Best Disney songs to play on piano

Piano Blog by Skoove – Piano Practice Tips

Disney songs are a classic choice for the beginning pianist. There are so many famous Disney songs to learn to play on the piano across different styles and genres. Some of the most famous Disney songs are available to learn with Skoove. Having access to authentic and accurate sheet music means you learn a correct version of the music. Check out our list of Disney piano songs and start playing your favorites today!

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Typical piano characteristics of Disney songs

Easy Disney piano songs generally have several characteristics in common. These songs often include:

Powerful, iconic melodies that are uplifting and inspiring
Relatively simple chord progressions that are timeless and highly effective
Lyrical content that is fit for a range of generations
Fairly standard instrumentation that is well adapted to solo piano performance

Best easy Disney songs to learn on piano

Learning Disney music is a great way to learn how to play piano. Check out all the Disney music you can learn with Skoove and try some out today!

Beauty and the Beast

The Beauty and the Beast is one of the classic Disney hits and a staple of the Disney franchise. The version of Beauty and the Beast with Skoove is in the key of C major, making it a great choice for beginning pianists to start with. 

In Skoove’s piano tutorial you will build valuable skills like basic chord outlining and a simple progression. This song is of course instantly recognizable and a great addition to your Disney repertoire!

Tips for learning Beauty and the Beast

The song is in 4/4 time signature and in the key of C major. This means there are four beats in every measure and the melody uses all white keys on the piano.

Beware the B flat chord at the very end! It is slightly outside the key and may come as a bit of a shock.

The melody features arpeggios, or melodically played chords. These figures have a slightly larger reach than standard scales. So prepare your hands!

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Mary Poppins

One of the oldest Disney movies, Mary Poppins was at the time the highest grossing Disney film of all time. The film won the Academy award for Best Original Score and the song “Chim Chim Cher-ee” won for Best Original Song. Now you can learn this wonderful Disney song with Skoove!

The Skoove version of this song is in the key of D minor. This means the song includes a B flat in the key signature. It also includes a secondary dominant, which are more advanced chords on the piano. However, with Skoove’s easy piano notation you will have no problem mastering this great chord change!

Tips for learning “Chim Chim Cher-ee”

This song opens with a classic descending left hand part that is often found in minor key songs like “Chim Chim Cher-ee.”
The song is 3/4 time signature, so practice counting and feeling measures of three.
Learning the D minor scale will help you master the melody.

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The Muppets

While not originally a Disney hit, Disney acquired The Muppets and has since produced several Muppet movies. You can learn the theme song from the original Muppets television show with Skoove!

The Muppets theme features some more advanced harmonies than other more traditional Disney studio’s music. However, with a piano learning app like Skoove as your piano teacher, you will have no problem mastering this fun and easy song.

Tips for learning “The Muppets”

This tune contains some “accidentals”, or notes that are not exactly in the key of C major. Don’t let these “outside” notes scare you off! They sound exactly how they are supposed to sound.
Try to memorize the left hand part as quickly as you can. This will open up your brain power to master the more difficult right hand melody.
Learning the C major scale will help you master the melody faster.

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Pirates of the Caribbean

Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean was a smash hit, based on the original Pirates of the Caribbean attraction at Disney Parks. The Disney movie features original music by Hans Zimmer and is a great theme to play on piano. 

The Skoove tutorial for Pirates of the Caribbean is in 3/4 time signature in the key of D minor. The chord progression is relatively simple with two main sections. All the chords are diatonic to the key, meaning there are no chords outside the key of D minor. This is a common characteristic of pop music as well as many Disney songs.

Tips for learning “Pirates of the Caribbean”

Practice counting a 3/4 time signature. Remember 3/4 means there are three beats in each measure.
The song alternates between passages of faster rhythm and slower rhythm. Try not to rush your counting when the rhythm slows down.

Understanding the D minor scale piano keys will help you master the melody.

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The Bare Necessities

The Jungle Book is one of Disney’s original animated movie hits and is full of great songs and classic characters. “The Bare Necessities” is an upbeat song sung by the big bear character Baloo to a young Mogli all about living a care-free life. The tune is simple and a great way to start playing one of the best piano pop songs.

Practice this song slowly at first. The song is in the key of F major, which is the relative major of D minor, and features 1 flat, B flat. Like most every other song we have looked at, all the chords are diatonic to the key and the melody is simple and not highly syncopated. Have fun with this great song from Walt Disney!

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Tips for learning “The Bare Necessities”

Get to know the left hand patterns. Moving between roots and fifths is an extremely common left hand accompaniment technique.
Understanding the F major scale will help you master the melody faster.
This melody is classic. Try singing it in your head before you play it. 

Disney piano music is timeless

The Disney universe features so many hit songs that it can be hard to choose which one to begin with. Learning Disney songs on piano is a great way to both enjoy the music you love and learn valuable piano skills. Disney piano songs are great to learn for many reasons:

They feature solid melodies that are catchy and well known.
They feature easy to play chord progressions that do not stray too far from one key.
The rhythms are not overly complicated.
They are fun to play on the piano!

So let Skoove be your guide into the realm of Disney songs and have fun exploring and building your piano skills with this exciting and timeless music!

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Author of this blog post:

Eddie Bond is a multi-instrumentalist performer, composer, and music instructor currently based in Seattle, Washington USA. He has performed extensively in the US, Canada, Argentina, and China, released over 40 albums, and has over a decade experience working with music students of all ages and ability levels.

 

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