Forsyth Piano Music

06/08/2026

We're very proud to have done our bit to publish 25 for 25, a collection of wonderful piano miniatures celebrating 25 years of Chetham's International Piano Summer School, featuring compositions by many of the brilliant teachers, composers and performers who have graced the School over the years. More details in our post below!

27/03/2026

Please welcome our brand new piano series, First Steps Piano, by Irish composer Dr Darragh Gilleece.

Darragh is an Irish pianist, composer and educator teaching piano at Maynooth University and a regular examiner for the Royal Irish Academy of Music (RIAM). In First Steps Piano, books 1 & 2 he takes beginner to intermediate pianists on a musical journey - from breezy calypsos and toe-tapping tangos to wacky waltzes and cool jazz grooves.

With varied solos and duets abundant, every composition in this 30-piece collection adds something new to explore. Graded step-by-step, books 1 & 2 help the player to build confidence, while teaching tips offer handy hints along the way. Get ready to swing, stomp and sparkle - from The Metro Gnome's March to The See-Saw Sequence - and see if Mission Possible? really is possible!

"Gilleece’s music in these collections is traditional with a modern twist. Pieces are highly appealing in their tone, packed with valuable learning content, imaginative, and well-crafted."
Andrew Eales - Pianodao

"Composing for young learners is a particular skill that requires a musical approach to what are often technical and performative issues. The pieces in First Steps by Dr Darragh Gilleece certainly deliver this and more. From Book 1's opening bars through Bells of Doom and A Certain Je Ne Sais Quoi, to Book 2's Send out the Clowns, Stride of Pride and the finale, Winter Waltz, the music remains vibrant, interesting and full of humour and musicality." Andrew Higgins - Composer

Links to product listings and more info in the comments!

19/11/2024

Another must-read book from Forsyth Publishing!

We're super proud to be publishing this intimate collection of letters between leading British composer John McCabe and a wonderful selection correspondents from the world of classical and contemporary music.

The book has been lovingly compiled by McCabe's wife Monica, and is available from our web shop

🔗https://www.forsyths.co.uk/music/sheet-music/forsyth-publications/books-on-music/345547-so-written-to-after-times-john-mccabe-a-life-in-letters-book.html
📞0161 834 3281 ext 1
📧[email protected]
📍Forsyth Music Shop, 126 Deansgate, Manchester, M3 2GR

12/07/2024

Have you discovered the piano music of Sarah Baker (Bakertunes) yet? Her piece Shadows, from the album Night Time Impressions, is a welcome addition to the ABRSM's new Grade 3 Piano syllabus.

We recently published Sarah's first two piano albums, Night Time Impressions and Day Time Impressions. If you are looking for some fresh inspiration pianists around grade 3-4 ability, why not give them a try?

Provided to YouTube by Kartel LtdA:5 Shadows (from Night Time Impressions) · Robert ThompsonPiano Exam Pieces 2025 & 2026, ABRSM Grade 3℗ 2024 The Associated...

05/04/2023

We love stumbling across performances of works from our catalogue. Today we're enjoying Joe Laredo from www.musicforallsmsg.org performing Moonrise and Silent Hills from Dorothy Pilling's 'The Hills of Fairyland'. Have a listen at https://youtu.be/zkwmuygxnWQ, close your eyes and drift off into a wonderful magical fantasy world!

'A little night music’ series continues with a pair of pieces by Dorothy Pilling.Joe Laredo explains:"Pianists are blessed with by far the largest repertoire...

23/03/2023

We're delighted to introduce two new piano albums, Night Time Impressions and Day Time Impressions by Sarah Baker.

Sarah is Vocal Composer in Residence for Services at Education Music Services, an ABRSM examiner and a well known composer of songs and musicals for primary schools and massed-choral events.

All this experience has come together in the creation of these first published albums of piano pieces, inspired by the sights and sounds of the day and night around her childhood home in the Chiltern Hills.

They are suitable for for players of around grade 4-5 standard.

Night Time Impressions:

Dusk
Evening Mists
Twilight
Shadows
Dreams
Fox in the Night
Wings in the Dark
Nocturne
Dawn Chorus

Day Time Impressions:

Air Balloon!
Buzzards Circling
There’s a Cow in the Garden Eating the Flowers
Watching the World Go By
Autumn Skies
Friends
Snake in the Pond
Morning Commute
The Witch’s Cottage

19/01/2023

Lots of snow around Manchester today, which is the perfect excuse for this perfect snowflake of a piece from our Walter Carroll collection.

FIRST SNOW by Walter Carroll, from Tunes From Nature.
Listen here: https://youtu.be/iNVKeH5Natc
Recorded by Obrien Piano.

Enjoy!

Tunes from Nature sheet music album is available here: https://www.forsyths.co.uk/music/forsyth-publications/forsyth-publications-by-instrument/piano/12912-tunes-from-nature-carroll-walter-piano-sheet-music-9790570500390.html

14/06/2022

The new ABRSM syllabus is out, and we're very pleased to see several of Walter Carroll's imaginative pieces there for another cohort of young pianists to enjoy.

Raindrops, from Carroll's album The Countryside is on the Initial syllabus. Well done to all those who get it under their fingers, you are showing you are already a competent player!

You can buy the album on our web shop via this link: https://www.forsyths.co.uk/music/forsyth-publications/forsyth-publications-by-instrument/piano/12901-the-countryside-carroll-walter--9790570500284.html

We enjoy it when performances of pieces in our publishing catalogue are posted online. Just like this performance by obrienpiano. Why not have a go yourself!

16/04/2022

With Easter in mind, our sheet music team's recommendations this week are based on the theme of nature. Walter Carrol's pastoral compositions are a wonderful choice for any beginner pianist. He was the Beatrix Potter of learner piano music and his use of music, poetry, and art in his now-classic albums have appealed to successive generations of children. As a result, they are still widely used on exam syllabi and by teachers around the world nearly a century after they were written.

Tunes from Nature: Including pieces such as 'Laughter of Spring' and 'Daisies Asleep', this superb album is ideal for the improving beginner. Accompanied and inspired by verses by H Lang Jones, these twenty pieces and four duets are recommended for grades 0-1. shorturl.at/eqzKP

The Four Country Dances: These four short pieces combine playability with a sense of style that transcends being simply ‘teaching music.’ Each piece is prefaced with a quotation from the poet, adding another layer of meaning to the music. The pieces are named 'Elfinboys', 'The Fairy Ring', 'Gnome', and 'Zephyr', recommended for grade 2 standard. shorturl.at/aqG12

River and Rainbow: Recently republished in a smart new edition, River and Rainbow is a volume of ten short, descriptive pieces for the player of grade 3-4 standard, including pieces such as 'Summer Wind' and 'Shephard Pie'. shorturl.at/jmzJ2

All items are available to pick up in-store or for order online and over the phone (0161 834 3281).⁠