Fauré Sicilienne - Easy Piano Arrangement

Gabriel Fauré: Sicilienne, Op. 78

PDF Sheet music, piano solo
Simple Solutions piano arrangement by Henrik Kilhamn

Approximate Grade: 5
Scale 1 - 8: Beginner - Advanced

Key: G minor, same as original

A Sicilienne is an old dance form believed to have originated from Sicily in Italy. It’s in 6/8 time and features the dotted triplet as a foundational rhythm. Fauré started to write his Sicilienne, which would become the most famous example of the genre, for cello and piano, and arranged it for orchestra too. It has a very pleasant melody that stretches over quite a large range – adventures high on the cello strings here translates to our typical piano arpeggio movements over the thumb. The LH does not play the original piano accompaniment texture that is ripe with 16th notes, rather it’s content to only outline the harmony while still fulfilling the most important rhythmical aspects of the music. There is a lot of repetition of material; originally it’s all written out but I have used repeat signs and the Dal Segno to Coda markings to better show how the form is interconnected.

This arrangement is included in Simple Solutions Volume 4 - An Orchestral Orchard (Intermediate ~ Grade 4-5)

Also, check out:
Simple Solutions Volume 1 (Elementary ~ Grade 3)
Simple Solutions Volume 2 (Intermediate ~ Grade 5)
Simple Solutions Volume 3: Nights & Dreams (Intermediate ~ Grade 5)

ABOUT SIMPLE SOLUTIONS

The Simple Solutions series came from the idea that even not-professionally trained pianists should be able to enjoy the feeling of playing great music from the piano repertoire with their own hands. This is possible with some clever rearranging of the musical material: reducing the range of independent voices and jumps while preserving core ideas of melody and rhythm. In this easier setting, you will instead have enough time on your hands (literally!) to bring the music to life and care about those aspect that often otherwise come second: phrasing, articulation, dynamics, and balance. This will help you develop your over-all musicality, which will be of great value in all other pieces as well.

In the end, if you feel ready for a challenge and want to go forward with proper piano studies that requires years of practice – you can always move on to more advanced arrangements or original piano compositions. They will always be there. In the meantime, these arrangements will bring you close to the same enjoyment as the full versions, because all musical ideas are carefully conserved.

They are just a little bit easier.