Just this afternoon I had one of my intermediate students ask me, “What could I play during the echo section in the chorus of “It is Well?”

She enjoyed learning the left hand patterns I entered as a suggested route.  I told her if she would learn to recognize her chords in the hymnal…it would open up a whole realm of  improvising choices!

Click on the title below to download your copy of the chorus ideas for “It is Well.”

It is Well D Flat Major

Answer key for D flat major version (below)

Family coming into town any minute and just finished a quickie for church pianists to use for Easter…fill-in ideas for The Old Rugged Cross when playing for congregational singing.

Sorry I didn’t have time to share more!

Happy Easter!

Click on title to download your free copy of fill-in ideas for:  THE OLD RUGGED CROSS

Click here to download fill-ins included on sheet music of the hymnal version for this hymn.

One of my readers requested fill-in ideas for the song But Until Then.  I already shared fill-in ideas for the verse in a previous article HERE.

The chorus of But Until Then may be a challenge for church pianists who don’t feel comfortable improvising.  The fill-in notes are what give the music a forward motion; adding life to the hymn…IF the fill-in notes are rhythmically correct 😉

Since this particular hymn is under copyright…I’m limited on what I can share according to the US Copyright Office.

For a simple explanation, I will paste and copy a portion of the description for the Fair Use Act from US Copyright Office website:

Fair Use Copyright Act

Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or phonorecords or by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright.

The amount being considered “fair use” is up for debate but I try to stay on the conservative side of usage which explains why I presented a “cut and paste” layout of only the long held words.

Click below to download your free copy of:

But Until Then (chorus) fill-in ideas

But Until Then verse fill-in ideas

One of my readers recently asked if I could share fill-in ideas for the hymn… But Until Then.

Wow! Lots of held words in this hymn….making it a challenge for the church pianist to maintain a steady flow while wondering what to add!

This particular hymn is still under copyright….thus limiting what I can share but will do my best!

Here are several fill-in ideas for the verse of But Until Then.

I will share a few fill-in ideas for the chorus in the next post.

Click on following song title to download free fill-in ideas for this hymn.

But Until Then

Sorry I couldn’t share the chorus now but working on other arrangements.

Just discovered a practical instructional book on  improvising hymns found on Alfred Publishing’s site.

This book is a great starter for the intermediate pianist who wants to improvise from the church hymnal.  The pianist will learn how to do the following:

*Add tenor to the right hand

*Double the bass note

*A couple of easy-to-learn  left hand fill-in ideas

*PLUS…a collection of hymns already arranged for the intermediate church pianist using the improvising ideas that are taught in the book.

Click on the following book title to view the book and sample pages!

“How to Play Hymns & Gospel Songs in an Evangelistic Style”