Guitar,Piano,Vocal,Voice - Level 4 - Digital Download SKU: A0.1373238 By Michael Swedberg. By Johann Sebastian Bach. Arranged by Terrence Niska. 21st Century,Baroque,Classical,New Age. Score. 8 pages. Niska Music Publishing #957583. Published by Niska Music Publishing (A0.1373238). This has long been one of my favorite pieces by J.S. Bach, so it came as no great surprise that I would come up with my own arrangement of the work. There is an overwhelming sense of peace and tranquility (and a hint of melancholy) to the original movement from his Orchestral Suite No. 3 which explains its popularity over the years. It has become more well-known in August Wilhelmj's arrangement as the Air on the G String, but in writing my own version I went back to the score and to the original key of D major.

Piano Solo - Level 4 - Digital Download SKU: A0.1378678 By Michael Swedberg. By Terrence Niska. 21st Century,Classical,Romantic Period. Score. 8 pages. Niska Music Publishing #963340. Published by Niska Music Publishing (A0.1378678).

Piano Solo - Level 5 - Digital Download SKU: A0.1125796 By Michael Swedberg. By Traditional Spiritual. Arranged by Terrence Niska. Christmas,Contemporary,Holiday. Score. 8 pages. Niska Music Publishing #726536. Published by Niska Music Publishing (A0.1125796). One of the more technically demanding preludes in this set, it is a definite workout for the right hand as it is nonstop triplets from beginning to end. Not only must the wrist remain loose, but the melody is contained in the right hand amidst the steady torrent of sixteenth note triplets. There is also a wonderful two measure hemiola figure where the meter seems to shift temporarily before returning to the established meter. The exuberance and excitement of the good news of Christ’s birth is the driving force behind this arrangement. Symphonic in its conception, the pianist needs to keep that in mind as they bring all the forces of the orchestra to bear. There are instances of brass chords, swirling string lines, singing woodwinds and thundering timpani, sometimes happening all at the same time. A tour de force and an excellent concert finale!

Piano Solo - Level 5 - Digital Download SKU: A0.1248123 By Michael Swedberg. By Terrence Niska. 21st Century,Classical. Score. 8 pages. Niska Music Publishing #842686. Published by Niska Music Publishing (A0.1248123). There is a storm brewing on the horizon and the ship is starting to be tossed about by waves which can be heard rolling in the left hand. The captain calls for the sails to be furled lest they be torn to shreds by the gale force winds. They have endured many storms before, but this is unlike any The Tempest has encountered. The men try to lift their spirits with tales of what has come before and the acts of heroism which have helped them to survive. Their bravado is cut short as the storm intensifies. Lightning flashes across the sky and they realize now that there may be no coming back from this voyage. The swells grow ever larger and cracks can be heard throughout the ship as support beams and masts give way under the tremendous stress. There is no hope of reaching the safety of land as she begins to take on water, but the crew does not abandon their posts…they do not know the meaning of surrender. A final series of cracks can be heard as The Tempest slips beneath the waves into the waiting abyss.

Piano Solo - Level 5 - Digital Download SKU: A0.1048638 By Michael Swedberg. By Terrence Niska. 20th Century,Classical,Contemporary,Romantic Period. Score. 4 pages. Niska Music Publishing #653047. Published by Niska Music Publishing (A0.1048638). While this prelude bears a German title, there is the definite influence of Rachmaninoff to be found in its sweeping melody, like something to be found in a piano concerto. There is a feeling of constant motion, like the rushing of a river, created by the constant flow of sixteenth notes in the left hand. Meanwhile, the right hand melody soars majestically above. There are moments when the water is rushing along placidly in a stream and others where the triplet figures create images of water tumbling over stones in small waterfalls, creating whirlpools and eddies in the current. In the end, the winding comes to a restful close…the journey is over.

Piano Solo - Level 4 - Digital Download SKU: A0.1373223 By Michael Swedberg. By Franz Schubert. Arranged by Terrence Niska. 21st Century,Classical,New Age,Romantic Period. Score. 8 pages. Niska Music Publishing #957568. Published by Niska Music Publishing (A0.1373223). As a vocal major and accompanist during my undergraduate and graduate years, I became familiar with a great number of lieder by Franz Schubert. It's far too difficult to pick a favorite, but this song was one of the first pieces I learned to sing. As common in so many of his songs, Heidenröslein has a very simple, folk-like melody, and the accompaniment almost has the feel of a pianist vamping at the keyboard. My arrangement is very much inspired by the music of George Winston. The right hand has a somewhat ostinato feel in the opening. When the melody enters, the right hand figure is moved into the left hand while the melody floats above as though carried on a summer breeze. The second verse takes on a more music box feel as it makes frequent pauses in the music, but the melody is always present in the right hand, even when it is surrounded by a steady stream of eighth notes.The work closes with a return of the opening material and fragments of the melody tossed back and forth like the falling petals of the rose on the heath.

Piano Solo - Level 5 - Digital Download SKU: A0.1125807 By Michael Swedberg. By John Henry Hopkins Jr. Arranged by Terrence Niska. Christmas,Contemporary,Holiday. Score. 8 pages. Niska Music Publishing #726547. Published by Niska Music Publishing (A0.1125807). The travels of the three wise men as they followed a star to see the newborn King was the inspiration for this arrangement. It starts with the right hand representing the twinkling of the stars in the vastness of the heavens, while the left hand provides the feeling of winds blowing across the desert sands as the magi set out on their journey. Soon the melody is heard in the right hand, though in a more stately rhythm than the traditional, more pastoral original. The left hand continues its sweeping motion unabated and drives the piece ever onward as the wise men draw ever nearer to their destination. The minor mood of the song is replaced in the chorus as the star of wonder shines down upon them, filling their souls with hope. Eventually they arrive at the stable and offer their gifts to the babe lying in a manger: gold, frankincense and myrrh. It is the last of these gifts which foreshadow the death of Christ and his burial in the stone-cold tomb. After they have spent some time praising their new-found king, the three wise men return to their homeland as the music follows them back across the desert sands to their homes in the East.

Piano Solo - Level 3 - Digital Download SKU: A0.950935 By Michael Swedberg. By Lelia N. Morris. Arranged by Terrence Niska. 20th Century,Contemporary,Sacred. Score. 8 pages. Niska Music Publishing #6615429. Published by Niska Music Publishing (A0.950935). I don’t recall when I first heard this hymn, but it has long been one of my favorites. One of my most powerful memories is singing it graveside when my Uncle John passed away from cancer at a fairly young age. My brother, Kurt, his wife, Lorie, and I sang an arrangement I had written for the service. It came as no surprise to me that it was one of the first hymns that I chose to arrange for piano solo. The melody moves from a fairly straightforward statement in the left hand for the first verse to the right hand in the second verse where it is adorned by a swirling pattern of sixteenth notes. The melody returns to the left hand for the last verse where it takes on a slightly different feel before the prelude returns to the opening material to finish with the same serenity with which it began.

Piano Solo - Level 5 - Digital Download SKU: A0.1073971 By Michael Swedberg. By Terrence Niska. 20th Century,Classical,Contemporary. Score. 4 pages. Niska Music Publishing #678237. Published by Niska Music Publishing (A0.1073971). The influence of Erik Satie can be heard in this prelude as it brings to mind his famous “Gymnopedie.� The unusual meter of 7/8 gives the music a feeling of the vastness of time and space as it almost never seems to end, but continuously spins out from measure to measure. Judicious use of the pedal is necessary to maintain the crystal clarity of the music while still allowing the harmonies to transport the listener to a realm of unending serenity and calm.

Piano Solo - Level 4 - Digital Download SKU: A0.1378686 By Michael Swedberg. By Terrence Niska. 21st Century,Classical,Romantic Period. Score. 8 pages. Niska Music Publishing #963347. Published by Niska Music Publishing (A0.1378686).

Piano Solo - Level 5 - Digital Download SKU: A0.1038549 By Michael Swedberg. By Terrence Lee Niska. 20th Century,Classical,Romantic Period. Score. 4 pages. Niska Music Publishing #643518. Published by Niska Music Publishing (A0.1038549). These are not the winds of a beautiful autumn day, full of sunlight and colored leaves gently wafting to the ground. These breezes have a bite as though they are a precursor to a gathering storm. There is a relentless feeling behind the music, and the player must be keenly aware of the melodic voices in both hands and bring them out amidst the swirling triplets.

Piano Solo - Level 3 - Digital Download SKU: A0.1277443 By Michael Swedberg. By Gustav Holst. Arranged by Terrence Niska. 21st Century,Classical,New Age,Pop. Score. 8 pages. Niska Music Publishing #869141. Published by Niska Music Publishing (A0.1277443). While I was still in high school, the moment I first heard Holst’s suite,“The Planets,� it quickly became one of my favorite works of Classical music. “Mars, the Bringer of War,� the first movement of the suite, was easily my favorite followed by “Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity.� The nobility of the slow theme, which this arrangement is based on, resonated deep within my soul. Holst later used the theme to set to music a poem by Sir Cecil Spring-Rice:I vow to thee, my country, all earthly things above,Entire and whole and perfect, the service of my love;The love that asks no questions, the love that stands the test,That lays upon the altar the dearest and the best;The love that never falters, the love that pays the price,The love that makes undaunted the final sacrifice.And there's another country, I've heard of long ago,Most dear to them that love her, most great to them that know;We may not count her armies, we may not see her King;Her fortress is a faithful heart, her pride is suffering;And soul by soul and silently her shining bounds increase,And her ways are ways of gentleness, and all her paths are peace.

Piano Solo - Level 5 - Digital Download SKU: A0.1125770 By Michael Swedberg. By Traditional French Carol. Arranged by Terrence Niska. Christmas,Contemporary,Holiday. Score. 8 pages. Niska Music Publishing #726510. Published by Niska Music Publishing (A0.1125770). This song has a long history with me. I first wrote a five-part vocal to be sung by the group Five By Design (of which I was a member) back in the late 1990s or early 2000s. Unfortunately, it never found its way in to our repertoire. It sat on my computer for quite a few years before I revised it to be sung as a trio with my brother, Kurt, and his wife, Lorie. I had written a vocal arrangement of the carol for us to sing at some Christmas concerts and a few years later, when putting this album together, I returned to the first chart and adapted it for piano solo. The meter of the song moves back and forth between 3/4 and 2/4 and conveys the joy and hopefulness of the opening lyrics: “He is born, the Divine Child, Play the oboe, resound the bagpipes. He is born, the Divine Child, Let us all sing of his arrival.� It is this combination of instruments that I tried to emulate in the introduction, with the bagpipes in the left hand and the oboes in the right. When the tune proper begins, there is a definite rhythmic vitality that is maintained throughout the prelude as it celebrates the long-awaited birth of Jesus as foretold by the prophets over 4,000 years ago. From start to finish, the influence of both George Winston and Mannheim Steamroller can be heard in the music.

Piano Solo - Level 4 - Digital Download SKU: A0.1376865 By Michael Swedberg. By Terrence Niska. 21st Century,Classical,Romantic Period. Score. 8 pages. Niska Music Publishing #961431. Published by Niska Music Publishing (A0.1376865).

Piano Solo - Level 5 - Digital Download SKU: A0.1125783 By Michael Swedberg. By Traditional French Melody. Arranged by Terrence Niska. Christmas,Contemporary,Holiday. Score. 8 pages. Niska Music Publishing #726523. Published by Niska Music Publishing (A0.1125783). As much as “O Come All Ye Faithful� is a lullaby, this arrangement is brimming with a sense of hushed excitement right from the opening measures as the two young girls from the title race to tell the town of the glorious events taking place. The first statement of the melody enters in the right hand with rather simple harmony, but the left hand keeps the excitement alive via a flowing stream of sixteenth notes. There is an abbreviated return of the opening material which leads to the second verse, but this time the left hand rises up to ring out with a bell-like tolling to awaken the townspeople. Meanwhile the right hand plays the melody in octaves, ringing out above to announce the news to one and all. By the third verse, the left hand is playing chords like a brass choir underpinning the melody, which now finds itself amid a flurry of triplets as the joyous tidings news spread far and wide. There is a return to the opening section, concluding with a final cascade from the top of the keyboard to the bottom and ending with a final “Amen!�.