# Easy 'musical' etudes



## Sqaarg

I´m looking for some etudes that are in some sense musical, a lot of the etudes out there are absolutely mind-numbing to play/listen to from a musical standpoint. Currently I'm around grade 4-5 and working on the Bach inventions.


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## Ravndal

Burgmüller etudes. If they are easy, try some of the czerny etudes.


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## PetrB

The Czerny are a staple of work-horse studies, and there are literally around one thousand of them, none of which I have ever done... Tsk Tsk.

The reasons to choose one study over another:
Introduce you to a technique or configuration you are yet unfamiliar with or with which you have little or no experience.
To specifically target a technical problem you still have not gained control of, i.e. building / correcting.

If you are not working with a pedagogue find someone to consult with who can assess your playing, technical level, and then help you choose some etudes appropriate to your needs.


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## hreichgott

You CAN use etudes on a one-off basis to pinpoint particular issues as PetrB suggests. I do think there is also good purpose in working through the better books of etudes. Before starting each, see if you can tell just by looking at the score what technical issue the etude is meant to address. Most etude composers will revisit their favorite technical challenges in different ways over the course of the book.

At this level try Bartok "Mikrokosmos" book 2 if you want something physically easier but helpful for the mental exercise of hand independence--great practice for playing Bach inventions!--or book 3 for more of a combination of mental and physical challenges. Or if you like Romantic repertoire try Burgmuller Op. 100. Burgmuller op. 100 is in the public domain and if it isn't on imslp.org I will eat my hat. 

Bartok is more "musical" if you like counterpoint and unusual harmony. Burgmuller is more "musical" if you like melody and don't mind conventional harmony. Czerny would be ok too, maybe Op. 261. That's public domain too. Czerny isn't as musically interesting as the others but he still beats Hanon hands down!


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## Sqaarg

Thanks for the input guys! I actually found a collection of several Czerny etudes/exercises in my collection of sheet music, so I"ll try that first. The Mikrokosmos sounds interesting, I'll try that one if I can find it. Once again, thanks!


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