RE MI FA SO LA

20 Five-note-melodies for Beginners

For Alto Recorder and Piano.

1. Lament
2. Balloon
3. Winter has arrived
4. No place to stay
5. Before the celebration
6. The sad news
7. The new morning
8. The stubborn friend
9. Will you be the one that I love?
10. Caught in thoughts
12. Last try
12. Almost!
13. The Decision
14. Faint Moonlight
15. Birthday Pancakes
16. Before the Battle
17. Temptation
18. The Lonely Path
19. Christmas Waltz
20. All will be fine

In March 2024, recorder teacher Elisabeth Neuser from Ulm asked me for simple pieces for her pupils. She was thinking of pieces with a melody consisting of just five notes: g - a - b - c - d. Pieces for real beginners.

The idea inspired me, and over the next three weeks, I devoted myself solely to this project, writing a total of 70 pieces of this kind. I tried to compose the most interesting melodies possible with just five notes, in the style of Chopin and Debussy, African and Polish, Spanish and medieval, pop, swing, and Viennese waltz. I have also kept the piano accompaniments as easy as possible. I had in mind that a seven-year-old recorder beginner could be accompanied by her ten-year-old sister.

This is now the third edition! This time with two variations: pieces are for alto recorder and in the minor key, so there are twenty pieces with the notes C – D – E flat – F – G!

Kirsten Christmann wrote about the first two editions in the WINDKANAL:

"At the suggestion of Elisabeth Neuser, who wanted “really simple” pieces in the five-note range (G1 - D2) for her beginner recorder students, Sören Sieg composed a total of 70 pieces for soprano recorder and piano, 40 of which he published in two collections. What makes these imaginative character pieces so special is their stylistic diversity, which provides a welcome contrast to the often somewhat monotonous and musically unchallenging literature for beginners. In addition to echoes of Chopin and Debussy, there are Polish, Spanish, and (of course) African pieces, some swing, pop, and Viennese waltzes—an “ear opener” far removed from clichés and without being limited to the same old children's songs and pop sounds that so often dominate and shape playing and listening habits in early instrumental lessons due to a lack of interesting literary alternatives. The piano accompaniments also play an important role here, as they are varied yet easy to play. Rhythmically, some compositions are a little more complex, but most focus on a rhythmic pattern that is easy to remember and can be applied to the entire piece. The pieces can be used as motivating exercises for tone production and rhythmic confidence for more advanced students who are venturing their first attempts at playing the tenor recorder. Highly recommended as a supplement and enrichment for beginner lessons!"

I would like to thank Julia Nowakowska, who performed almost all of these pieces with me in the version for violin and piano at my last eight house concerts! I hope you enjoy this collection as much as I enjoyed composing it.