The familiar tune, America, is used as an easy point of entry for pianists who seek more experience learning and applying skills associated wtih pop and jazz styles.

• Want to play more pop or jazz styles, even create your own arrangements?
  
• Do you need more experience reading from lead sheets, which only notate the melody and chords?
  

• Knowlegde of a few triads in root position
  
• Ability to read dotted quarter and eighth note rhythm patterns

If so, you can begin to play these fun arrangements. Watch these short videos to get started. After each video, you'll find the notated materials.

• Video, Part 1: The First Two Ways, for Early to Middle Intermediate Level Pianists
  
• Video, Part 2: The Third (Jazzier) Way, for Late Intermediate Level Pianists (providing a transition into learning Misty)

As in pop and jazz, the lead sheet I provide first has only melody and chord symbols, expecting you to be the arranger. You'll then find fully scored versions, to show you how. The first arrangement uses only triads in root position, while the second uses some inversions. The jazzier arrangement uses seventh chords in "shell voicings."

Best of all, after playing America, it is just a short leap to play the jazz standard made famous by Nat King Cole, Misty. Misty is in the same key as the arrangement of America, and also sounds wonderful using 7th chords in the same simple shell voicings.

If you're a teacher and assign pieces with certain musical elements in common, you know what wonderfully motivating opportunities this presents for students! Click here for a list of 7 intermediate level companion pieces from the traditional piano repertoire in the key of Eb major, that could be played or assigned along with America and Misty.