting for the
performed legato, with the df. preparing the listener for the f inal two bars so that the held notes last their f ull length. You

end of the piece. You could use substitute f ingering here to might like to think of the f inal note being the soft-plucked note
achieve a smooth oerformance of the melodic line. of the double bass!

An excellent way to develop your understanding of how music There are many amazing recordings of the Duke Ellington big
works, is to transcribe melodies like this by ear and then try to band to listen to in order to develop your learning and under-
play them at the keyboard. (PE) standing in this area. lt's also worth listening to his trio and
solo recordings to really hear Duke the pianist. (PE)
Dandy Lion / Vicari Page 16
St Thomas / Rollins arr. Treweek Page 18
Jazzy
Broken chords Latin jazz
Rhythmic Rhvthmic
Off-beat melodv
'Dandy Lion' is written by the British composer and jazz pia-
nist Andrea Vicari. Much of her output is composed specifical- St Thomas is an island in the Caribbean. lt was where the com-
ly for education in a wide variety of genres. poser Sonny Rollins was born and the music has an infectious,
lively nature with a fun calypso groove.
The music has a f loaty nature with repetitive broken chord
patterns with only the odd change of harmony. The title Both hands have ihvthms that land on the off-beats and this
'Dandy Lion' conjures up the image of a weed in its last stages, gives the music identity and character. The calypso is a style
when tiny seeds are ready to be distributed in the wind. The of music that originated in the Caribbean and is often sung
music portrays this effectively with phrases that rise and fall. and danced to. By keeping a steady tempo, putting in the
Dynamics.in bars 6&7 and later in bars 15&16 help character- accents and bringing out the melody in the right hand, you will
ise the music and make it expressive. This piece sounds best be able to recreate this celebratory feeling. Using a metro-
when played with a /egafo (smooth) touch and bouncing on nome or a drum pattern would be a fun way to practise!
the repeated left-hand note in bar 7 will give the piece a light
feel. The music has two main sections with a 4-bar intro. There are
rhythmic challenges in this piece and you might f irst like to try
Although the hand positions are mainly centred around C in tapping out the rhythms like a drumming exercise.
both hands, the left hand needs a more flexible approach with
some stretching between f ingers. The F# in the left hand in The notes in the second part of the tune (from bar 13) can be
bars 5 and 6 is almost repeated in bars 13 and 14 but don't be slightly tricky as the music initially moves in contrary motion
(opposite directions) and then in a similar direction. The final
caught out when the note changes to Fl in bar 14. (AV)
bar is effective if the hands 'bounce' on beat 1 and then drop
into beat 2 making sure to press a little harder on the last
Satin Doll / Ellington/Strayhorn ar. Sheriff Page 17 accented note.

Have a listen to the original track 'St Thomas' by Sonny Rollins

Swing feel on his album Saxophone Colossus. (AV)
Syncopation
Authors:
Duke Ellington was a prolific composer and band leader
between the vears 1923 until his death in1974. He had a close Daniel Beach (DB) Sara Leport (SL)
professional relationship with Billy Strayhorn, who was an Yulia Chaplina (YC) Linda Nottingham (LN)
exceptionally gifted pianist and composer who shunned the Gregory Drott (GD) Matthew Regan (MR)
spotlight. Paul tdis (PE) William Vann (WV)
John Human (JF Ardrea Vicari (AV)
A
 Sheep on the Downs
Thomas Dunhill
1877-1946

Moderato J = 80

Copyright A2023 Trinity College London press Ltd

 lmitation and Inversion
no. 23 f rom Mikrokosmos vol. I
B6la Bart6k
1881-1945

Ben legato J: lz
I

tu -
,!f

10

a O

,!f
a

6 Copvril* A2oZ3 Trinity College London Press Ltd

lBlank page to facilitate page turnsl
 You and Me
(duet part)
Linda Nottingham & John Human

Agreeably J= rOt

Sing it out don't be shy- or mo - desf

stm.

ryp PP
-

Copyright @ 2023 Trinity College London Press Ltd

 You and Me
(candidate's part)
Linda Nottingham & John Human

Agreeably .J = 108
5_
-t/ttl
-\
a)
PEV tn ilme, have some fun and
,!f don't DC late syn - co-pate
A

\t

a) you aind me, soff in riqht

f me and you
p
left hand too-
h

€> +

l3 t4
Dt :>

u we can pnY as one (happily having) GREAT FUN!

h
f

Copyright @ 2023 Trinity College London Press Ltd

 Train Ride
Gillian Walshaw
b.1980

Moderato J = S+-tg
5
4 I

a a
"tr A
>

1
1'Toot Toot!')

a a)
"tr A t
I

L ('r"", Beep!')

l7

-\t
a
p f
>

10 Copyright @ 2023 Trinity College London Press Ltd

 Sguare Dance
NaomiYandell
b.1961

Allegretto J = 84
I

f "-/ -J

13

a7--J
f r]-.

17
rit. a tempo
I A

a)

A
f
T
>

Copyright g Naomi Yandell 2023

 Autumn Waltz
Sedna Davey

Moderato J = rOo

12 Copyright A 2023 Trinity College London Press Ltd

 Pok6mon Theme
Tamara Loeff ler & John Siegler
released 1998
arr Ravina Misri
Allegro moderato ):120
42

' i+ '\-,*
p

5A 4

a) -\-,t t+

A
3

a)

,!f
-+ -\-,# t

I3s 4
j{

a -\-,- -+

>

Theme to the English adapted anime series POKEMON. Copyright e 1999 Pikadu fA.dc B
All Rights Administered by BMG Rights Management (US) LLC. All Rights Reserred-
 Korobeiniki
Trad. Russian
arr Chris Hussey

Steadily ) = 90-94
13

a)

"!f

a)
p

14 Copyright @2023 Trinity College London Press

 Read All About lt, Pt. lll
(Emeli Sand6)
Stephen Manderson, Tom Barnes, Ben Kohn,
Peter Kellehel lain James, Adele Sand6
released 2O'12
arr Mari Sainio
Slow ballad .l= 98
2

a +J '.J t--- -€-J \-.- - +J

"J

JZ I

a) 1J -\-,- -\t +J

Q)v + - \- -7+- \-.--- -.-_t

"!f

13
rit.-

a) -{_.+ + {-,* + ++r-+

 Dandy Lion
Andrea Vicari
b.1965

Play with a light and airy feel J = 100

a) + -'--t + U

+- - + J -t-'- + +- - +

13

,-+-v-+ +--+ o €>

p
/-

Copyright @2023 Andrea Vicari. All rights reserved. Reproduced by permission.

 Satin Doll
Duke Ellington & Billy Strayhorn
released 1953
r3- arr Naadia Sheriff
Jauntyswing ):tzo JJ=J .f
3t

t2)

,!f
ea; ? *{i

_o_ bo- e i=
+)

9^ 3 2

-
a) .v

, 7'.
Ee L+ o- + -i, .+ ? #,*? L ta c'l^ a

l2
"A 2

p
C! e e I
 St Thomas
Sonny Rollins
released 1956
arr James Treweek
Brightly J= ros-rzo
4
2

-
,!f --

1B Copyright O 1963 Prestige Music c/o Concord Music publishing

Copyright Renewed. All Rights Reserved. Used by permission
Reprinted by Permission of Hal Leonard Europe Ltd.
 tra
EXercrses
Candidates may select f rom the exercises below, or f rom the 2O2l books (labelled la, lb etc), or a mixture of the two.
Please refer to the svllabus for further information.

lc. SmOOth CustOmgr - tone, batance and voicing

Andante J = 66
5

p - -
+?
2

ld. BOUnCy CaStlg - tone, batance and voicing

Allegretto J :88
)

Q)?ee dr

"!f

2c. First You Then Me - co-ordination

Andante .l= 69
5

ryp

Copyright @?O23 Trinity College London Press Ltd 19

2d. Perfect PartneFS - co-ordinarion
Allegretto J = 76

3C. Rat-a-tat-tat! - finger & wrist strength and ftexibitity

Allegretto ) = 104
I I

lUt++g a2a2a, € +
,!f f

3d. The Old CaStle - finser & wrist strensth and ftexibitity
Maestoso J = 76

tul \\ _-/'
f I
p

tu Copyright @ 2023 Trinity College London Press Ltd

Trinity's 2021 Piano books are valid for use in exams indefinitely
alongside the 2023 books, providing the largest selection of repertoire
yet for candidates to choose from. Candidates can now play the pieces
they love for as long as they wish.
Extended Edition featuring 21 pieces, performance notes, scales,
arpeggios, and downloadable demo audio.
Standard Edition featuring 12 pieces and performance notes.

Covering Initial-Grade 2, Grades 3-5, and Grades 6-8. This progressive method provides a carefully-Baced
approach to the sight reading requirements of Trinity graded exams for Piano,
Including 10 lessons per grade, level-appropriate sight reading tips throughout, duets to build colf-idehce and
rhythmic fluency, and official Trinity specimen tests.

Designed to help the beginner student to read and write common ',
used musical symbols, providing a firm grounding in notation fro-
which to progress onto Trinity's Theory of Music Workbook Grace i

These ever-popular books contain all the requirements for Trin:,

Theory exams including information for teachers, hints f co
candidates, tips for learning to write music accurately and cle3r,',
information boxes to explain new concepts, and much rncre

Book 1 covering Initial-Grade 5 and Book 2 covering Grades 6-8. These

ebooks contain all you need to prepare for the aural tests for your
Tri nity exams (face-to-face).

Includes: information about the test pieces, what the examiner will
do, what each question is for, what candidates will be asked to do,
hints for candidates, Information for teachers, wide range of sample
tests, answer booklet with 'check yourself'sample answers, and
downloadable audio of practice examples.
TCL 031907
tsBN 978-1 -80490-308-7