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Piano & Voice With Brenda

Piano and Voice Training that WORKS.

  • Meet Brenda
  • The Versatile Musician
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  • Meet Brenda
  • The Versatile Musician
  • Lessons
  • Guest Artist
  • Blog
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  • Connect

This Christmas Donny Hathaway Piano Tutorial

Everyone has a favorite holiday song and I think This Christmas by Donny Hathaway is mine. In my This Christmas Piano tutorial, I will teach you step-by-step how to sing and play this song. Super fun and a bit tricky!

This Christmas was released in 1970 and was written by Donny Hathaway and Nadine McKinnor.  It is referred to as the "premier holiday songs written by an African American" and paved the way for other Black artists to write massive holiday hits.  (I'm looking at you Mariah Carey!)

Remarkably, the song wasn't much of a hit for Hathaway and only really hit its stride recently, making it's first appearance in the Hot 100 in 2020.

Fun fact:  Donny Hathaway plays piano and sings on this track.  One more vote for Piano Skills for Singers!

3 Steps to Authentic Pop Piano Arrangements

I detail this entire process in this video. I have used this process to learn hundreds and hundreds of songs and my students absolutely love the simplicity of learning pop songs on piano this way.

I find a copy of the lyrics or I just type them up from the recording.  I then figure out the chords on a chord website or I just learn them by ear.  If you want to learn to play by ear click here for a video I made where I outline how to learn to play by ear

Step #1: Learn the Chords to This Christmas on Piano

This Christmas Lyrics and Chords

Are you lacking confidence with your jazz chords? 

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Step #1a: Learn the Jazz Piano voicings to This Christmas

As always, you are welcome to just play root position chords for the entire song, if that is comfortable for you.  Remember that I want you to be able to play this song ASAP, rather than take weeks to learn it.  Once you are able to play the root position chords, you are welcome to try out these snazzy jazz piano voicings.

I am combining two simple jazz piano voicing strategies: 3-5-7-9 and 3 note shell voicings.  Want to dive deeper into jazz piano techniques?  Check out Jazz Piano Accompaniment - my signature “Learn to play jazz from scratch course”.  It’s only available in The Versatile Musician.  Join now!

Jazz piano voicings for This christmas by Donny Hathaway

Step #2: Learn the Accompaniment Strategy to This Christmas

This is a simple groove that replicates what the band plays on the original recording. The good news is that it’s not too hard to sing and play at the same time.

Accompaniment strategy for This Christmas by Donny Hathaway

Step #3: Learn the introduction to This Christmas

The introduction to This Christmas is tricky, but super fun to play once you get it under your fingers. 

Make sure your posture is secure when you work on this, as it will help to ensure you can play it without strain.  Check out this video for help with your piano posture.

Work it very slowly at first and learn it hands separately.  Once you have gotten each hand sorted out, put them together and work the tempo up.  Good luck!

Instrumental introduction for This Christmas by Donny Hathaway in music notation.

Step #4: Put the whole thing together!

Remember that you can (and should!) customize this to fit your skill level. If the chord inversions are too challenging for you, then play them all root positiong. If you want to level it up, try altering the groove or adding some solo fills.

Try to avoid getting stuck in the little details! The goal is for you to learn to sing and play more songs - not drown in a pool of perfectionism. Have fun - it’s only music!

Want some more great holiday-influenced piano tutorials?

How to play A Long December by Counting Crows

How to play What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?

Want some more great pop song tutorials?

How to play Watermelon Sugar by Harry Styles

How to play Hold On by Justin Bieber on piano

How to play Cruisin' by Smokey Robinson on piano

Ready for the next step? Have I got something for you!

Photo of Brenda Earle Stokes overhead of the piano while she sings and plays piano. Crash Course in Piano Skills for Singers in black and pink lettering. Blue banner on the bottom that reads "Learning piano doesn't have to be hard."

Crash Course in Piano Skills for Singers is a gentle, no-fluff, let's-get-this-done 45-day piano course that is based on the principals of my bestselling Piano Skills for Singers courses.  For a few more weeks, it's only $49 - a crazy good deal for all that you're getting.  

This is a perfect starting point for anyone who needs to build their basic piano skills or wants to incorporate basic piano into their voice lessons.  Learn:

  • 5 note finger exercises that double as voice exercises
  • How to play chords
  • How to fake accompaniments from a lead sheet for play for yourself and your students.
  • How to build a practice routine that WORKS

You get:

🎹 7 video modules with a close up of the piano keyboard.

🎹 23 page course book with meticulously notated EVERYTHING.

🎹 A brilliantly organized practice checklist

🎹 Weekly emails to inspire, motivate, offer practice tips and give bonus material

"Thanks Brenda. This was a fantastic workshop and I’m excited to use your approach to improve my playing for my students."

- Sarah

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Learn Jazz Piano is the online course that has taught hundreds of pianists all over the world how to confidently play piano.

Learn Jazz Piano covers it all - from voicings, to playing jazz standards, to walking bass lines and playing ballads and Bossa novas.  You'll also learn to improvise!

Work at your own pace and become the Jazz pianist you've always dreamed of.

 

Category: Piano for Singers, Piano Lessons, Tutorials

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