Vocal Books

Vocal books include songbooks, vocal sheet music and singing method books that help you learn songs, rehearse them and sing with accompaniment. Here you will find album songbooks by pop and rock artists with piano accompaniment and chords, collections of jazz standards, Czech school songbooks and classical songs and arias in Urtext editions. Most books are in English or Czech, while some classical editions also include German lyrics. Your choice depends on what you want to sing, who will accompany you and how well you read music.

Which songbook should you choose for pop and rock?

Album songbooks from Hal Leonard contain the songs from a single album, such as Taylor Swift Lover and Evermore, Billie Eilish Hit Me Hard and Soft or Sabrina Carpenter Short N' Sweet. Collections such as Coldplay Sheet Music Collection, The Beatles Sheet Music Collection and Queen Deluxe Anthology select songs from across an artist's work, while The New Decade Series focuses on one decade at a time, from the sixties through to the 2010s. Many are arranged for piano, voice and guitar: the melody and lyrics have their own stave, with the piano accompaniment below and chord symbols above.

If you play only simple piano parts, try the Super Easy Songbook series of simplified songbooks, for example The 1970s or Taylor Swift. The melody is simplified, and the note names are written directly inside the notes. For piano music without vocals, visit the Sheet music for piano category.

What is a fake book, and what is The Real Vocal Book used for?

A fake book is a songbook in which each song has only the melody, lyrics and chord symbols, without a written-out accompaniment. The pianist or guitarist creates their own accompaniment from the chords, which is why these books are used by singers with bands and musicians playing at dances. The Real Vocal Book, a vocal songbook with jazz standards such as All Of Me and Angel Eyes, follows this format, as do The Ultimate Rock Pop Fake Book and The Disney Fake Book with songs from Disney films. The Hear It and Sing It! series introduces singers to blues and modal jazz.

Which songbooks cover school use and Czech songs?

The Já & písnička songbook from publisher G+W has six volumes. The first volume is intended for the first stage of basic school, the second for the second stage and the later volumes for secondary schools; the sixth volume contains 146 songs with notation and chords, from folk songs to pop, rock, country and musical theatre hits. The Zpívání nás baví textbooks are for music education in nursery schools and basic schools, while Pějme píseň dokola 3 brings together 69 Czech folk songs, polkas, waltzes and spirituals arranged for piano or accordion.

How do you choose sheet music for classical songs and arias?

Classical songs in the range are mainly Urtext editions from Bärenreiter Praha. Urtext means that the musical text is based on the composer's manuscripts and first editions, without later editorial alterations. These include Písně II by Antonín Dvořák for voice and piano, the aria Song to the Moon from Rusalka for soprano and piano, Slezské písně by Leoš Janáček and Nový Špalíček by Bohuslav Martinů, setting texts from Moravian folk poetry.

With classical songs, check which voice the edition is written for. Písně z Těšínska by Petr Eben is for low voice, meaning alto or bass, Čtyři písně o Marii by Martinů is for mixed choir a cappella, and Česká píseň by Bedřich Smetana is for mixed choir with piano. If you are just starting to sing, the method book První pěvecké kroky by Blanka Chládková covers the basic tasks of the first years of study. For more sheet music by instrument, visit Music Sheets and Tabs.