Hills of Fairyland - Pilling, Dorothy - Short Pieces for Solo Piano

Dorothy Pilling's works remain a staple of many music festival syllabi. Here she revels in fantasy, possible inspired by her own love of the hills on the border of Lancashire and Yorkshire, in these seven short piano pieces. Suggested grade 3-4.

1. Light on the Hills
2. Horns of Elfland
3. River Magic
4. The Hounds of Spring
5. Moonrise
6. Forest Whirlwind
7. Silent Hills

Pilling was a much loved figure in the Mancunian musical world, known to generations of young pianists for her imaginative piano teaching pieces. Most famous for classic 'Harmonization of Melodies at the Keyboard' series, Dorothy Pilling also composed many piano duets and solos, as well as songs and other works. According to the Voxturturis blog:

'Her music remains fresh and light; characterised by strong melodies and late romantic harmony which she improvised well and the pieces are, in the main, short.  Instantly appealing to players and audiences alike, most of her work shows a high degree of compositional craft'