Schumann: Monat Mai - Easy Piano Arrangement

Robert Schumann: "Im wunderschönen Monat Mai" From Dichterliebe, Op. 48 No. 1

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

Approximate Grade: 3
Scale 1 - 8: Beginner - Advanced

Key: Easy key G major + Original key A major included

Schumann’s Dichterliebe is a testament to the romantic archetype of a sensitive poet in love, and the very first song captures the sentiment perfectly in its ambivalent character of feeling hopeful and troubled at the same time. This arrangement also constitutes an interesting contribution to Schumann’s original in a very specific way: he designed a melodic line traded between the voice and piano part to form a whole together, but here we instead get to play that whole as one long, beautiful piano melody! It’s another effect than what Schumann intended of course, but that’s no obstacle for this series. Otherwise it’s all the same harmony and a slightly dispersed texture, and makes for a good piece to the early intermediate side because the hands play mostly one at a time and not so much simultaneously (in which case the Easy Key version in G major is recommended instead of the original version for high voice and A major).

This arrangement is included in Simple Solutions Volume 5 - A Burning Desire (Intermediate ~ Grade 3-5)

KEY SIGNATURE

The arrangement comes in two versions: both transposed to an easier key signature as well as kept in the original key. The "Easy Key" transposed version is recommended for the most comfortable Simple Solutions experience. It's easier to read notes without many sharps or flats, which frees up a lot of attention for all other musical aspects only at a cost if you have perfect pitch. The version in Original Key serves the purpose of constituting a stepping stone if you wish to continue with the original version or more advanced arrangements in some capacity later on.

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.