Piano Masterpieces: Music you’ll want to listen to and play—beloved classic works
Do you have any memorable piano pieces that make you feel healed when you listen to them, or that you’d like to play someday?
A favorite piece can soothe a mind clouded by stress or anxiety.
In this article, we’ve carefully selected world-famous piano works from among the classics that could become your go-to soothing track.
Even if you’re not very familiar with classical music, we’ve chosen only well-known pieces you’ve likely heard somewhere before, so please enjoy reading to the end!
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Piano Masterpieces: Pieces You Want to Listen to and Play! Beloved Classical Works (11–20)
Prelude No. 15 “Raindrop” from 24 PreludesFrederic Chopin
Frederic Chopin’s unconventional style stands out in his collection 24 Preludes.
This work is a set of short piano pieces that are free from strict formal constraints, and it is among the most popular of Chopin’s compositions.
Among them, No.
15, “Raindrop,” is especially famous; it is frequently used in television commercials and is widely loved even beyond classical music circles.
Its softly rain-evoking atmosphere is beautiful and highly admired.
The way the middle section gradually turns ominous and then regains calm toward the end brilliantly captures the unpredictability of falling raindrops.
Für EliseLudwig van Beethoven
It’s a masterpiece by Ludwig van Beethoven that every piano learner longs to play at least once! Not only is it famous as a piano piece, but it has also been arranged into popular songs and pop music by various artists.
Its appeal lies in its variety: the gentle opening phrase that smoothly connects the left and right hands, the bright and brilliant middle section, and the later phrases that surge with fierce, almost angry intensity.
When you take on this piece, pay close attention to the shifts in mood and play with plenty of dynamic expression!
Love’s GreetingEdward Elgar
A piece I’d like to recommend to intermediate players is Salut d’Amour.
Needless to say, it’s one of Edward Elgar’s masterpieces.
You’ll hear it very often at piano recitals, and the key feature of this piece is its gentle, beautiful main melody.
While it’s a right-hand–focused, lyrical work, left-hand octaves appear at key moments, which can easily lead to missed notes.
If you keep an eye on those spots and aim to play the right-hand octaves delicately as well, your performance will be lovely—give it a try for reference.
Maiden’s PrayerTekla Bądarzewska
Tekla Bądarzewska’s masterpiece “A Maiden’s Prayer” is notable for its beautiful melody.
While it may be somewhat minor in the piano repertoire, it is a strikingly lovely piece to listen to.
The key features of this work are, above all, the 10-tuplets and 7-tuplets.
Its difficulty is around the intermediate level, but players coming up from beginner level may find it challenging at first because they’re not used to 10- and 7-tuplets.
That said, once you master those, the piece becomes quite manageable, so do give it a try.
Play of WaterMaurice Ravel
Even the Japanese title “Mizu no Tawamure” (Play of Water) evokes a wonderfully cool atmosphere! Known as a technically demanding piece that requires advanced skill, Jeux d’eau—composed in 1901 by the French composer Maurice Ravel and dedicated to his teacher Gabriel Fauré—is a piano work.
The original title, Jeux d’eau, means “fountains.” Savor the beauty of the musical figures that depict the orderly, man-made motion of water, and enjoy the shimmering timbres that seem to cool the heat of midsummer.
12 Variations on “Ah, vous dirai-je, Maman” (Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star Variations)Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
The masterpiece by the child prodigy Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, “12 Variations on the French Song ‘Ah! vous dirai-je, maman’ (Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star Variations).” It’s a classic that everyone hears at least once in childhood.
While the famous section is simple enough for beginners to play, the difficulty jumps sharply from the second variation onward.
That said, the overall level is at the higher end of intermediate, and since easier passages appear frequently, it can be considered relatively approachable to perform.
Piano Masterpieces: Pieces You Want to Listen to and Play! Beloved Classical Works (21–30)
On Wings of SongFelix Mendelssohn
On Wings of Song is an art song composed by Felix Mendelssohn, a composer of the German Romantic era, set to a poem by Christian Johann Heinrich Heine, the German poet famous for Lorelei.
Owing to the beauty of its melody, it is now also performed as violin and piano pieces.