A Rock Roll Hand Band

Original composition for piano solo
Level: Intermediate
🎧 30-second audio sample: 
 
About this Composition:
We’ve all sworn some kind of allegiance - shallow or deep - to rock and roll at some point. This piece takes that impulse and pushes it into the piano blues language, with a particular focus on intervallic harmony, especially thirds and sixths.
Along the way, there are touches of chromaticism, lyricism, and expressionism - while dodecaphonism (using all twelve tones equally) is politely left at the door.
 
At its core, this work is built around a quarter-note (4×4) training exercise designed to develop a steady, metronomic, and musical left hand. That left hand provides the foundation for a decoupled right-hand solo, allowing independence, clarity, and groove to emerge naturally.
 
If I had a dollar for every student who wants to walk before they can crawl - leaving the left hand waiting to connect to the auditory imagination - I’d be retired in the Bahamas by now.
 
The right-hand riffing is intentionally minimal. The focus here is on building a reliable, grounded left hand. Practice each hand independently before bringing them together - or ignore this advice, learn the hard way, and discover a whole new range of shiny hobbies when piano suddenly feels “too difficult”.
 
I’ve always loved how some classic songs refer to a “rock roll” band. In that spirit of efficiency, it feels right to rename the following:
 
Black / white
Right / wrong
Odds / ends
Tried / tested
Ins / outs
Kiss / tell
Pros / cons
P’s / Q’s
 
Peace out.