Songwriting can be something of an elusive pursuit. A lot of the time, if you sit down purposely to write a song, you’ll find yourself staring at a blank page or screen with little or no inspiration. Other times, inspiration can strike when you’re in the cheese aisle at the supermarket. Wherever you happen to find yourself when the muse sticks its head above the parapet, turning the ideas that you hear in your head into a tangible creation that can be shared with the world at large is going to be difficult without some kind of musical tool to help.
Don’t just take our word for how great the piano can be as a songwriting partner – a great many famous artists have relied on the instrument to create some of their biggest hits. Freddie Mercury was a gifted pianist, as evinced by the classically-inspired piano sections of Bohemian Rhapsody. The piano is such a feature of this complex song that it couldn’t really have been written on anything else. Meanwhile, John Legend is a master of crafting sophisticated pop songs on the piano. Ordinary People is a terrific example of a brilliant piano and vocal arrangement – you’d be hard pushed to find a better mid-section anywhere than the one in this exquisite song. Elsewhere, award-winners like Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish and Olivia Rodrigo, none of whom are particularly thought of as piano players, all regularly exploit the piano’s versatility to craft major pop hits.
