Easy Hymn Solos Now Available as Digital Studio License!

Our Easy Hymn Solos Books 1, 2, and 3 have been very popular with teachers and all ages of students. They are some of the most mature-sounding arrangements available at elementary, late elementary, and early intermediate levels. As a matter of fact, all of Book 1 and about half of Book 2 and Book 3 pieces are on the current 2020-2024 NFMC list!

ComposeCreate® now owns the copyrights to these pieces and you can get pieces from Books 1, 2, and 3 as a digital studio license!

What’s Different? Why Does This Matter?

You might wonder why that matters if you already have the books or if you are trying to decide between the books and the studio license. So we’re thrilled to tell you about 4 reasons why the studio license might or might not be a better option for teachers and students:

1. The studio license provides a user-friendly score.

The Easy Hymn Solos books weren’t really edited with pedagogy in mind when setting up the layout and design. So, engravers did what was expected and filled the pages of the book so there were not big white spaces when there wasn’t enough music to fill the page (which can save on printing costs). Most publishers like to do this and it’s understandable because it looks nice this way.

However, this is not always ideal for learning.

Why?

A) Phrases should be identifiable at first glance

When engraving a score, it’s important to set up the phrases in such a way that students can actually see repeated patterns and where a phrase begins and ends. As you can see in this example of God is So Good (from the printed book), a student cannot easily see that each phrase is 4 measures and that there are repetitions in those phrases that would make it easier to learn.

As you look at this score, ask:

Can kids see the 4 measure phrases just by glancing at the music?
Will they even notice the repetition so that it helps them learn quickly?

Easy Hymn Solos Now Available as Digital Studio License!

B) The distance between the staves should be easy on the eyes.

An unnatural distance between the staves makes it more difficult for students to see how their hands relate to each other. Especially in some of the pieces, the melody passes back and forth between the right and left hand, so large distances between the staves make a pause more likely. This is especially important for students with neurodivergent learning challenges like ADHD.

Take a minute to compare the distance between the top and bottom staff of each line in the music below.

C) The sizing of the score should not turn off older students.

There are several reasons why it’s good to enlarge the staves and notes on a score and we do this to a certain degree in early level music. It can make the music seem easier, plus it’s very helpful for visually impaired people, So the printed book is definitely preferable in these cases!

But, when a piece is going to be played by an older student that doesn’t need this larger score, whether a 10-year old, teen, or adult, the impression is that you are playing an “easy” and “kid-like” piece when you have an unnaturally large score. Plus, enlarging the score makes it look like there’s less music there which can be misleading since these are very mature sounding arrangements.

So compare the two scores below and ask:

What score shows more clearly that there are 4-measure phrases?
In which score can you see the repetition more easily?
Which score looks more “natural” in terms of staff size?

Note: The example from the right is slightly bigger because it’s from a book that is 9×12 inches (imagine how big those staves are going to look! Excellent for visually impaired students, but not optimal for non-visually impaired students) whereas the new, digital, studio-licensed music would presumably be printed on an 8.5×11 piece of paper.

2. The studio license gives you more repeat options

The music is the same between the printed books and the digital studio-licensed music, but many of the pieces have natural places that would be good to repeat if the student needs a longer piece for an offertory or special music. These places weren’t indicated in the printed books, but in the studio license, I have added notes to some of the scores where students can repeat if they need the piece to be longer.

Of course, you can still purchase the printed books, but these do not come with a studio license, so no copying, scanning, or any kinds of reproductions are permitted.

3. You get a bonus mp3 recording with the studio license

This may be the biggest difference that makes the most impact on student learning! Teachers frequently ask if our music comes with mp3 performances of the piece without voiceovers. And yes, our newer pieces do – including these Easy Hymn Solos studio-licensed pieces!

These recordings have all the nuance you want your student to play, so they are not only excellent in helping the student learn, but also in helping them play more musically.

The printed books do not have mp3s included with your purchase.

4. Print and use it over and over again!

The best feature about digital, studio-licensed music is that you can print and use it over and over again with any student you are directly teaching, for your entire lifetime of teaching! It’s like getting an unlimited supply of that piece of music!

So here are the Easy Hymn Solos 1, 2, 3 studio-licensed pieces, studio-licensed bundles, and printed books (which are not studio licensed) that are currently available! Watch for more to be unveiled in the future.