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- Where to Buy RCM Level 1 Piano Repertoire Book
- Pre-requisite Skills for RCM Level 1 Piano Repertoire
- New Skills and Concepts You'll Work On in RCM Level 1 Piano Repertoire
- Categories in RCM's Level 1 Piano Repertoire Book
- Song List (RCM Level 1 Piano Repertoire Book)
- Female Composers Featured in RCM Level 2 Piano Repertoire
- Why You Should Listen to Performances When Practicing Piano
- Performances of RCM Level 1 Piano Repertoire List A Pieces: Baroque and Classical Repertoire
- Minuet in C Major, op. 38, no. 4 – Johann Wilhelm Hassler
- Bourrée in D Minor – Christoph Graupner
- Burlesque in G Major – Anonymous
- Andante in G Minor – Georg Philipp Telemann
- German Dance in D Major, Hob. IX:22, no. 2 – Franz Joseph Haydn
- Gavotte in G Major – Thomas F. Dunhill
- Minuet in D Major – Leopold Mozart
- Minuet in D Minor – Anonymous
- High Spirits – Daniel Gottlob Turk
- Ukrainian Folk Song, op. 107, no. 3 – Ludwig van Beethoven
- Performances of RCM Level 1 Piano Repertoire List B Pieces: Romantic, 20th-, and 21st-century Repertoire
- Early One Morning – Traditional English song, arr. Frederick Silvester
- The Swiss Cuckoo – Traditional, arr. Boris Berlin
- Sweet Jasmine – Dennis Alexander
- Niimi Aandeg (Crow Dances) – Barbara Assiginaak
- This Guy's Disguised – Bradley Sowash
- Lunar Eclipse – Nancy Faber and Randall Faber
- March of the Terrible Trolls – Linda Niamath
- Mist – Clifford Poole
- Clear Mountain Sky – Mike Springer
- Angelfish – Anne Crosby Gaudet
- A Simple Waltz – John Burge
- Amber Moon – Kevin Olson
- Waltz, op. 39, no. 13 – Dmitri Kabalevsky
- Song of the Dark Woods – Elie Siegmeister
- Reminiscence – Edwin McLean
- Uptown News – Tom Gerou
- Performances of RCM Level 1 Piano Repertoire List C Pieces: Inventions
- Cranky Cat – Teresa Richert
- Mary Had a Little Lamb – English nursery rhyme, arr. Dianne Goolkasian Rahbee
- Young Ludwig Exploring – Forrest Kinney
- The Playful Parrot – Gary K. Thomas
- The Snake – Renée Christopher
- Invention on a Latvian Folk Tune – George Juris Kenins
- Conversation No. 3 – Béla Bartok
- Teapot Invention – Andrew Markow
- Follow My Leader – Felix Swinstead
- Final Thoughts
- Related Posts
Where to Buy RCM Level 1 Piano Repertoire Book
The Royal Conservatory of Music's Level 1 Piano Repertoire book (Celebration Series, Sixth Edition) is available on Amazon.
Pre-requisite Skills for RCM Level 1 Piano Repertoire
Even though it's called “Level 1,” this level will be far too difficult for a brand new piano learner.
If you're just starting out, make sure you start with a method book series. Method books are designed to introduce the very basics of piano, like reading music and how to sit properly at the piano.
Once you've completed a method book series… you're probably still not ready for RCM Level 1. (Sorry!)
RCM's Preparatory A and Preparatory B books will help you build up the additional skills you'll need in order to be ready for Level 1.
You know you're ready for RCM's Level 1 Piano Repertoire if you're comfortable with the following:
- time signatures: 2/4, 3/4, 4/4, 6/8
- 8th notes
- playing hands together
- key signatures
- moving hands out of position
- harmonic intervals (2-note chords)
- chords
- playing pieces a full page long
New Skills and Concepts You'll Work On in RCM Level 1 Piano Repertoire
- 16th notes
- lots of big jumps within a piece of music (but will be a repeated pattern, not a variety of different big jumps)
- expression of interpretive elements (ex: being able to play a piece in a way that makes it sound spooky)
- pieces with up to 2 pages of unique material (could be as long as 3 pages if there is some repeated material in the piece)
Categories in RCM's Level 1 Piano Repertoire Book
The RCM Level 1 Piano Repertoire book is divided into 3 categories:
- List A: Baroque and Classical Repertoire
- List B: Romantic, 20th-, and 21st-century Repertoire
- List C: Inventions
If you're working towards an RCM examination, be aware that the pieces included in the book are not the only approved pieces. Review the RCM Piano Syllabus 2022 for a complete list of all Level 1 pieces.
You'll also need to work on some pieces from RCM Level 1 Piano Etudes in preparation for your RCM examination.
Song List (RCM Level 1 Piano Repertoire Book)
List A: Baroque and Classical Repertoire
- Minuet in C Major, op. 38, no. 4 – Johann Wilhelm Hassler
- Bourrée in D Minor – Christoph Graupner
- Burlesque in G Major – Anonymous
- Andante in G Minor – Georg Philipp Telemann
- German Dance in D Major, Hob. IX:22, no. 2 – Franz Joseph Haydn
- Gavotte in G Major – Thomas F. Dunhill
- Minuet in D Major – Leopold Mozart
- Minuet in D Minor – Anonymous
- High Spirits – Daniel Gottlob Turk
- Ukrainian Folk Song, op. 107, no. 3 – Ludwig van Beethoven
List B: Romantic, 20th-, and 21st-century Repertoire
- Early One Morning – Traditional English song, arr. Frederick Silvester
- The Swiss Cuckoo – Traditional, arr. Boris Berlin
- Sweet Jasmine – Dennis Alexander
- Niimi Aandeg (Crow Dances) – Barbara Assiginaak
- This Guy's Disguised – Bradley Sowash
- Lunar Eclipse – Nancy Faber and Randall Faber
- March of the Terrible Trolls – Linda Niamath
- Mist – Clifford Poole
- Clear Mountain Sky – Mike Springer
- Angelfish – Anne Crosby Gaudet
- A Simple Waltz – John Burge
- Amber Moon – Kevin Olson
- Waltz, op. 39, no. 13 – Dmitri Kabalevsky
- Song of the Dark Woods – Elie Siegmeister
- Reminiscence – Edwin McLean
- Uptown News – Tom Gerou
List C: Inventions
- Cranky Cat – Teresa Richert
- Mary Had a Little Lamb – English nursery rhyme, arr. Dianne Goolkasian Rahbee
- Young Ludwig Exploring – Forrest Kinney
- The Playful Parrot – Gary K. Thomas
- The Snake – Renée Christopher
- Invention on a Latvian Folk Tune – George Juris Kenins
- Conversation No. 3 – Béla Bartok
- Teapot Invention – Andrew Markow
- Follow My Leader – Felix Swinstead
Female Composers Featured in RCM Level 2 Piano Repertoire
- Barbara Assiginaak
- Nancy Faber
- Linda Niamath
- Anne Crosby Gaudet
- Teresa Richert
- Dianne Goolkasian Rahbee
Why You Should Listen to Performances When Practicing Piano
Performances of RCM Level 1 Piano Repertoire List A Pieces: Baroque and Classical Repertoire
Minuet in C Major, op. 38, no. 4 – Johann Wilhelm Hassler
Bourrée in D Minor – Christoph Graupner
Burlesque in G Major – Anonymous
Andante in G Minor – Georg Philipp Telemann
German Dance in D Major, Hob. IX:22, no. 2 – Franz Joseph Haydn
Gavotte in G Major – Thomas F. Dunhill
Minuet in D Major – Leopold Mozart
Minuet in D Minor – Anonymous
High Spirits – Daniel Gottlob Turk
Ukrainian Folk Song, op. 107, no. 3 – Ludwig van Beethoven
Performances of RCM Level 1 Piano Repertoire List B Pieces: Romantic, 20th-, and 21st-century Repertoire
Early One Morning – Traditional English song, arr. Frederick Silvester
The Swiss Cuckoo – Traditional, arr. Boris Berlin
Sweet Jasmine – Dennis Alexander
Niimi Aandeg (Crow Dances) – Barbara Assiginaak
This Guy's Disguised – Bradley Sowash
Lunar Eclipse – Nancy Faber and Randall Faber
March of the Terrible Trolls – Linda Niamath
Mist – Clifford Poole
Clear Mountain Sky – Mike Springer
Angelfish – Anne Crosby Gaudet
A Simple Waltz – John Burge
Amber Moon – Kevin Olson
Waltz, op. 39, no. 13 – Dmitri Kabalevsky
Song of the Dark Woods – Elie Siegmeister
Reminiscence – Edwin McLean
Uptown News – Tom Gerou
Performances of RCM Level 1 Piano Repertoire List C Pieces: Inventions
Cranky Cat – Teresa Richert
Mary Had a Little Lamb – English nursery rhyme, arr. Dianne Goolkasian Rahbee
Young Ludwig Exploring – Forrest Kinney
The Playful Parrot – Gary K. Thomas
The Snake – Renée Christopher
Invention on a Latvian Folk Tune – George Juris Kenins
Conversation No. 3 – Béla Bartok
Teapot Invention – Andrew Markow
Follow My Leader – Felix Swinstead
Final Thoughts
If you're interested in learning the pieces above, you can find The Royal Conservatory of Music's Level 1 Piano Repertoire book (Celebration Series, Sixth Edition) on Amazon.
Related Posts
- RCM Preparatory A Piano Repertoire, Celebration Series Sixth Edition [Overview]
- RCM Preparatory B Piano Repertoire, Celebration Series Sixth Edition [Overview]
- RCM Level 1 Piano Etudes, Celebration Series Sixth Edition [Overview]
- RCM Level 2 Piano Repertoire, Celebration Series Sixth Edition [Overview]