Lefty's Cool Strut: Piano Sheet

Name: Lefty's Cool Strut: Piano Sheet
Brand: Alfred Music
SKU: 00-22465
Price: 3.50 USD
Availability: InStock

By Catherine Rollin

Level: Late Elementary

Item: 00-22465

$3.50

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This solo for left hand alone is sure to appeal to students with its jazzy style and beat. Written in C major, it begins with a descending bass line that sounds very much like the opening of a jazz solo played by a stringed bass. Various accidentals and swing eighth notes are used to further enhance the style of the piece. This solo is also an excellent review of bass clef reading and gets the left hand moving freely around the keyboard. A Federation Festivals 2024-2028 selection.

Don't just read it, hear it, play along with it, and watch your students grow with it. In MakeMusic Cloud, Lefty's Cool Strut: Piano Sheet comes alive with professional accompaniment, adjustable tempo, and built-in practice tools that turn solo practice into real progress.

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Publisher: Alfred Music

Page Count: 4

UPC: 038081227801

SKU: 00-22465

More about this title

About the Composer: Catherine Rollin

Catherine Rollin balances an active performance schedule with mentoring students who consistently place in competitions. She holds degrees from the University of Michigan and Oakland University School of Performing Arts, and her teaching reaches across the U.S., Canada, Japan, and Taiwan through workshops and masterclasses.

Rollin's compositions have earned commissions from MTNA, the Michigan Music Teachers Association, and Clavier Companion magazine. Her works appear regularly on the National Federation of Music Clubs Festivals Bulletin, and she has judged national-level competitions including the MTNA Student Composition Competition and the Lynn Freeman Olson Composition Contest. Her multimedia series Museum Masterpieces won recognition from ASCAP, and her chamber work Suite Detroit premiered at the 2018 MTNA national conference.

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Why we love this

Rollin understands what engages late elementary students without compromising musicianship. The piece delivers genuine jazz flavor, descending bass lines, swing articulation, strategic accidentals, all within a left hand that builds independence and confidence at the keyboard. A Federation Festivals selection that students actually want to play.

What to expect

Smooth and swinging with an unmistakable jazz attitude. The descending bass line immediately establishes a laid-back groove, while the accidentals and rhythmic variations keep ears engaged without demanding technical pyrotechnics.

Who it's for

Late elementary pianists ready to move beyond five-finger patterns and explore the entire keyboard. Students attracted to contemporary styles will find the jazz vocabulary both accessible and cool enough to sustain interest.

How to get the most out of it

Let the descending bass line breathe with a loose, walking quality rather than metronomic precision. The jazz idiom rewards slight rhythmic flexibility.
Work the swing eighth notes in isolation before assembling full phrases. Mark exactly where the swing begins to avoid a straight-rhythm default.
Explore hand position shifts on the keyboard as natural moments for tension and release; don't treat them as obstacles to hide.
Balance the left hand's independence against the overall pulse. The piece should sound confident, not choppy.

How to use it

Feature this as a solo recital piece or include it in a jazz-inflected concert alongside other contemporary works. It also makes an excellent demonstration of how classical training translates into stylistic freedom and phrasing.