Today, we will go through some of the best piano soundtracks here!
Sometimes you don’t need to watch a movie to know its soundtrack. Some movie soundtracks are so beautiful that they become more famous than the films they belong to.
It’s not a coincidence that some of the best movies have unforgettable soundtracks. Good soundtracks can connect us with the characters and make us experience all kinds of emotions.
Though movie scores can make use of any instrument, many beautiful soundtracks are written mainly for the piano. Due to the capability of the piano to express a wide variety of feelings and moods, it is commonly used in movie scores.
The list I’ve created contains some of the most famous piano soundtracks that you should definitely learn. However, I’ve also included the ones that are not that famous but as beautiful as the famous ones. Sometimes a movie can’t be well promoted due to financial constraints but it shouldn’t stop us from discovering their hidden treasures!
The good news is that these best piano soundtracks aren’t hard to play at all. I hope this list will give you some inspiration and you include some of these movie scores in your repertoire or playlist!
By the way, if you are interested in piano music, you might like these blog posts as well:
Comptine d’un autre été : L’Après-midi
- Movie: Amélie
- Composer: Yann Tiersen
Composed by Yann Tiersen, the Amelie soundtrack is probably the most famous movie soundtrack in film history! It’s phenomenal, iconic, and timeless. I remember it was one of the first piano soundtracks I learned to play on the piano and my friends would be impressed every time I played it 😅.
There are so many easy tutorials on the internet to learn this beautiful movie score. If you are a beginner piano player, you might consider including this famous soundtrack in your repertoire since it’s extremely popular yet easy to play.
Theme From Schindler’s List
- Movie: Schindler’s List
- Composer: John Williams
This is another iconic and legendary soundtrack that received many prestigious awards like OSCAR and BAFTA. I think it is one of the most emotional movie themes in history.
This movie score is also famous for its beautiful violin solo part. Find a violinist and you will make your audience cry!
The Heart Asks Pleasure First
- Movie: The Piano
- Composer: Michael Nyman
Next, we have this masterpiece from the Oscar-winning movie “The Piano”. I highly recommend you to watch this movie if you are a piano player. Most of the soundtracks in the movie are for solo piano, which you may enjoy listening to.
Interesting fact:
Released the same year as “The Schindler’s List” in 1993, the soundtrack of “The Piano” was also nominated for the best movie score at BAFTA awards. However, it lost to “Schindler’s List”.
I’m Forrest… Forrest Gump
- Movie: Forrest Gump
- Composer: Alan Silvestri
Another Oscar-nominated movie score, the soundtrack of the Forrest Gump is one of the sweetest and heart-touching movie themes ever composed. Any beginner can play this famous movie theme since it is quite simple.
Una Mattina
- Movie: The Intouchables
- Composer: Ludovico Einaudi
A very calming and peaceful piano piece.
The Italian composer Ludovico Einaudi has composed some of the best neo-classical pieces of this century and this beautiful movie score is no exception.
Mia&Sebastian’s theme
- Movie: La La Land
- Composer: Justin Hurwitz
The soundtrack of “La La Land” is a great example of a movie score exceeding the movie itself. Some even say that the movie was shooted just for this music 😄.
Though we don’t know if it’s true, we can agree that this soundtrack is heavenly beautiful!
Time
- Movie: Inception
- Composer: Hans Zimmer
Chances are high that you didn’t see the movie “Inception” but heard this legendary soundtrack. The original music opens up with a minimal solo piano playing the main chords. However, the music gets bigger and bigger with strings sections joining.
This movie score is nothing but a masterpiece!
Stuff We Did
- Movie: Up!
- Composer: Michael Giacchino
Powerful movie scores don’t have to be complicated. This extremely easy piano score touches our hearts with its simplicity!
American Beauty
- Movie: American Beauty
- Composer: Thomas Newman
This is another famous movie theme that is quite easy to play. American Beauty received several awards and got nominated for many prestigious awards like GRAMMY and BAFTA.
New Moon (The Meadow)
- Movie: The Twilight Saga
- Composer: Alexandre Desplat
This piano soundtrack of Twilight is very emotional and it takes me to my childhood when I used to fangirl over all the Twilight series😹
Anyway, this piano soundtrack is a perfect choice if you are looking for new pieces to play. It’s simple, beautiful and touching.
Cinema Paradiso
- Movie: Cinema Paradiso
- Composer: Ennio Morricone
It would be a huge shame if I didn’t include Ennio Morricone in a movie soundtracks list. He was one of the best film music composers of the 20th century and composed some of the most legendary movie scores of all time.
Cinema Paradiso is a very sweet and joyful movie theme. Also, I loved this arrangement for solo piano which you might enjoy too!
Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence
- Movie: Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence
- Composer: Ryuichi Sakamoto
The multi-talented Japanese composer Ryuichi Sakamoto’s first attempt at film scoring, the soundtrack won the BAFTA award for the Best Film Music in 1983.
This movie soundtrack is famous for its beautiful piano riff, which repeats throughout the piece with different variations.
A Thousand Times Good Night
- Movie: Romeo and Juliet
- Composer: Abel Korzeniowski
A Thousand Times Good Night is undoubtedly one of my favorites on this list. I remember falling in love with the piece the first time I heard it in the movie.
It is romantic, magical, sad, and moving.
Indeed, the whole soundtrack album for Romeo and Juliet is wonderful, and I highly recommend that you listen to the rest of the album.
Morning Passages
- Movie: The Hours
- Composer: Philip Glass
Philip Glass composes the most impressive solo piano pieces and “Morning Passages” is no exception. Glass perfectly reflects his own minimalist and repetitive style in this soundtrack which makes it unbelievably beautiful.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SiJat1L8rg
Hannah and Volmer
- Movie: A Cure For Wellness
- Composer: Benjamin Wallfisch
The first moment I heard this score in the movie, I immediately started to search for its sheet music. It sounded beautiful and I wanted to play it so bad 😅
It’s a creepy piano lullaby that amazingly reflects the tension in the movie. It is simple yet impressive!
Together We Will Live Forever
- Movie: The Fountain
- Composer: Clint Mansell
I don’t know about you but I feel like I can listen to this soundtrack forever. This music expresses something beyond all the emotions and I don’t even know what it is.
Kate&David
- Movie: Dear Zachary
- Composer: Kurt Kuenne
This movie soundtrack is one of the most beautiful piano pieces I’ve ever heard in my life. I still don’t understand why this score is not as famous as the other piano movie scores.
The music is very heart-touching just like the story itself!
Merry-Go-Round of Life
- Movie: Howl’s Moving Castle
- Composer: Joe Hisaishi
Composed for the Japanese animated movie Howl’s Moving Castle, this soundtrack features a very sweet piano part that is quite famous. The best thing is that it is easy to learn yet gorgeous enough to impress your audience!
Conclusion
This is the end of the list of the 18 best piano soundtracks to play.
What was your favorite among them?
Do you know any other piano soundtrack you want to share?
Let me know in the comments section below 😊
3 comments
MAN FROM EARTH & ROAD TO PERDITION (both masterpeice films as well)
Thanks for sharing. Got to add to my collection for easy listening scores.
MAN FROM EARTH (“John and Sandy”)
ROAD TO PERDITION (“Road to Chicago”)
Both masterpeice films as well.
Thanks for sharing. Got to add to my collection for easy listening scores
Thanks a lot for the additions :)!