Play "Last Song" Your Way! (PIYW #10, September 2026)

rsl12

PIYW #10: Play "Last Song" Your Way

Play It Your Way is a quasi-monthly event for beginners, professionals, classical, jazz, or pop pianists and everyone in between! We are starting work on "Last Song" by Alexis Ffrench . Use the links below to find the sheet music you like, and when you are ready, post your performance in the submission thread. Perfection is not expected!

Previous PIYWs:

PIYW #9: Play Chopin's "Wiosna (Spring)" Your Way
PIYW #8: Play "How Long Blues" Your Way
PIYW #7: Play "Over the Rainbow" Your Way

Full List of Previous PIYWs

Thanks to KevinM for this month's selection! Please suggest pieces for future "Play It Your Way" events by using the suggestion box. The theme of the next PIYW (to be announced in August 2026) is "Jazz or Ragtime", but feel free to submit good ideas across all genres.

Guidelines

This is not a contest! It is meant to be a casual and fun event.
You can use this thread to discuss your preparation of the piece, or anything else related to PIYW. To submit a recording of your performance, go to the submission thread.
All PIYW submissions will remain hidden from public view until 15 September 2026. However, there is no deadline for when you need to submit your performance. Although most participants submit their recording before that date, you may submit at any time.
Use the recital schedule to plan your participation in future recitals!

"Last Song" by Alexis Ffrench (2009)

From Wikipedia:

Alexis Ffrench (born 1970) is a British classical-soul musician, composer, producer, and pianist. Ffrench's music has more than a billion streams and his albums Evolution (2018), Dreamland (2020) and Classical Soul Vol. 1 (2024) reached No. 1 in the Classical Music Charts.

From the footnote to the ABRSM edition:

[Ffrench] says of this piece: "Last Song was originally written for my daughter, Savannah, when she was a very young child, as a piece to accompany her early ballet dances. For me, it recalls the innocence of childhood and the wonder of possibility. I hope it resonates with you too and becomes part of your story. Happy piano playing."

Links to Sheet Music / Lead Sheet

You are not limited to only the music linked below. Feel free to find or create your own version.
You do not have to complete or perfect the piece to submit it, and don't be afraid to simplify or shorten the piece.
Improvisation, backing tracks, and backing humans are all allowed.

Sheet music:
Note: This is a Grade 6 (intermediate level) piece, but we have come up with some easier options. See this post.

USA
https://www.sheetmusicdirect.com/se/ID_No/446751/Product.aspx?utm_source=halleonard&utm_medium=referral&campaign=search (3-page version, $6)
https://www.sheetmusicdirect.com/se/ID_No/1555674/Product.aspx?utm_source=halleonard&utm_medium=referral&campaign=search (2-page version, $4. It's the same as the 3-page version, just more crowded on the page!)

UK
https://www.fabermusic.com/shop/last-song-d12063 (£2.50)

rsl12

~~As was mentioned in the voting thread, this is a Grade 6 piece, solidly intermediate level. I can't think of a way to make this piece beginner-friendly, but if anyone has ideas, post them here!~~

July 17 edit: I think we have some good ideas for those who want an easier version.

Simonb

Sorry folks, I doubt I'll be entering this PIYW.
I simply don't have the time to learn to play this as written.

If I can find a short cut by working out the chords and 'cheating' then I might cobble something together, but I doubt it.

Cheers

ShiroKuro

rsl12 From the footnote to the ABRSM edition:

[Ffrench] says of this piece: "Last Song was originally written for my daughter, Savannah, when she was a very young child, as a piece to accompany her early ballet dances. For me, it recalls the innocence of childhood and the wonder of possibility. I hope it resonates with you too and becomes part of your story. Happy piano playing."

To this, I will add the composer’s tips that are included at the beginning of the score as it appears in the score book Alexis Ffrench the Sheet Music Collection:

Try to play the melody line as legato as possible and keep it singing above the accompanying bass.
Use the sustain pedal throughout to create a richness of sonority but avoid clashing harmonies.
Look out for the key change halfway through.

ShiroKuro

@rsl12 for anyone who wants to simplify it a bit, one idea is to just play the top line in the right hand, like so:

I haven’t played it this way, so I don’t know how it sounds. And there are most certainly places where one would want to think about which notes to leave out. But doing that is one way to simplify it a bit.

I will only be able to play it as written, but I’m hoping others will play it and do some improvising and arranging (looking at you @rogerch 🙂
So @Simonb , of course there’s no requirement to participate, but it would be great to hear what you might do with it by truly playing it your way.

TC3

I'm in! It may be a bit of a stretch piece, and I have a lot of other stuff that I'm working on, so I don't know what shape it'll be in by 9/15, but I promise to post whatever I have done by then in whatever shape it's in! Then I'll keep working on it and post it when it's finished ... someday ...

Bahamut_Harmony

Ok, I'm going to give it a go only because I want to challenge myself. I'm learning Bluebird as well which has been going pretty smooth. I know getting hung up on grades is no good but I want to get better

TC3

Bahamut_Harmony If it makes you feel better, I'm barely playing at ABRSM grade 4 on a good day. I promise to humiliate myself attempting this grade 6 piece, so no one else should feel that they'll embarrass themselves anymore than I will! 😃

rsl12

TC3 I promise to humiliate myself attempting this grade 6 piece, so no one else should feel that they'll embarrass themselves anymore than I will! 😃

Thank you, I think your bravery that might help make beginners more comfortable! (Though I don't know if I'd classify you as a beginner...)

One simple solution, which I'll call the "Sophia Solution" since she's the first one to employ it, is to only practice a snippet of the piece. Maybe the first 16 bars, and some sort of ending (I guess one of us could write one up). It will still be hard, but at least you won't have to deal with a key change, and you can focus on the smaller amount of material.

HeartKeys I think I might participate this one, given my only skill on piano is improvising anyway, to relatively simple chord progressions, etc.

I considered this approach too, but the arrangement is very pretty, and I might learn a thing or two by analyzing it. I'm looking forward to what you will produce, as your playing is always interesting!

TC3

rsl12 Thank you, I think your bravery that might help make beginners more comfortable! (Though I don't know if I'd classify you as a beginner...)

Please! I'm clearly very early intermediate ... 😃

I think we all need to get WAY more comfortable playing poorly in front of others (in RealLife[TM] or via video recordings). I plan to make lots of mistakes to share with everyone!

KevinM

I am certain I'll be the same @TC3

I've only just ordered the score and will be having my first poke at it tomorrow.

I feel like I am borderline 4/5 and I have lots of stuff from my teacher so I can't just do a focus on this piece, it will be rough and that just is the way it is.

ShiroKuro

rsl12 One simple solution, which I'll call the "Sophia Solution" since she's the first one to employ it, is to only practice a snippet of the piece. Maybe the first 16 bars, and some sort of ending (I guess one of us could write one up). It will still be hard, but at least you won't have to deal with a key change, and you can focus on the smaller amount of material.

This is a great idea! And if someone wants to, they could play the shortened version and reduce the RH notes as well.

KevinM I have lots of stuff from my teacher so I can't just do a focus on this piece, it will be rough and that just is the way it is.

Same here! I'm working on three pieces with the cellist, plus three in-progress pieces at the moment, plus I want to record one of those for the Aug 15th recital, plus I'll start the new semester in the music school in August.

So it will be a lot...

Probably should get started soon then... 😅

rsl12

rsl12 Maybe the first 16 bars, and some sort of ending (I guess one of us could write one up).

I played with this idea tonight. I think it can work for those of you who want to learn the whole piece but think 2 months isn't enough time. Play the first 15 bars and then play a transposed version of the last three bars. Transposing is pretty easy. Ignoring the key signature, copy all the notes but move everything down one written step (F becomes E, E becomes D, D becomes C, etc) and change the key signature to 4 sharps. By doing this, you only have to learn half the piece before Sept 15. It will be a pretty little recording, and you can finish learning the rest later.

I could handwrite the transposition but I have a feeling someone here (maybe @ShiroKuro ?) has the software necessary to make a pretty version...?

ShiroKuro

rsl12 I could handwrite the transposition but I have a feeling someone here (maybe @ShiroKuro ?) has the software necessary to make a pretty version...?

Well, since I now have a subscription to SoundSlice, if you could transpose it by hand and send me a photo, I think I can do it with SoundSlice. (I could probably transpose it, but it would probably take me all day… 😅

rsl12

ShiroKuro OK good, because I tried combining both our ideas and I think it's a good solution! I'll present two options: playing half the piece to make it slightly easier, or the easiest option of playing half the piece simplified (I tried it and it sounds pretty good!) I would put the simplified version in Grade 3-4 territory (slightly harder than Wiosna).

EASIER OPTION: PLAY HALF THE PIECE
Play the first 15 measures, then add this ending (if you wait a few days, ShiroKuro will have a prettier version). This is a good option if you want to play the original version, but think you can't get the entire piece ready by September 15.

EASIEST OPTION: PLAY HALF THE PIECE SIMPLIFIED
Same as above, but take ShiroKuro's advice and only play the melody note in the right hand:

ShiroKuro

rsl12 ok cool! I’ll have to do this from my laptop so it may not be u til tomorrow. I’ll post when I have it!
🤞🎶🤞

Sophia

rsl12 I'll call the "Sophia Solution"

So cool! I feel like I’m up there with the Picard Manoeuver and the Kessel Run 😁

TC3

I call dibs on the TC3 Method:

1) Tries desperately to learn the whole piece perfectly
2) Fails miserably
3) Posts anyway ...

😃

ShiroKuro

rsl12 well, SoundSlice didn't do a great job scanning in your handwritten notes, and I can't figure out how to edit some parts of it to correct it. (I could fix some parts but not others, and the "typeset" version is currently incorrect.

Hang on, I have another idea.... I'll be back....