Customer Reviews
Very good, though a little challenging for self study - By: Mr. O. de Selincourt, 25 Oct 2008 
I very much respect the choices of music in this book - the author has provided classical, folk, ragtime music etc., simplified where necessary, rather than having you play nursery rhymes, which can be infuriating for an adult beginner.
The only fault I can draw is that is proving a little challlenging for self-study (which is how I am using it) - it moves quite swiftly, & provides only relatively limited explanations of some of the concepts it introduces, which might be a problem for those who lack the temperament for a bit of an uphill struggle.
I cannot mark it down for this, however, since it appears to be intended for use as a textbook, yet is still my preferred book in my attempts to self-teach.
Good! - By: Ms. E. Oakey, 13 Sep 2008 This is a reallly good piano book, already being able to read music it takes you through everything & gives interesting exercises to practise. Its probably not best for a complete music beginner but for those who want something straight forward & easy to learn from it is just right.
Comes to the point a lot quicker than most other courses. - By: C. Schneider, 09 Jan 2001 How did I get to 5 stars, if I still have some negative things to say? This whole course, including three books, is compared to others, the best one I have seen so far. Other books spend up to 20 pages at the start on teaching the reader how to read music. This is very annoying for anybody who can already read music or even play an instrument. In this course you learn to associate the printed notes with the right keys on the piano. You acquire the names of the notes as you go along, so experienced musicians, as well as unexperienced musicians to be, will enjoy this course. This second book deals wiht the major scale, tied quavers & semi quavers. It also, just like book 1 did, explains many useful musical terms & gives practical hints on the right posture & fingering. You will however need alll three books to be able to play satisfactory at the end of the course. Furthermore the exercise pieces are very easy & classical pieces are usuallly shortened & adapted. This however has the advantage that the reader can, from the very start on, play decent sounding melodies. I would still recommend to buy an additional book of classical pieces & practice them independently in order to make a proper progress. This book is very easy to understand & the exercises are kept simple. I personallly would like something a little bit more challlenging, but as I mentioned above, other piano courses are far worse when it comes to the skill level. This is an excellent book for both, the autodidact reader who will either be happy to leave his/her skills at the level this book provides & also for somebody who wishes to play in a more professional way & is willing to put some extra effort, independent study & self initiative into his/her work.
