4 comments about Improve Your Piano Playing.

1. There are many of us who studied piano and played well for years only to gradually diminish practice time until poor habits distort what comes from the keyboard to the ear, frustrating a return to past abilities. The brief but very informative 'manual', IMPROVE YOUR PIANO PLAYING by Dr. John Meffen, a noted British pianist, musicologist, teacher and conductor, offers one of the most sound collections of information that will most assuredly restore faith in shy pianists by producing what the title states.
   
   Dr. Meffen is a realistic teacher, a man who gets to the core of his subject, giving a refresher course on the construction of the piano that is mandatory to understanding the clues to improving performance practices. He then details the common mistakes pianists make - repeating mistakes without analyzing why they are being made, substituting speed for correct technique and offers sound methods to improve these areas. Each section is followed by a list of questions for the reader/pianist: this is not an exam but rather a guide to diagnosing personal problems with fingering, phrasing, pedaling, and interpretation of composer's works. All of this is done with a style of writing that can only be called 'user-friendly' as well as user-supportive: Dr. Meffen keeps the tone light but strict, seeming to have little time for the lazy pianist who is reading his book for a quick fix. The book is written for those who already have some degree of proficiency with the piano, and like any good teacher Dr. Meffen takes a no-nonsense approach to guiding the 'once-upon-a-time-pianist' back to the pleasures of playing well again.
   
   The proof of the pudding is in the application of his principles and advice. Note: it works! Highly Recommended for those avoiding the once loved keyboard. Grady Harp, May 07



2. Piano teacher and music scholar Dr. John Meffen here blends humor with technique to go beyond the usual 'how to play piano' instructional, adding a focus on how to play the music of your choice the way you imagine it should be heard. How can a book do this? By teaching a step-by-step program for fingering, showing how to handle tricky passages, and teaching phrasing, tone and pedaling, among other things. Piano students who already have some instruction and collections catering to both amateur musicians and beginning students will find this an excellent, well rounded survey focusing on improvement strategies.



3. This book offers many strategies to help improve your piano playing at a really good price. It doesn't claim to do miracles not encouraging any kind of false hopes. There's a quiz at the end of each chapter that will allow you to know wether you've learnt the "lesson" or not.
   
   There are many books out there that claim to do miracles and make your practice easy. Some of them might actually work, but most surely do not. This book will give some really strong basis upon which to build your piano technique. After this, you can try with other books, never forgetting what you've learnt on this one. The strategies given in this book will be good for players of all levels (from beginer to advanced).
   
   Happy piano playing !



4. The author discusses basic problems of piano playing in a no-nonsense style. He doesn't promise to make you a concert pianist with 5 minutes of practice time a day, doesn't develop lofty, far-fetched theories on true artistry at the instrument and doesn't mystify the art of piano playing.
   
   Since most books on the subject unfortunately suffer from at least one of these ailments, this tribute to common sense is an especially welcome contribution to the literature on the piano.

5 comments about The Art of the Piano: Its Performers, Literature, and Recordings Revised and Expanded Edition.

1. This is a rich, passionately written, concise encyclopedia about great pianists and great piano composers. It includes brief but interesting biographical material, and astute critiques of the professional and creative apects of the artists lives. David Dubal absolutely loves music and has a profound, sensitive and clear understanding of it. The CD of classic recordings that is included in the back of this book is a fabulous compliment to a most useful guide and reference for all those who enjoy piano music.



2. and although Mr. Dubal is a recognized scholar of some repute, that talent does not include pencil drawings. His drawings of performers and composers are embarrasingly bad... and why did he think that Beethoven died with his wig on!?! That was a totally jarring drawing, but the overview of the great piano compositions are worth the price of the book.



3. Art is an expression of the human spirit, a search for meaning, an interpretation of humanity, an adventure into transcendence, an insight into the mysteries of life, a deep personal reflection on life, a mystical experience, a valuable addition to universal culture - hopefully, a sublime and humbling human endeavour.
   
   The same goes for just about every form of artistic expression, be it creative or re-creative. We recognize value in the work of an artist because we admire their personal, insightful interpretation of being human, and because of their individuality, peculiarity, uniqueness of expression.
   
   Hence, I believe the art of piano and the art of pianists, for that matter, should be all of the above as expressed by means of this particular musical instrument, especially so where renown, life-long, devoted pianists are concerned. By virtue of their enduring dedication, their interpretations of compositions and composers become authoritative and consequently demand attention, interest and effort. Furthermore, the values prevailing in the historical period of the composition, not necessarily the current values of instant gratification, should also be of the essence to appreciate a pianist's interpretation.
   
   As authoritative interpreters of piano literature will put it, the art of interpreting is not just about playing the piano or "just being a piano player", to recall a specific quote. Such outstanding pianists should be appreciated in their own terms, within their own holistic conception of the music world, and preferably never compared with other pianists and certainly never against preconceived standards or tastes.
   
   Yet often (luckily not always) music critics tend to assess features of musicians' specific performances rather than the insights of their interpretations of works, to the extent to which these features conform to, or deviate from, preconceived norms, expectations or trends - ie. the prescribed ways music should be played these days in the minds of critics.
   
   This interference introduces completely unnecessary alien distortions in the notion of a work of art. Music lovers will be well advised to avoid this interference altogether by ignoring critics completely and simply listening to the music making instead. Or simply going and finding the artists' own words in their published writings and transcribed interviews.
   
   I wish a generation of music critics was born who went about their business describing the uniqueness and added value of outstanding musicians' contributions to universal art, appreciating the outcome of their highest devotion in life, rather than the mechanics of whether they adjust to the critic's preconceived styles, measurements and preferences.
   
   Despite its numerous excellent bits and pieces, I am afraid The Art of Piano, by David Dubal, is rather a typical example of a piece of critique which, in the final analysis, sets about measuring the extent to which pianists fulfill the writer's preferred patterns of how in his mind musical masterworks should be rendered, thus the critic becoming the authority in music.
   
   The lists of recommended recordings of particular compositions, which form a large section of this book, also seem to follow at times the same whimsical "wish list" approach, with due respect and reverence to the outstanding artists involved.
   
   The whole project seems to me a great pity. If I disagree with the overall approach taken and some of the boldest statements made about pianists I know and deeply care about - How can I rely on what is being said about other pianists in this book?
   
   For long now there has been a pressing need for more music critics able to appreciate the positive contributions to music, to the arts and to the human spirit made by outstanding musicians whose talents the world has come to recognize as monuments to the human spirit.
   
   Is musician-making or otherwise the unavoidable fate of a music critic? Can a music critic do better than this for the sake of the art of music?



4. A great book covering the history of piano playing by the great and near great. Altogether, a truly enjoyable book for those who love piano music and the pianists who have played it.



5. I find it interesting that none of the reviews already posted seem to be aware of the atrocious level of misspellings, typos, factual errors, omissions, and generally dismal production values of this book. Here are some examples: for misspellings, we have "Jorge Rolet" (for Bolet), "Emil Saver" (for Sauer), "Casadesis" (for Casadesus), "Cyziffra" (for Cziffra), "Rachmanimoff," Carlo Maria "Giuliani" (for Giulini), Sergio "Fiorento" (for Fiorentino), "Firku_n_y" (for Firkusny), "rhaphsodies," "allimand", Liszt's "Funeralilles", "Leschetizsky" (for Leschetizky), "Fienberg" (for Feinberg), "Relich" (for Pogorelich) and so on and on. CD labels fare no better: "Marsten" (for Marston), "Arbitor" (for Arbiter, not to forget "OUCH Arbitor" on page 591), "Stradivarious", et cetera.
   
   Factual errors on the part of Dubal: Sauer did not record Chopin's B Minor Sonata. Egon Petri did not record Busoni's Toccata. Glenn Gould's last recital was not in Chicago in March 1964, but in Los Angeles the following month. Gould recorded 22, not 18, Beethoven Sonatas. Wanda Landowska was born in 1879, not 1877. Kathleen Dale, not Kathleen Long, is author of "Nineteenth-Century Piano Music." Shostakovich did not dedicate his Preludes and Fugues to Nikolayeva, nor did he record all 24 of them. Adam Harasiewicz did not record the complete works of Chopin. Persichetti wrote 12, not 11, piano sonatas. Liebermann's "Gargoyles" consist of four, not three, pieces. Rachmaninoff recorded seven, not "49," takes of his Midsummer Night's Dream Scherzo transcription. There is no Richter recording of Prokofiev's Sonata No.3 (he never played the piece). Rubinstein did not record Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsody No.3. Louis Kentner did not play all the Beethoven sonatas at his U.S. debut; he played them here four years later. Shall I go on?
   
   The book omits, without explanation, all piano four-hand and two-piano music as well as chamber music involving the piano. Those seeking information on this repertoire will be out of luck. Dubal lists timings for the Beethoven sonatas, but not say whose timings, or explain why these are the only works thus treated. He may provide descriptions of Bach's 48 Preludes and Fugues, but he provides no specific listings for the French Suites, English Suites, or Partitas, nor for any of the dozens of Haydn Sonatas. He ignores the piano works of Clara Schumann and Fanny Mendelssohn. Only one of Mozart's 17 variation sets is listed. He omits Couperin and Rameau, believing incorrectly that their keyboard works are "seldom played or recorded" by pianists.
   
   Dubal's listings of recordings, quite apart from questionable inclusions and omissions, also swarm with inaccuracies such as incorrect record labels and ambiguous CD or LP availability.
   
   Omissions in the section devoted to pianists are numerous. If you are looking for information concerning Joseph Villa, Werner Haas, Seta Tanyel, Gilbert Kalish, Piers Lane, Geoffrey Tozer, Germaine Thyssens-Valentin, Konstantin Scherbakov or Steven Osborne--all of whom are represented on many current CDs--you'll find nothing here.
   
   Dubal's own amateurish sketches of some 53 pianists and composers, in place of actual photographs, are hideous in the extreme and should not have even been considered for inclusion.
   
   Apparently neither the author nor anyone else connected to the book's production had either the expertise or the concern to insure a minimal standard of fact-checking or typographical accuracy. The sheer quantity of blunders eliminates any credibility the book might have for reference purposes. All concerned should be ashamed.
   
   Donald Manildi

3 comments about The Only Basic Piano Instruction Book You'll Ever Need: Learn to Play--from Reading Your First Notes to Constructing Complex Chords.

1. I am new to music and thought this might be "the only basic piano instruction I'll ever need". Maybe I am not musically talented enough, I feel that the book gone far too fast for a beginner - I even have hard time playing the first simple tune. Nevertheless, I must say that the content of the book is really robust and complete, it just that it doesn't suit me. I am better with "Alfred's Basic Adult Piano Course" series, and it is a good idea to check that series before you decide



2. I have dabbled in piano here and there and took a beginning class in college. I wanted to continue now that I am older, but didn't want to go through everything all over again. I was very pleased with this book. It did have all the basics, but it was quick enough that you weren't dwelling on them. It gave a great section on the different keys, which is what I am spending my time on now. I thought it was very clear, very straightforward and I enjoyed the exercises in them. I would definitely recommend this book for anyone who wants a summary of basic piano theory or who is committed to studying themselves.



3. This book was not a good choice to learn how to play the piano. It's good reading material...but not good to sit at the piano and try to play

5 comments about Piano Concertos Nos. 1, 2 and 3 in Full Score.

1. This edition has the full orchestra music as well as the piano music. But, all staffs are so tiny that you really can't do that much with it.



2. Regarding those who say that the type is too small to allow pianists to learn their parts from this version of the score: fine, get a 2-piano version for your technical mastery of the music, BUT get this too if you want to be a real musician when learning this music. [The same applies to singers and other instrumentalists when dealing with concerti and other such works, period - never rely only on the vocal/instrumental arrangements with piano...] This is an excellent edition and deserves its full 5 stars!!!



3. What to say...This book contains the 3 most beautiful peace of music ever written;if you had the luck to listen to them you'll know why. And if you're a musician, you'll want to play them (or at least a part of them, since they're treacherous hard to play..).And what's the best way to fully understand a concert in its greatness, if not the full score? Maybe somebody can think that the notes are a little tiny, but I personally find them perfectly clear, with the ossias, too.
   If you're a real musician, you'll love this wonderful product!



4. Not owning a piano nor having the requisite skill to do much in the way of playing (but knowing basic sight-reading), I've lately been enjoying getting the sheet music for some of the really impressive pieces I've run across, to attempt to follow along, or just get an idea of what's really behind all of those arrangements.
   
   I bought this book on a bit of an impulse after re-watching the film "Shine", which features bits of the "Rach 3", and having read a good bit about Rachmaninoff [...]. It just floors me, how performers, both in the picture and in real life (such as the Van Cliburn performance I found on yahoo.com Music), can get off some of the stuff that's in those notes, particularly those rapidly-arpegiatted sequences of complex chords.
   
   What I figure would be next is to take a disc sander and remove the binding, then punch notebook binder holes on the sides, so that it might actually sit on a piano music holder, though of course, for me only a decoration. To those who would actually dare a performance, I give my respect.



5. Buy this score for the Second or Third concertos, not the First.
   
   Dover has made a serious mistake in reprinting what it claims is a 1960s Russian printing of the First Piano Concerto. The edition here simply isn't the standard version of the 1917 revision of the concerto. At the same time, it isn't the original version, either. Structurally, it seems to be identical to the revised version, but much of the piano figuration (I'm unsure about the orchestral part) is based on the original version. I have no idea how this hybrid came about - perhaps it was compiled from an intermediate version in the revision process, or perhaps it was created by the publisher. At any rate, it's not much use in studying the modern version of this concerto.
   
   Boosey has published the First Concerto together with the Second. This score (ISBN 9780851624440) is excellent, highly readable, and available at a very reasonable price from this site here.

5 comments about Library of Easy Piano Classics 2 (Library of Series).

1. I love the music and the way the classics are arranged for students who are not very advanced. The selection of pieces are just the best. I can't wait until Classics III is published.



2. Bought this for my son who enjoys playing classical music. very special book for him and he was quite happy with it.



3. When I sit down to play, this is the first book I reach for to find something that suits my mood. The pieces are modified for the less-advanced musician, but "easy" is a relative term. There are pieces easy enough to give the less-advanced player a sense of accomplishment, but there is plenty of challenge for the more-advanced player, too.



4. I'm a beginner, and although I could play some of the songs in this book, it's definitely not that "easy." I would say intermediate is more like it. Although the songs are simplified compared to their originals, a quick glance of the book shows quite a shocking view to me (a beginner).
   
   Of the songs I could play, it was quite exciting and fun. The collection is definitely something to have for a long time in your music library whether it's truly easy or not.



5. This book contains many classics in an easy form, making it simple to sound proficient even though your skill may be minimal. The book is attractive and in very good condition. It arrived quickly, so I took it on vacation with my portable keyboard. Lots of fun!

2 comments about Great Pianists on Piano Playing: Godowsky, Hofmann, Lhevinne, Paderewski and 24 Other Legendary Performers (Great Pianists: In Their Own Words).

1. If you play the piano with a passion, read this book. It gives many insights into how pianists from the golden age of pianism gave life to music on the keyboard. Hofman, Rubinstein, Paderewski,Sauer, Busoni, Bauer, Godowsky are just some of the greats. You can gauge for yourself how piano playing is expressed in terms of an art and a science. Not just body but mind too. Advice like not over-reliance on the metronome. Use your musical ear. You would have to read the book a couple of times before you find some common threads. They sure are golden threads to spin your music. Enjoy.



2. Accomplished pianists and those aspiring to become one all dream about how wonderful it would have been to study with or to have heard the legendary composers perform their own music. Unfortunately this can only be a dream, however, we do have access to performances given by the greatest virtuosos who indeed worked with their contemporaries. This book, 'Great Pianists On Piano Playing' offers invaluable insight to the thought process used by various artists to make their own performances unique, musically innate and stylistically enhancing such as Teresa Carreno finds great inspiration in Shakespeare, inspiration that was communicated in her interpretations of musical masterpieces. The various interviews with legendary virtuosos offer magnificent findings on how they decide to approach a composition, shape a phrase, choose a tempo, develop touch, how to concentrate and so much more. The bringing together of such pianists as Godowsky, Hofmann, Lhevinne, Paderewski and many others by James Francis Cooke is an ideal source of information and reference for all performers and especially students looking for what lies behind a virtuoso's success such as musical mother in the case of Emil Sauer or behind the notes where magical interpretations are truly created.
   
   Author: Raymond Vacchino M.Mus. A.Mus. L.R.S.M. Licentiate(honorary)

5 comments about Complete Preludes and Etudes.

1. Fingering is important, especially to pieces like the Chopin Etudes. In many places Mikuli's suggestion is misleading. The main problem is that he often recommends the 4th finger when 3rd finger should be used. 4th finger is our naturally weak finger. Instead of trying to make it strong (which Schumann attempted with tragic results), we shall avoid it when possible. Chopin is also known to have his own unique fingering for these etudes, but Mikuli did not include these on the edition (ironic since he claimed to be a student and adherent of Chopin's teaching). In many places he did not mark the fingering (when advice is needed) at all. In hindsight it is agood thing (rather than giving people the wrong advice). That forced me to figure out my own figuring. In some places I used his bad suggestion, only to change it after hours of practice, which have all been wasted! His pedal instructions are satisfactory in most part. I still gave this book a 3 star because it is relatively cheap and includes both the etudes and the preludes. (but nowadays you can download free sheetmusic like this from the web).



2. The Chopin Etudes are some of the most difficult and interesting pieces to master, and I find then fascinating. However, Carl Mikuli creates an obstacle in this book. Mikuli, being one of Chopin's dear students, thought that because he was a student of Chopin he knew Chopin enough to change his music. While editing Chopin's works, he would change notes, fingerings, and other important articulation tools to the liking he believed was Chopin's. When comparing Chopin's original transcripts to those that Mikuli edited, there are huge differences that make the music quite different to what Chopin had hoped. I personally recommend Chopin's works edited by Paderevsky (or Paderewsky), for he kept every single aspect of the music Chopin wrote, even specific dynamic marks. The Paderevsky editions give a clear understanding of what Chopin wanted for his pieces.



3. This is arguably THE edition for Chopin's Preludes, and not much needs to be said about it, except correcting some false information presented by reviewers below, particularly the one that recommended the Paderewski edition over this version, which is edited by Mikuli. This version IS the genuine Paderewski edition! Paderewski did not edit this volume, Mikuli did.



4. Speaking of correcting misinformation, this is definitely *not* the Paderewski edition. The Mikuli and Paderewski editions are certainly not the same, although if you look in the commentary in the back of any Paderewski Chopin score, you will find that the Mikuli is one of the many sources that were consulted for the Paderewski.
   
   Dover used to publish a reproduction of the Paderewski edition years ago, and it was wonderful. Unfortunately, they no longer seem to do so.



5. At first I was worried about getting this edition due to some of the other reviews associated with it. However, I got it anyway, because there's really not much other choices out there. Afterward, I looked around the internet and found a tutorial for some of the etudes and the fingerings from this were really right on. It was SUPPOSE to be THAT difficult... no kidding - it's Chopin. Of course I haven't went through all of it, but so far so good.

5 comments about Temperament: How Music Became a Battleground for the Great Minds of Western Civilization.

1. Stuart Isacoff is a serious pianist and scholar, and his book, Temperament, answers the mysterious questions that those of us who are also serious pianists wish to know and probe. His book is dense with information, but at the same time accessible and clear, so that the pianist who is curious about her instrument and its place in cultural history is enriched with new understanding for the metamorphoses that have produced our modern piano. I am grateful for his impressive research and the deep insights between its covers. Carol Montparker, pianist and author



2. A good superficial read on the historical development of 12 tone equal temperament. For a more in-depth and analytical look at temperament I would recommend Harry Partch's Genesis of a Music.
   A word of warning, this book is available under 2 titles. Temperament - the idea that solved music's greatest riddle, and Temperament - how music became a battleground for the great minds of western civilization. I purchased both assuming that they were companion works, but they are identical.



3. Temperament, by Stuart Isacoff, is almost a great book. It covers a little-known aspect of music history in great depth and with delightful insights and cute 'asides.' In short, it takes a technical subject that is over the heads of most readers and makes it accessible and interesting-- and in the process of course brings it down to a level that the average person can almost understand.
   
   And there's where it fails.
   
   Without audio examples to illustrate the points being made, most of the niceties of the different kinds of scale tuning throughout history are just so much description. Unless you've *heard* the type of tuning known as 'just tuning,' you really can have no idea how strange and sometimes beautiful and sometimes alarming the sounds can be, particularly the effects that familiar harmonies can have when tweaked away from our usual experience in this way. There is a website referred to in the book where you can go and listen to some of these things, but that's just not good enough. The book cries out for an audio CD to be included, with examples tied to specific points in the text, and vice versa. I'm sure the author would have been glad to do it. The publisher goofed.
   
   The other problem in the book is that the author occasionally comes up with a 'fact' which is simply not the case. This is rare, but the fact that it happens at all is cause to wonder about the truth of some of the allegations that he makes. The book isn't scholarly [thank God] and there are no footnotes to use in checking the author's data, but I have a funny feeling that he has played a bit fast and loose with us on some points. No evidence-- just a feeling.
   
   Still-- the book is well worth reading, particularly if you have enough musical background to be able to appreciate some of the author's stories and examples. The tales about politics, philosophy, and personalities gone awry would be fascinating even if the information about music weren't compelling-- which it is.



4. I was quite impressed the first time I read Temperament. How Music became a Battleground for the Great Minds of Western Civilization by Stuart Isacoff, which is the same book as Temperament: The Idea That Solved Music's Greatest Riddle. I had a the time some theoretical knowledge about temperaments and effects on music playing but I didn't had any chance to experience it until recently.
   
   A friend of mine showed me few months ago a recording called Six Degrees of Tonality. A Well Tempered Piano issued on Gasparo (GSCD-344). I liked so much what I heard that I ordered a second recording available on the same label and called Beethoven In The Temperaments. Historical Tunings on the Modern Concert Grand (GSCD-332). These recordings made by Ed. Foote (see review Not so fast, please., January 2, 2002)are a unique chance to experience other tunings than the widely spread equal temperament.
   
   Returning recently to Isacoff's Temperament after reading L'Histoire de l'Acoustique Musicale by Serge Donval, I realised that the author just wanted to justify historically how and why ET is "THE" temperament that the world has been seeking for over thousand of years.
   
   I invite readers of Temperament to listen to the four Piano Sonatas played on a Steinway D on Beethoven In The Temperaments (two tuned after Prinz and two after Young temperaments) and to compare with any other recordings performed on ET piano.
   
   They will hear how Key Colors used to sound and how triads and chords sound so differently. Listening to the same works on a ET piano make it an uncomfortable experience even if the performer's name is Arrau, Serkin or Pollini.
   
   My wish would be that Mr. Foote and Gasparo come up with more recordings of Bach, Mozart, Schubert, Chopin, Schumann, Brahms, Liszt on a period tempered piano.



5. 
   
   
   
   I make a practice of sending books I really enjoy to friends who have similar interests. Ordering up Temperament when it was first favorably reviewed in The Economist, and again as a gift, I saw there were some very negative reviews, which surprised me. Pleasantly, my gift book came in its newer paperback version which includes an Afterword where Isacoff addresses the critics complaints. The quite cranky complainants don't seem to "get it" that he, in this role, is an historian not an advocate of "equal temperament."
   
   The history of slicing and dicing octaves into useful bites for the keyboards of organs, harpsichords and pianos has run 2,589 years from Pythagoras to Isacoff and is still running. 99% of pianos have twelve black and white keys and tuned to equal spacing, so twelve tones seems to be in the lead. Even Pythagoras who understood 3rd and 5th could not find a mix that would come out even. It is of course a compromise, but it is not correct to assume that Isacoff has a European bias for the twelve tone systems and is antagonistic to Chinese and Asian treatments of the issue.
   
   This is a delightful read with the cultural and artistic histories of two millennia intertwined with the struggle for beautiful keyboard related music.
   
   Robert Hansman

2 comments about Mel Bay 100 Tunes For Piano Accordion.

1. If you're at the beginner/intermediate level, this is a good book to pick up on after you finish your Mel Bay Deluxe Accordion Method book. ;)

   I've only mastered (well, learned, anyway) a couple of the songs, but 100 songs for this price ain't bad.




2. This book is a wonderful collection: cover-to-cover old-timey tunes that (some) people still like to dance to. Most of them are reels for square dancing and jigs, with a few hornpipes and strathspeys thrown into the mix. Key signatures range from C (no sharps or flats) to E (four sharps) on one end to B-flat (two flats) on the other. The tunes are not complicated, but several of them have chord sequences that can surprise you. There are no troublesome two-note harmonies to worry about--just the straight melodies. I like to flip through the pages to practice sight reading. If I find one I really like, I'll add in the left hand and work on it.
   
   So this book is good in more than one way. You can learn tunes from it. You can practice sight reading. If you enjoy playing folk music, or if you have a friend who plays in a string band at square dances, you can probably find some familiar tunes in it. Learn those and practice with the band. I guarantee that your squeeze box sound will add something unusual to what would otherwise be just another square dance band.

4 comments about Stride and Swing Piano: Hal Leonard Keyboard Style Series (Hal Leonard Keyboard Style).

1. Normally books like these present you with the "dumbed down" and easy version of piano music--music you can play with one hand while drinking a sweet iced-tea with the other. Not so with this book. The methods and techniques Valerio teaches are the real thing, and the pieces within the book are those transcribed straight from the big boys--Waller, Johnson, Wilson, Tatum, Joplin, and Morton. This is an excellent introduction/continuation for those interested in stride piano.



2. I have a few of the other books in this series and find them all great, which is why I purchased this book! Scott Joplin has always been a favorite composer of mine and to be able to learn his style, yet ad my own style is something that I have struggled with up until now. John Valerio is a wonderful composer and teacher and has a very similar style to Mark Harrison (another composer in this series). This book includes everything from the history of ragtime and swing to how to voice lead. Techniques, rhythmic layering, variations, harmony, form, call and response, and so much more is included in this book. It goes through classic ragtime, blues & boogie woogie, New Orleans jazz, stride piano, and swing piano. It is such a wonderful teaching tool for those interested in the big-band era. The CD it comes with has standard tracks to listen to, but also wonderfulk original tunes that encourage you to come up with your own style! I can't wait to try more books in the series!



3. This is an awesome book but definitely not for beginners. It's got excellent explanations and exercises, and authentic music to learn. You'll definitely learn stride, but unless you're an accomplished pianist, expect to spend a lot of time leaning the pieces.



4. i bought that book thinking that i would find some transcriptions or adaptations of swing and stride pieces, along with tips and reviews, some history about the style and.... i found some of those things but all the songs are written by John Valerio "a la Fats Waller" etc etc
   
   It OK, songs are quite good, he's done a great job, but why not put some standards there?? It's my fault, probably didn't read the description carefully but... think twice before buying this book to learn this style (i'm not saying it's useless, simply think twice, there may be a better one depending on what do you want it for)