- Level: Elementary
- Pages: 5 pages, 3 pages of music, cover included!
- Style: Various according to piece
- Bonuses: 3 mp3 recordings included
- Format: PDF instant download
This set of holiday Merry and Bright Short Sheets® features 3 one-page piano solos for your mid-elementary piano students. These pieces are short, but contain interesting arranged elements – more than the typical short elementary holiday tunes in method books.
Since the holiday and Christmas season is so short and since there are plenty of longer arrangements that take longer to learn, this set is a great supplement so that students can learn more music during a busy season.
The pieces in this Merry and Bright Short Sheets® set include:
- Jingle Bells
- O Christmas Tree
- God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
What Level is Merry and Bright?
The pieces in Merry and Bright are mid elementary. The smallest rhythm value is the quarter note and quarter rest. There are no eighth notes in the pieces. All pieces are carefully edited with appropriate fingerings, articulations, and dynamic markings to be solid piano pedagogy material.
O Christmas Tree contains two short passages where there is damper pedal, but students can just hold it down and do not have to use syncopated pedaling. O Christmas Tree is written in 6/4 for students who are somewhat frightened by eighth notes. The score is very clean – not showing any unnecessary rests so it is easy to process.
What are Short Sheets®?
Short Sheets® are collections of 3 one page pieces to help motivate your busy students who need to learn music quickly. These sets of one pages pieces (including this Summer Fun collection) are excellent for:
- Online lessons (they are easy to teach)
- Summer lessons (they are fun and don’t take as much time to learn
- Sight reading
- Students with short attention spans,
- Young students who are afraid of lengthy pieces (you’d be surprised at how many of your student balk at 2 page pieces)
- Busy students (isn’t that all students these days?)
- Students who want to learn an awesome piece of music quickly
And as a teacher, you’ll love Short Sheets® because you know that the more music students learn, the better their sight-reading skills!
Are there bonuses to Merry and Bright?
Yes, even though the price of these 3 pieces is incredibly low (see more under “What is the studio license?” below) we still are including bonus mp3 performances of the Merry and Bright pieces with your purchase. You are permitted to send these example performance tracks to your students to help them learn the piece.
What is the Studio License?
This set of pieces is delivered digitally (through your email receipt) and is studio licensed. This means that you can print and use this for any student that you directly teach for your entire lifetime of teaching. It’s like getting an unlimited supply of Music Kids Love®!
Want more Short Sheets®?
We have a whole set of Short Sheets® from early elementary all the way to late intermediate/advancing. Check out the Short Sheets® collection here.
Sonja Westberg –
I’m using these Short Sheets for one of my beginner students. She’s still getting comfortable with note identification and finger numbers, so these are perfect for her! AND they’re a great length – not too short, not too long!
I also have been using these as a sight-reading challenge for my late-elementary students. I cover up the title of the piece, have them play the first couple of lines, and see if they can guess the piece! (Jingle Bells was pretty recognizable right off the bat…LOL)
Angelina –
These are a HIT!!! At first my students weren’t thrilled because they couldn’t hear the melody line right away 😉 but after some practice, these easily became their favorite!!!
Alison Heather Mitchell –
The children have really enjoyed getting to know these. Great fun and even getting some of my real beginners off to a flying start with their Christmas Music.
Jan F. –
I’ve used these the most this season with my students. First, getting “free” music sent to them is cool. But, they are short with interesting intros and endings. It has something a little different and creative from the run-of-the-mill Christmas pieces, yet not so different that they’re unrecognizable. It’s like Christmas pieces with some spice!
Elaine Wagner –
Love these Christmas short sheets. They are short enough that students can learn more Christmas music but they still sound fantastic!
Linda –
My students are enjoying these pieces. I love that they have something a little different as an introduction and ending that adds interest to the song.
Diana Turner –
Thank you for these beautiful arrangements, Wendy! I was very sad that none of my students chose “Jingle Bells” or “O Christmas Tree” from this pack because they are simply beautiful. One of my students is playing “God Rest Ye, Merry Gentlemen” and he is a big fan! I also have plans to use these as “surprise sight-reading” for some of my later elementary students so they won’t go to waste!
Gerri –
The Merry and Bright Short Sheets were the perfect songs for several of my students during this Christmas Season. Children often slack off on practicing during this time with so many things to distract them; Christmas lights, presents under the tree and parties. However the Christmas short sheets, Merry and Bright and We Three Kings have totally inspired my students. They told me they plan on playing for family on Christmas Eve. I purchased the holiday bundle and am so glad I did. My students are definitely excited to learn the other pieces. Thank you so much Wendy. And a Merry and Bright Christmas to you.
Sincerely,
Debbie –
I am using the Merry & Bright Short Sheets and We Wish You a Merry Christmas for my local students. I have a couple of online students who are tackling “Black Key- Jingle Bells” by Rote. I have to admit that it was a challenge because the students are beginners and they don’t know how to read music yet. Obviously, I had to refrain from saying actual notes like Ab, Bb, Db and just use the finger numbers and hand placement. It worked and the students are working through it. They also seem happy about their progress. Like you said, they’re playing simple music, but it sounds sophisticated. I’m very happy with the selections I bought and look forward to coming attractions. Thanks again.
Charlotte –
I bought the black key jingle bells. I will give it 5/5 – everyone I’ve given it to loves it, thank you!
Dianne –
Wendy’s music is inspirational. It fits under the hand nicely. Students love to play it!
Caren Worel –
Merry and Bright is a great gift for my students. Backing tracks, music from Wendy – WINNER!!!!
Jerri Headrick –
I have used these with many of my beginner students, gives them a little challenge without all the frustration 🙂
Sharon –
These short Christmas tunes are cleverly written for beginning readers.
O Christmas Tree in 6/4 made it so easy for beginners to play the rhythms correctly the very first time!
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen is a lively version highlighting the melody with cute two note slurs to keep it interesting.
Jingle Bells has a wonderful introduction that reappears at the end which makes this very overplayed piece really sparkle.
Carol –
My students are enjoying the Christmas short sheets! I like the two note phrases ending in staccato notes and hand crossing in God Rest Ye.
Diane Layton –
These holiday short sheets are fabulous. My younger students have really enjoyed them, especially being able to learn several during the month instead of just one. Thanks Wendy!
Lorraine –
This piece was challenging. Challenging because of the stylization of the piece. Students really had to listen to bring out the melody. I really enjoy the challenges you compose for them!
Linda Sharp –
The imagery that Wendy creates in her 2 to 4 measure introductions is magical. Students sense the twinkling lights in O Christmas Tree. You hear heavy footsteps in the snow for God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen. And, the horse gallops happily in the forest for Jingle Bells
Melissa Toedtman –
These are clever settings but would be more accessible if the lyrics were included.
Karen Long –
I’m really liking these Christmas Short Sheets for my older beginning students — short, easy, but with the intro and “outro”, they are a bit more than just the plain-jane beginner piano fare. Wendy’s done a great thing by starting the Short Sheet collection!
Peter meerwarth –
All the short sheets are amazing. SHORT! That’s key for me. I don’t want to have to bog down my students with learning an entire piece. Who says pieces have to be LONG? We get to it and students find it very refreshing to focus on creativity and not so much note-reading all the time! A great motivator!!
Alyssa Arroyo –
I have several students who struggle learning more then one page of music, so having one page sheet music that’s holiday themed comes in clutch! These are wonderfully composed and are easy to speed run with students who are proficient in reading notes.