Theory Is Fun / Book 1 (Hirschberg) [Paperback] Review

a good book for teaching elementary aged children music theory, it covers the basics and some more advanced stuff as well. lots of Black and white illustrations, comics strips and such. the book teaches the note names and spelling with pictures and stories.

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Product Description:
THEORY IS FUN / Book 1, by David Hirschberg.

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The Complete Piano Player: Theory Book (Complete Piano Player Series) [Paperback] Review

Good for beginners to the subject.It's thorough and has many exercises and test to gauge understanding.

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A unique program for learning the fundamentals of music theory. Easy-to-follow text with clear examples. Plus self-test work.

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Schaum Note Speller / Book 2 (Revised) (Schaum Method Supplement) [Paperback] Review

I bought this to help me learn the notes for learning how to play piano. Mom recommended it. (she taught piano lessons when I was a baby 30 years ago)

She said it is a classic, and although it is kind of boring, this is what's needed to learn the notes so that I can ultimately read music and play Mozart. It seems to be working.

I leave it in the bathroom with a pencil, and work on it for those few minutes when there's nothing else to do with my mind. ;)

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Product Description:
The Schaum NOTE SPELLER has the unqualified testimonial of thousands of teachers who pronounce it 'The Best.' Musical facts, beginning with line and space numbers are taught. Students learn by doing, since this book is in workbook form. This saves valuable lesson time, and immediately shows any mistakes in the beginner's thinking.

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Play Piano By Ear (Book & CD) [Paperback] Review

The book should be titled how to play G7 chords. Most of the book is how to play standards-you know like Ellington and such. Oh, it teaches you,um, G7....G9...G... and G13-terrible sounding chords. And it comes with a CD where he plays, but it does not match the songs he uses in the book

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Product Description:
Finally, a book designed for piano players who want to play popular standards and pop songs by ear. Here is an absolutely new and simple method that will enable players to improvise at the piano. This book covers the difference between reading music and playing by ear, chords, rhythms, module chains, and more, to help pianist master the art of sitting down at home or at a party without written music and producing their favorite songs.

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Jazz Keyboard Toolbox [Paperback] Review

This book provides a very understandable set of basic, but useful, concepts that apply to playing Jazz on the keyboard.As a percussionist, I think the information is also appropriate for mallet students. The CD is very helpfull, and supplies you with plenty of time (with the recorded material) to work with the tunes/techniquesin the book.Bill Cunliffe did a commendable job with this book.He put as much into this 48-page book as one could/should expect.

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Product Description:
Now you can learn to play jazz keyboard without knowing a lot of complicated music theory. This step-by-step method uses listening and play-along techniques that make learning to play jazz fun and easy, with just enough theory to understand the concepts. You will gain a solid knowledge of the basic tools needed for accompanying and soloing in any jazz setting. A CD is included, so you can play the examples and tunes along with a professional jazz band.

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Allegro Barbaro and Other Short Works for Solo Piano [Unabridged] [Paperback] Review

Bartok was the first composer who really got me interested in what one could still technically call "Classical music." I remember hearing his Piano Sonata No. 1, Sz. 80 for the first time and being completely blown away by it. It was so primal and yet still refined in a musical sense. It was like listening to a man lose his mind at the piano while still retaining enough intellect (musically) to function.

But onto the review:

To my dismay, this collection does not contain the Sz. 80 sonata, but it does contain a myriad of other Bartok works which perhaps define him as an artist even better. Bartok was truly our first ethnomusicologist. His experiments with recording the folk music of his homeland (Hungary) and other Eastern European countries and arranging it in the Western tradition brought Western music as far East as it had been up until that point. Sure, there were Russian composers before Bartok who integrated their own folk music into Western styles (The Five, Tchaikovsky, even Rachmaninov), but Bartok's Eastern European studies are a different animal all together.

For starters, Bartok studied Western music under the care of Hugarian teachers at the Royal Academy of Music at Budapest. Here he was perpetually influenced by teachers (Franz Liszt [indirectly], Janos Koessler) and other students (Zoltan Kodaly) who had already begun studies of their own folk music in comparison to Western styles. This book contains great examples of these folk influences translated into the Western style in the intellectual and profound way that Bartok was known for.

This book features Bartok's shorter works like the Romanian Christmas Carols and Hungarian Peasant Songs that offer the average Western listener an abstract approach to Bartok's homeland. The seemingly unnatural rhythms (which the pianist will undoubtedly have trouble with at first) come second nature to the folk music of Eastern Europe. And by reading and playing through this book, the music student will see that Bartok's fundamental understanding of music is unbelievably far removed from the understanding of music that Westerners are raised in.

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Product Description:
Treasury of rewarding piano works from one of the 20th century's most influential composers. Includes the dancelike Allegro Barbaro, a sonorous, boisterous piece of power and bravura; 15 Hungarian Peasant Songs; six Rumanian Folk Dances; 20 Rumanian Christmas Carols; and eight Improvisations on Hungarian Peasant Songs. Musical gems for pianists at intermediate and advanced skill levels.


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Alfred's Basic Adult All-in-One Piano Course: Level 3 (Alfred's Basic Adult Piano Course) [Plastic Comb] Review

I am nearing the end of Alfred's All-in-one Book 1, so have only browsed this book. But, I can comment on what I like about the methodology and the books:

1. The progression of theory, exercises, and performance materials is very well thought out. When Palmer says this exercise should be practiced daily, do it. It really helps improve your technical skills.

2. The quality of the construction is high - big easy to read notes and spiral bound so the book lays flat on the piano music stand.

3. The songs are interesting and varied, introducing different genres of music.

The only slight drawback is there is ample opportunity to improvise on a number of the songs and try your hand at composing, but Palmer does not point this out. It is definitely worth doing, really reinforcing a thorough understanding of chords, keys, chord inversions, and other concepts introduced in the text.

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Product Description:
Alfred's Basic Adult All-in-One Course is designed for use with an instructor for the beginning student looking for a truly complete piano course. It is a greatly expanded version of Alfred's Basic Adult Piano Course that will include lesson, theory, technic and additional repertoire in a convenient, "all-in-one" format. This comprehensive course features written assignments that reinforce each lesson's concepts, a smooth, logical progression between each lesson, a thorough explanation of chord theory and playing styles, and outstanding extra songs, including folk, classical, and contemporary selections. At the completion of this course, the student will have learned to play some of the most popular music ever written and will have gained a good understanding of basic musical concepts and styles.

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Alfred's Basic Adult Theory Piano Book: Level One (2462) [Paperback] Review

This is an excellent book for learning piano theory for beginners.I flew through it considering I've already played a bit and just needed a review.Try to buy it new if you can, as cleaning out another person's old notes and answers is a real pain.

I also definitely recommend this for adults (as the title says)because it cuts out all the little-Bo-Peep type stuff that are in the basic beginners books I've come across.

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Every concept and principal introduced in the Lesson Books of Alfred's Basic Adult Piano Course is reinforced in each of the correlated Theory Books. Important tips are included that make learning chord progressions even easier!

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How to Play from a Fake Book (Keyboard Edition) [Paperback] Review

I am an adult who used fake books extensively as a teenager when I played an accordion in a small combo.Now, (much, much later), I am trying to learn how to play an electronic keyboard competently - with both hands, and Blake Neely's book has become a very valuable addition to my library.I knew how to use a fake book and play melodies with my right hand, but how to play a tune and have it sound nice on a piano (or in my case, a Yamaha PSR540 keyboard)??? In this book, I found the answer.It starts out with a very simple left hand accompaniment - just play the root of the chord. It then continues to build up competence, step-by-step: add a fifth to the root; next learn the composition of a major chord and play the whole chord; learn about chord inversions and how to play them; learn minor chords and their inversions; learn how to easily switch from one chord to another without having to jump all over the keyboard; learn left-hand options that extend beyond simply playing the full block chord, that is, use a two-part chord, alternate the root and fifth in playing the two-part chord, play the chord as an arpeggio.
Throughout all these lessons, songs are provided to try things out and the chosen songs do, indeed, sound great using the technique explained in the lessons.While learning to play from a single line of music, the songs will show both the treble and bass clef so you can see what your left-hand should be doing. It then will provide some songs with just the treble clef to see if you can do it yourself.
Of course, you, the student, have to take the time to learn these chords.The book shows you what they are, but you have to do your homework -- it will take a great deal of practice for most players to see a chord and instantly be able to finger that chord on the keyboard.
I haven't completed this book yet -- I am still in the process of mastering all the major and minor chords so I can play them instantly.But all of the above was covered in the first 27 pages of this 88-page book (including 20 songs to illustrate the lessons). Coming up are seventh chords, augmented and diminshed chords, variations on the seventh chord, ninths and elevenths -- and 40 more songs to illustrate the chords and techniques discussed in each of the lessons.I am looking forward to devouring each lesson and loving every minute of it.After all, with a fake book, one has hundreds of pieces with which to practice the techniques being taught in this book. I heartily recommend this book to anyone who wants to play well from the many fake books available in today's market.

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Product Description:
Ever wondered how to create better accompaniments for the melodies in your favorite fake books? This "teach yourself" book introduces you to chord building, various rhythmic styles, and much more, so that you play the songs you like just the way you want them. Keyboard players with a basic understanding of notation and sight-reading will be on their way to more fun with fake books. The relaxed tone of the text and selection of fun songs keep How to Play from a Fake Book entertaining throughout - perfect for amateur musicians, or as a supplement for keyboard teachers and their students.

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