Description

The melody for this piece has been going round my head for years... and at last here it is, complete with playalong backing track!

Highlands is a waltz ballad in C major with a lilting 6-8 feel, but written in 3-4 time. The haunting melody is carried by a flowing left hand accompaniment aided with the sustain pedal.

The the right hand semiquaver 'ornament' in bar 16 (and in the coda) can be played faster than marked - have a listen to the performance track to get the idea. Alternatively, stick to the semiquavers to keep it simple :).

You may feel that the time signature feels 'different' in some bars of this piece, with perhaps more of a dotted crotchet pulse. Try saying the following pattern at the quaver tempo (quite fast!) emphasising the "1" counts:

"| 1-2 1-2 1-2 | 1-2-3 1-2-3 |"

This is a classic example of a 'hemiola' - a lilting shift between triple and duple metre.

Highlands should be played lyrically with plenty of dynamics and flowing quavers which move from the left hand to the right. It will suit pianists at about the established intermediate level, Grade 4 (ABRSM).