Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Adult Beginners Forum The Snowman

With Christmas getting ever nearer, I'm starting to get into the mood for learning a Christmas piece, or at least that I tend to associate with Christmas.

One that caught my eye, or should that be ears? Was The Snowman

Anyone own this and have any thoughts on how well the pieces are arranged in the intermediate version?

I've had a quick search on youtube, if they're anything to go by the "Walking in the Air" piece sounds really good, although it may be a challenge for my current level. I'm not sure if those videos on youtube are based on this version of the score though, or include a lot of improvisation/self arrangement.

If I don't have time to learn even one of the pieces prior to this Christmas, there's always next year

Anyhow, if anyone on here owns this, please let me know if the you tube video is from the same arrangement.

I have that score... I also have the George Winston arrangement in his sheet music collection.

Given how expensive that single piece was, I'd almost recommend going with the Winston book for a higher price but more bang for the buck.

(Winston plays it as medley on the album, but the sheet music arrangement is for "Walking in the Air" only.)

Either arrangement is quite doable. The left hand is basically just repetitive arpeggios, and there's a lot of repetition in the right hand, too.

It's such a pretty, poignant melody.

edit: oops, I just realized that music was so expensive because it included ALL the piano score to the video... Actually, I'd still recommend the Winston book, because the Winston book contains his arrangements for 3 of the pieces from the Snowman, including Walking in the Air, PLUS a lot of other beautiful Winston pieces. But the price for the other collection no longer seems as steep.

The Snowman IS christmas for me each year. It was my favourite when I was a kid, and I try and watch it when it is on tv. Great film, and wonderful music!

Monica: Yes it's for the entire score not just a single piece, I made the same mistake the first time I looked at it too and my post talking about just the "Walking in the Air" piece probably didn't help matters

Is this the George Winston book you're referring to?

I have the Blake score as linked above and I find it seriously hard

The "Walking in the Air" section is for piano and voice not solo piano (as I remember your hands clash physically if you try both parts).

Unless you want to replicate the whole video, it may be more useful to buy a piano solo arrangement; of which there seem to be a few...

I remember seeing "the snowman" many years ago on the local public broadcasting channel.

I don't know what it was but something about the show/music really moved me.

I am a sentimental fool when it comes to certain pieces and The Snowman was a short show that I really loved.

Thanks for posting.

I just listened to Kenny Loggins December CD its the first cut..

My younger sister asks me to play this piece for her constantly. I don't complain because it is very beautiful.

I watched "The Snowman" when I was a child and that simple-but-haunting melody has quite a special place in my heart.

Theowne, what score did you use or did you improvise it...?

I just figured it out by ear, it's not that complex of a piece. I think I began writing my own sheet music for it once, must have been an unfinished project..

Re: Topic

The page has a "Sample image" link. Click it to see the first page of the arrangement. It appears to be identical to the version played in the actual film.

There is a slight difference between the original and the version that is played in the video. In the "middle" of each left hand arpeggio, a third is repeated twice before descending again. For some reason the person in the video plays the bottom note of the third, and then the third, instead of just playing the third twice like in the orignal.

However, this isn't a piano arrangement of "Walking in the Air", I think, it is just a piano arrangement of the entire "Snowman" soundtrack. Now I would expect that in the middle, you will find a complete arrangement of "Walking in the Air" since the complete song plays in the middle of the film. But I'm just guessing.

OK, ta.

WOW!!
What a beautiful piece. I do not recall ever hearing this before or seeing this film.
I have some investigating to do!!

Yes, Gary... that's the Winston book. And the Walking in the Air segment is arranged for solo piano, so you avoid the clashing hands/need to improvise aspect that you get with the other sheet music written for Piano/Voice.

Triryche, "The Snowman" is a beautiful animated film, one of our family's holiday favorites. The whole score is very nice.

p.s. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!

What do you mean by clashing hands? The description suggests the score I linked to is Piano Solo? Although the arrangement says "Piano Solo, Voice" so I'm not sure what to expect now.

Still, the book you mentioned seems to be better value for money, a lot more pieces but still includes a few from The Snowman.

Thanks

Er... well, I was wishing Triryche happy birthday, but if it's your birthday, too, then happy birthday again!!

The clashing hands aspect referred to LaValse's comment that the original score was arranged for voice and piano, which sometimes you can get away with just playing the melody part in the right hand, but there are some spots in that score where it doesn't work. Not to mention I don't have an improvising bone in my body. So Winston's score is better, imo, because you can just play it as he has written it.

It's also one of the easier arrangements in the Winston book.

The link posted is a piano score for piano solo and there are words above the piano score to read along/follow along with the film, according to the sample image. There doesn't appear to be any musical voice part, but I suppose that during the actual song that probably changes..

Thanks!!

Just by the looks of it I'm sure my daughter,actually the whole family, will enjoy it very much. It looks like a classic, I can't believe I haven't seen this growing up.

I watched the youtube video a few more times.
Talk about finger independence!!

FWIW I submitted the George Winston arrangement of Walking in the Air for last year\'s holiday bar with some modifications from a transcription that was posted here some years ago.

George Winston's performance is available here.

It is a beautiful piece. Have fun with it.

If you all liked the video, don't miss Raymond Briggs\' book . It is wordless and lovely.

Yes - In the Blake "Piano Score", "Walking in the Air" is for piano and voice (on 3 staves) and would need some rearranging for the physically imppossible bits (though to be honest, not much if you can do that sort of thing). The score intro is solo piano as you say but only has the start of the Walking theme...

The Winston arrangement or the "Easy" piano solo arrangement would seem better options for anybody who wants to play the whole song and not have to fiddle with it at all.

PS: My kids and my wife watched the Snowman video gazilliions of times when they were young - by implication I did too and yep - it's great...

Two birds with one stone eh

Happy Birthday Triryche.

I'll probably end up getting the Winston arrangement. Since there's only really one song I'd like to play from The Snowman, that makes the Winston book more value for money.

Thanks for all the help.