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Piano duets are a great way to improve the technical aspects of your playing, such as coordination and expression, portrayed through dynamics and tempo changes. They also help you become familiar with harmonising and musical dialogue, that is the call and response between two players and the relationship between different melody and rhythm lines.
Piano teachers will often use duets to develop a student’s skill. So if you’re a beginner, it’s a great idea to have a list of easy piano duets that you can take to your lessons. In this article, we’ll suggest some great pieces to add to your repertoire, covering a variety of music genres and playing techniques.
Our top 3 piano duets
- “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” from The Wizard of Oz
- “Silent Night”
- “City of Stars” from La La Land
Why we’ve chosen these piano duets
We’ve carefully selected these piano duets to cater to absolute beginners and more advanced beginners, ensuring you find something that’s suited to your ability level. These pieces vary in complexity, and we’ve made sure to keep the list interesting, including a mix of classical and pop songs, along with popular film scores.
As beginner repertoires go, this compilation of duets is well-rounded and great for keeping your practice sessions engaging and enjoyable.
Plus, we’ve taken into account hand span. Some pieces stick to just one or two octaves, meaning they’re great for young players or those with smaller hands, whereas some are more challenging and require you to reach notes that are further away. The latter will help you build advanced technique.
The best pianos for beginners
To learn these piano duets, we recommend these pianos:
| Piano | Key features | Shop |
|---|---|---|
| Yamaha P45 Digital Piano | Graded hammer action keys - ideal for helping you develop correct technique. 10 preset voices, from classical to modern electronic music. Comes with three months of Flowkey Premium. | Check the current price |
| Keynote Contemporary Digital Piano with Bluetooth by Gear4music | 40 voices, including pianos, organs, and strings, all powered by the French-designed DREAM audio engine. Weighted hammer-action keys for a responsive, authentic feel. Comes with a three-pedal unit. | Check the current price |
| DP-12 Compact Digital Piano by Gear4music | 88 hammer-action keys with synthetic ebony and ivory tops. 128-note polyphony for rich textures and expressive playing. Comes with a three-pedal unit. | Check the current price |
| Kawai KDP75 Digital Piano | Thorough sampling of the Shigeru Kawai SK-EX concert grand piano for rich, dynamic, beautifully clear sound. Responsive Hammer Compact (RHC) keyboard action provides an authentic-feeling, quiet, highly responsive feel as you press the keys. Comes with a three-month trial of Skoove, Tomplay, and Zapiano. | Check the current price |
| Yamaha P225 Digital Piano | Graded Hammer Compact (GHC) keys for an accurate response that's strikingly similar to that of an acoustic. Virtual Resonance Modelling (VRM) Lite technology reproduces the resonances of the strings of a grand piano. Two carefully angled speakers for natural sound projection. | Check the current price |
| Casio CDP S110 Digital Piano | Scaled Hammer Action Keyboard II system with a fine-grained finish on each key. Sleek and portable; only 232mm deep. Comes with a free Rockschool digital music book. | Check the current price |
Easy piano duets
1. “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” from The Wizard of Oz by Harold Arlen
“Somewhere Over the Rainbow”, a classic from The Wizard of Oz, is perfect for beginners. This iconic tune helps develop hand coordination, with a flowing melody and simple chords that allow you to work on the expression in your playing.
2. “Silent Night”
If you want to practise a song for Christmas that helps you focus on timing and expression, “Silent Night” is perfect. It has a smooth, flowing melody, but the slow tempo requires you to count and keep the song steady. This also gives you time to work on your dynamics and phrasing and master basic chord progressions.
3. “City of Stars” from La La Land by Justin Hurwitz
“City of Stars” from La La Land is another song that’s great for developing timing and expression. The melody is simple yet has a dreamy, bouncy feel that allows you to focus on playing with feeling rather than complex fingerwork. Something like the Kawai KDP75 Digital Piano is a great fit for this level as its keys respond well to subtlety and emotion.
4. “Heart and Soul” by Hoagy Carmichael
“Heart and Soul” by Hoagy Carmichael is a popular choice for beginner piano duets. This song helps develop coordination between players, as each person plays a distinct part that harmonises well. It introduces you to basic chord progressions and simple, repetitive melodies, making it an ideal practice piece for those new to piano.
5.”The Piano Duet” from Corpse Bride by Danny Elfman
Another great duet piece is “The Piano Duet” by Danny Elfman from Corpse Bride. This piece helps develop timing and coordination as both players need to sync their parts perfectly. The melody and accompaniment are fairly easy to get to grips with, allowing beginners to manage hand independence and learn basic musical dialogue between parts.
6. ”Viva La Vida” by Coldplay
If you’re after a pop song, “Viva la Vida” by Coldplay is a great choice for beginners as it develops rhythm and timing thanks to its driving, repetitive chord progressions. The song helps you practise playing chords smoothly and evenly and requires precise timing. The song also introduces basic hand coordination between melody and harmony.
7.”Canon in D” by Johann Pachelbel
“Canon in D” by Johann Pachelbel helps develop hand independence, as the left hand repeats a simple, steady bass line while the right hand plays a progressively more intricate melody. This structure makes it ideal for practising coordination and finger agility.
8. “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star”
“Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” is the ultimate starter piece for young beginners. It helps develop basic finger coordination and introduces simple melody and rhythm patterns. The repetitive structure makes it easier to learn and memorise, allowing beginners to focus on playing with both hands in unison.
A compact keyboard is well-suited for this level, offering small keys and a simple interface.
9. “Let It Go” from Frozen
The duet version of “Let It Go” from Frozen is also ideal for children. It’s a very easy piece to learn but has a large dynamic range, which is crucial for portraying the song’s emotion. It’s great for developing expressive playing and getting used to how the touch of a key translates into different volumes. There’s a variety of melody and chord progressions, and repetitive sections also make it easier to learn and memorise.
FAQs
What are the most popular piano duets for beginners?
Some of the most popular piano duets for beginners are:
- “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” from The Wizard of Oz
- “Silent Night”
- “City of Stars” from La La Land
- “Heart and Soul” by Hoagy Carmichael
- “Chopsticks” by Arthur de Luilli
What is the difference between a piano duo and a duet?
The difference between a duo and a duet is a duo is played on two separate pianos, whereas a duet is played on the same piano.
What instruments pair best with the piano?
Whilst it’s down to personal preference, the violin pairs beautifully with the piano as their timbres complement each other well. The cello is another instrument that works well with the piano as it adds depth and richness.
Final thoughts
Whilst also being incredibly fun, piano duets are a great way to put a variety of techniques into practice. Hopefully, our list of easy piano duets has given you some new songs to add to your repertoire!
To learn more, check out some of our other piano guides:
The 24 Best Piano Pop Songs Ever Written
17 Easy Piano Songs for Beginners
39 Best Piano Rock Songs of All Time
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