20 classic movie songs to learn on piano
Check out these hand-picked songs and cues from cinematic classics — all in the ROLI Learn library
Who doesn’t love movies? From animated classics to action flicks, superheroes to spies, we all have our favourites. Regardless of genre, and whether you’re sitting in a movie theatre or curled up on the couch, the best of them have the ability to transport us somewhere else entirely, if just for a couple of hours or so.
A big part of that movie magic, for many of us, comes from the music. Would an epic battle hit the same way without those staccato strings? Would a sad moment feel so poignant without some twinkling piano? And would you even know Jaws was coming if you couldn’t hear his theme tune?
There’s no better way to relive your favorite movie memories than with the music that helped make them. And there’s no better way to do that than to learn to play them yourself. That’s where ROLI Learn comes in.
Learn movie songs on piano with ROLI Learn
Paired with ROLI Piano or Piano M, the ROLI Learn app for iOS, iPadOS and Android gets you playing along with your favourite songs and cues from day one. If you’ve ever played a video game like Guitar Hero or Rock Band, you’ll be familiar with how it works already: colored notes cascade off your screen and onto the glowing keys of your keyboard. Hit the right note at the right time, and you’re playing music. There are also hundreds of video lessons from real teachers, engaging exercises, and fun musical games.
The ever-growing ROLI Learn library features more than 1,000+ contemporary and classic hits, including all of the film songs below.
“Eye of the Tiger” from Rocky
Need some motivation to learn piano — or to do just about anything else? Start here. Written by rock band Survivor at Sly Stallone’s request (after Queen denied him the rights to “Another One Bites the Dust”), this anthem is sure to have you climbing the steps to piano progress in record time. It’s essential to really nail the rhythm with this track, so it might help to go a few rounds with it before declaring victory.
Theme from Jaws
Now that we’re all fired up, let’s return to the aforementioned shark story. You won’t be biting off more than you can chew with just two notes to worry about, but thanks to the genius of John Williams (a name we’ll be revisiting more than once today), they’re more than enough to strike fear into the heart of any swimmer. The tension here comes from the close interval between the two notes as well as the quickening-heartbeat rhythm and the gradual increase in volume.
“Moon River” from Breakfast at Tiffany’s
Composer Henry Mancini and lyricist Johnny Mercer wrote this song specifically to suit Audrey Hepburn’s vocal range for her unforgettable performance in the film of the same name. And with an Academy Award for Best Original Song alongside Grammys for both* Record of the Year* and Song of the Year, it clearly paid off. The challenge here is to replicate her delicate, flowing delivery with your own legato playing — connecting each note smoothly to the next by paying careful attention to rhythm and dynamics.
Main title from Forrest Gump
Alan Silvestri’s gentle title cue from Forrest Gump exemplifies the way his score helped retain a balance between laugh-out-loud moments and the more serious emotional themes of the film. It’s also a reflection of the impressive range of a composer equally well known for his work on Back to the Future, The Bodyguard, and the Avengers movies. This one’s another great exercise for improving your control of dynamics — the flowing melodies here demand a delicate touch.
“My Heart Will Go On" from Titanic
Composer James Horner had to work hard to convince director James Cameron that this cue ought to be a song in the first place. The latter was sold upon hearing Céline Dion’s demo, and the rest is history. It’s those very demo vocals in fact, that were used for the soundtrack itself. Now almost synonymous with the movie’s central love story, “My Heart Will Go On” was released as a single in 1997 and went on to reach number one in more than 25 different countries.
“He’s a Pirate” from Pirates of the Caribbean
Klaus Badelt and Hans Zimmer’s swashbuckling “He’s a Pirate”, used for the end credits of all five Pirates movies, has been the standout cue from the series and gone on to have a life of its own with high-profile remixes from the likes of Tiësto and Rebel. The track’s simple melody gains much of its power from its lively tempo, so rhythmic precision here will key. It’s also one that ought to be played loud, so don’t hold back!
“Defying Gravity” from Wicked
From one musical number to another, we move on to Wicked’s empowering underdog anthem, sung by Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande in the movie (and Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth in the original recording). It’s a musically complex one, with key changes coming thick and fast, a varying tempo, and syncopated melodies throughout. But fear not — just follow the lights, keep practicing, and you’ll be defying your own expectations in no time.
“A Whole New World” from Aladdin
Another Academy Award winner for Best Original Song, Alan Menkin and Tim Rice’s duet for Aladdin and Jasmine became the signature song from this 1992 classic. The first song from an animated Disney film to reach number one on the Billboard 100, it appears in the movie itself in two different versions: one sung by the character’s singing voice actors Brad Kane and Lea Salonga, and again over the end credits in the chart-topping version recorded by pop artists Peabo Bryson and Regina Belle. If you’re learning with ROLI Piano or two Piano Ms, this song’s steady bassline and busy right-hand parts make it a great duet for your hands.
“The Raiders March” from Raiders of the Lost Ark
Back to John Williams, and why not? Raiders director Steven Spielberg once said of the American composer, “Without John Williams, bikes don't fly and neither do brooms in Quidditch matches nor do men in red capes. There is no Force, dinosaurs do not walk the earth. We do not wonder, we do not weep, we do not believe” — and who would argue with him? William’s first Indiana Jones score was nominated for an Academy Award, but lost out to the score our next entry is taken from.
“Chariots of Fire” from Chariots of Fire
Beating John Williams to Best Original Score at the 1982 Academy Awards (and perhaps losing out only to Eye of the Tiger for Most Motivational Movie Music Ever) was synth-wizard Vangelis’s score for Chariots of Fire. The Greek composer’s trusty Yamaha CS-80 provides much of the sonic backdrop to that year’s Best Picture, the true story of two British athletes and their road to the 1924 Olympics. Released as a single, “Chariots of Fire” remains the only piece by a Greek artist to top the Billboard Hot 100.
Theme from Mission: Impossible
Better known nowadays as the film series starring Tom Cruise, Mission: Impossible takes its inspiration and theme tune from the 1966 TV series of the same name. Rather fitting to the theme of espionage is the fact that its bassline’s distinctive repeating rhythm—two dotted quarter notes followed by two regular quarter notes—symbolises the two long dashes and two short dashes of “MI” in Morse code.
The James Bond theme
Sticking with spy capers, and also with iconic melodies, we have Monty Norman’s theme for Britain’s favourite secret agent, James Bond. Originally backed by John Barry’s big band arrangement in the franchise’s first outing, Dr No, the simple guitar lick at this piece’s center works equally well on piano — and its chromatic movement makes it nice and easy for one-handed playing.
“The Imperial March” from Star Wars
More Williams now, with a bombastic take on Chopin’s funeral march that signals the arrival of Darth Vader with a similar degree of menace as the aforementioned Jaws theme. Its plodding chords may sound simple, but they make a great exercise for either hand — the trick is in playing each one cleanly and keeping the piece’s steady rhythm.
“Let It Go” from Frozen
When it comes to piano music from recent movies, it’s hard to overlook the anthem that is “Let It Go”. Featuring Idina Menzel’s vocals, this one song’s cultural influence almost rivals that of the movie itself. Better yet, the piano-heavy accompaniment is a great intermediate piece for any learner. But be warned, these chords have been known to incite spontaneous sing-alongs from friends, family, neighbors, and random passers-by alike.
“Stuff We Did” from Up
Another popular piano song from an animated movie is Michael Giacchino’s “Stuff We Did” from 2009’s Up. Unlike the previous entry, however, this one’s a tearjerker, albeit a beautiful one. Without giving too much away, we can say that these bittersweet piano chords recall an earlier cue that surely goes down as one of the saddest movie moments of all time. Note that while Piano M is built to last, it’s not waterproof — you’ve been warned.
The Batman theme
Like James Bond’s, the original Batman theme gains a sense of mystery from its heavy use of chromatic movement. Neil Hefti’s guitar-based theme for the 1966 series lends a surf vibe to the 12-bar blues, with the whole track interspersed by an 11-strong chorus singing “Batman!” Bizarrely, this theme was the subject of a popular rumor in the 90s (i.e., before it was so easy to check) that everyone had been remembering it wrong, that the word “Batman” didn’t actually feature anywhere, and the track had been purely instrumental all along.
“You’ve Got a Friend in Me” from Toy Story
Randy Newman’s instantly recognizable voice became a big part of Toy Story’s charm on its release in 1995. “You’ve Got a Friend in Me” is the clear standout from his original score, with a country sound that’s pitch-perfect for our introduction to Woody the cowboy doll, and a fitting message of friendship that led to its use as the theme song for all subsequent installments in the franchise. Fun fact: the keyboard player on this song, Randy Kerber, also played on the scores for several of the other movies in this list, including Titanic, Frozen, Mission: Impossible, Jurassic Park, and Forrest Gump.
“American Beauty” from American Beauty
Sticking with Newmans (Newmen?), Thomas’s score for American Beauty is an appropriately beautiful-but-unsettling one, combining unpatched percussion with mallets, strings, and plenty of piano. The haunting piano melody from this title cue, referred to affectionately as “the plastic bag theme” by Newman, is yet another that benefits from a light touch.
Theme from Jurassic Park
The last dinosaurs died out some 66 million years ago, so nobody knows exactly what they sounded like back then. This iconic track by John Williams, however, is indisputably the sound of dinosaurs today. Yes, this is the fifth Williams cue in our list, but Steven Spielberg has, to date, hired him for twenty-nine of his movies, so we don’t feel too bad about it. And with the themes from both E.T. and Schindler’s List in the ROLI Music Library too, it could easily have been seven.
“Comptine D'un Autre Été, l'Après-Midi” from Amélie
Loosely translating to "Nursery Rhyme from Another Summer, the Afternoon" this piece by Yann Tiersen perfectly captures the mood of this 2001 French-language classic — especially remarkable as the score was mostly composed before the film was shot. Not only was the film itself a huge hit, this cue in particular has been inspiring piano players to pick up or return to the instrument ever since its release. That, in our book, makes it some of the most influential piano music from any movie and a perfect place to end our list.
