Kevin Olson writes in Notes from the Composer, I find it interesting that we use the word "keys" to describe the black and white levers on the piano that are pressed down and transformed into musical art. It's as if musicians have always understood that the piano has the ability to unlock our creativity an imagination. With these eighty-eight keys, pianists can open doors to new colors, images, and ideas, first by playing inspirational music b...
This is Book 4 of Kevin's latest series of fresh-sounding, exciting pieces. Most titles are four pages. There is the Nocturne romantique in 5/8 meter, a lazy blues piece titled Over Easy, a tarantella called Spiderdance and four others. All are pupil savers and will keep students practicing and performing!
Heller thought of an etude as a character piece---an artistic miniature designed to develop overall musicianship, focusing on expression, grace, and elegance." Fourteen of the easier pieces from Opp. 45, 46, and 47 are selected in this collection. All serve as preparatory pieces for more difficult literature, and are suitable for any performance venue.
These 16 winning solos will keep your students practicing! Chosen because of their wide appeal to kids and audiences, styles include: a tango, a rag, a waltz, lyrical pieces, and one polymetric piece. Some titles are: The Barbarian by Edwin McLean, After the Rain by Kevin Olson, Walkin' the Bog Dog Boogie by Valerie Roth Roubos, Sebastian's First Prelude by Timothy Brown and many more! Your students will want to play every piece and all are su...
Continuing in the tradition of the great pianists and teachers who write etudes for their students, Dianne Rahbee adds to the genre with Pictures and Beyond, Book 2. The spotlight is on the different musical elements in each piece such as: intervals, rhythmic patterns, unusual scale patterns, and emotional expression. Includes a trio, a quartet (one hand for each player) a tarantella, and an Armenian folk tune.
Most of the 28 etudes written by illustrious teacher-pianists (Gurlitt, Le Couppey, Türk, Beyer, Streabbog, Czerny) are two pages long. The selections reinforce technical concepts, but they are not just exercises" but delightful pieces that can be programmed for recital or performance. Unit 1 focuses on Trills, Unit 2---Crossovers, Unit 3---Double Notes, Unit 4---Blocked and Broken Chords, and Unit 5---Waltz Bass.
Have you ever been face-to-face with a roaring dragon? Charmed by an adorable cat? Explored galaxies with a telescope? Or gone white-water rafting? Following the spectacular success of Four Miniature Suites, Book 1, Valerie Roubos has created a delightful, new set of suites at the Late Elementary/Early Intermediate level. Some of the tiles are: Fantasies and Folk Tales, All About Cats, The Night Sky, and A Day on the River.
Jazz Improv is a core book of the Jazz in Focus Library, introducing students to seventh chords, the ii-V-I chord progression, and approach tones. As with the two previous improv books, the step-by-step approach encompassing: 1) a simple concept, 2) a short demonstration piece, 3) riffs for improvising, and 4) a free improvisation chart assures steady progress and opens the door to more advanced study. Jazz Improv is an essential introduction ...
Notes in the C Position and Treble C Position are taught in this book. Some highlights are: new notes are gradually introduced, simple music that is easy to read, themed units and play-along recordings make learning fun and interesting, advice for parents regarding practice, blank manuscript paper for kids to practice writing notes or compose their own music. Recordings included.
Simple, intuitive graphics make this book unique and user friendly. This innovative collection of technical exercises features four measure patterns that reinforce note reading and challenge students to play in an assortment of ways. Icons and check-off boxes encourage students to play with a rounded hand shape and varying tempos, dynamics, and touch. It is correlated with The Perfect Start for Note Reading, Book 2, or can be a companion to an...
The fun continues in the second book of this series with music by Kevin Olson and humorous lyrics by Kenn Nesbitt, recently named Children's Poet Laureate of the United States. Kids and audiences alike will enjoy the silly songs with titles that include Underwater Sandwich, My Dog Ate My Homework, The Turkey Taquitos Are Tasty Today and many others. Ideal for children's choirs or the classroom music teacher. Chord symbols are included to appea...
This book contains six sonatinas---some are well known, others are discovered gems, and two are by women composers. Every piece is in the original, complete form. Some titles/composers are: Little Sonata by Charles Wilton, Sonatina by Ferdinand Beyer, Blue Ridge Sonatina by Mary Leaf, and Sonatina: A Tale of Four Cats by Judith Strickland. This 32-page book includes thematics, discussion on sonatina form, listening activities, a dictionary, an...
Have you ever heard of an elephant playing in a band? A piano-playing puppy? Kids will get a kick out of these imaginative, silly songs by Kevin Olson, who put music to the clever humor and wordplay of poet, Kenn Nesbitt. This is the first book in a series that will get you singing and laughing! It's ideal for children's choirs or the classroom music teacher --- perfect for educators who need fresh ideas for school skits, or public presentatio...
Becoming proficient with five-finger patterns in all keys increases fluency in note reading, technique, theory, and sight reading. By playing pentascales in each major and minor key, students integrate improvisation, transposition, ear training, and other musical skills including composing their own original music. This book proceeds in order of ascending sharps and flats. In each unit, one new key is explored and a previous one reviewed. Feat...
Note names are taught with corresponding animal names, designed to make learning notes more fun and memorable. In each song, students sing about where the note sits on the staff. Notes Made FUN also goes with Note Reading Made FUN, Book 1.
The Succeeding At The Piano - Preparatory/Grade 1 Teacher's Guide includes information on how Reading, Rhythm, Technique, Music, Musicianship, and Theory in Succeeding at the Piano® are seamlessly integrated to provide a well-balanced music curriculum.
In Recital(R) Ready, Set, Play! is a series which features pre-reading pieces for the beginner-level piano student. It is a fun and motivational series that is best used with the Preparatory level of Succeeding at the Piano(R). In this book students reinforce pre-reading, finger numbers, as well as white and black key recognition skills. In addition, students have a wide variety of fun Halloween songs they will love to learn and play! Includes...
