Background music?

[nick.burke]

Does anyone have any suggestions for some quality background music pieces? I would love to make a little collection of pieces I can pull out when I get asked to do these kinds of things. I would prefer they aren't too showy or impressive because the attention should never be on the background pianist.

I'd love it if you could help!

[andrewuk]

It feels like a bit of an insult to relegate some of these to background music, but to pick the most obvious composers:

- Chopin: Nocturnes & Mazurkas
- Mendelssohn: Songs Without Words
- Schubert: Impromptus (especially the Gb major)
- Slow movements from sonatas by Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, etc
- Bach: Inventions & Sinfonias; some of the WTC (esp. the Book 1 C major prelude); Air on the G-string

edit: I forgot the French contingent:
- Satie: Gymnopedies, Gnossiennes
- Debussy: Clair de Lune, Arabesques, Réverie, ....
- Ravel: Pavane Pour Une Infante Défunte
- Fauré: Pavane, Sicilienne, ...

[nick.burke]

- Bach: Inventions & Sinfonias; some of the WTC (esp. the Book 1 C major prelude); Air on the G-string

You don't think a Bach Invention is a bit showy to be in the background? I have always thought of them as only solo performance pieces.

Thanks so much for your reply though and I will for sure be taking your advice!

[andrewuk]

You don't think a Bach Invention is a bit showy to be in the background

I suppose some are; you just have to pick the ones you think are suitable. Same applies to the Chopin nocturnes and some of the others.

[lelle]

I agree with the suggestions you have gotten so far, popular Satie and Chopin and Debussy piece's are a particularly good choice as people may recognize them and feel sophisticated with that music in the background 

I'd add that some slow Chopin Waltzes, or some of the more lively ones played in a relaxed manner could fit well too.

[ranjit]

Maybe some Billy Mayerl could fit in?

[dogperson]

You haven’t defined your audience or the venue:  country club? Restaurant?
Unless a known classical  music crowd, I would not play Bach inventions and I would consider some current easy listening music:  Einaudi, French, etc.  maybe Gershwin

Choose music for your audience, not what you like to play.

[musikalischer_wirbelwind_280]

Like dogperson said, it really boils down to your particular audience, but for what it's worth, here are a couple more suggestions you may find useful:

I've found you can rarely go wrong with the 6 in this playlist:

https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDA19CA4E3C2BE676

This one might be stretching it a bit, what with that loud section in the middle, but maybe just play that a bit softer:

[ranjit]

I really like Scarborough fair. Haven't heard it before, but it would fit right in as a Final Fantasy or Pokemon soundtrack.

[visitor]

I learned a different version of this I may still have the audition room one up
This one is on my soon list I have the score and it's dope as heck even if the improvy parts are a bit of a bigger

[musikalischer_wirbelwind_280]

I really like Scarborough fair. Haven't heard it before, but it would fit right in as a Final Fantasy or Pokemon soundtrack.

Heh, heh, yes, I quite agree! It's an old favorite of mine. I first heard it several years ago in that "Simon & Garfunkel" cover that plays in a "The Wonder Years" episode and I liked it right away; only years later would I listen to other versions that are closer to its original form.

And speaking of video games, I'm just a sucker for these:

I was actually going to suggest a couple of these to the OP  , but I'm afraid I've never seen piano solo scores of any of them, except maybe one (not so good, though) of the "Bastila Shan's theme".

[visitor]

Ps per my post above , relieved to confirm my old recording is still here ,fyi same piece ebut different version /take on it, but the good stuff that makes is so pretty still there ,was always well received when I had it in my hands and I played it  at various pianos encounters in the wild

https://www.pianostreet.com/smf/index.php?topic=63041.msg672828#msg672828