Bob.Mustacich.com

Instrumental Music and Short (and Shortened) Pieces for the Amateur Pianist

Pianists, are you wishing you

  • didn’t need to abandon long pieces to make time for learning new ones?
  • had shorter versions of great classics?
  • had more pieces memorized?

Are your pieces

  • too long for the general listener?
  • requiring too much practice time to maintain?

After years of experiencing the above, my practical solution is to play short pieces, and create shorter versions of long pieces I want to play. Now I can include many pieces in daily practice! As a result many are memorized, and I have several pieces in shorter forms that are more enjoyable to play.

My blogs to this site are my amateur performances of pieces I enjoy. I describe and detail the changes to any that I have shortened. I hope this is helpful to your pursuit of piano enjoyment.

  • Prokofiev, Sonata No. 7, Part 3, “Precipitato”

    This is an amateur performance of one of the more difficult pieces I’ve ever attempted. Prokofiev let his true feelings about Stalin spill into his three “War Sonatas,” nos. 6-8, written in 1942. The war sonatas are tumultuous, chromatic, and dissonant. The finale to no. 7, the “Precipitato,” is a relentless tocatta in septuple time.…

  • Java Calls

    Gamelan-inspired music from the electronic village

  • Green Heat

  • Visions Captives

    Piano composition for 4 hands with jazz influences. Sheet music free to download with link below.

  • Mojito

    Latin jazz composition with Peter Mustacich on saxophone

  • Goldberg Variations 1-3 + Aria

    The 30 Goldberg variations run long for most listeners, and are a large project to learn. So here’s a short version of just the first set of 3 plus the beautiful aria which is the basis for the variations.

  • La Soiree dans Granade

    A habanera (literally “music or dance of Havana”) by Claude Debussey written in his impressionistic style. A very beautiful and atmospheric piece.

  • Prokofiev’s Diabolical Suggestions

    First performed by Sergei Prokofiev in 1909, this piece earned him his place as a leftist and “bad boy of Russian music.” It is from his Four Pieces, opus. 4, no. 4. After a demonic start, it becomes sheer terror, and is now considered a modern masterpiece. Great fun to play.

  • Chopin Nocture C#min

    This piece is already short, so I didn’t make any changes to it. A favorite along with Cmin nocturne.

  • Eclipse in F#

    A piano composition with instrumentation inspired by recent eclipses. Piano sheet music is available for download below.