Thank you for all of your videos. I'm a very mature beginner who started taking lessons using the book1. Unfortunately, my teacher didn't teach a great deal regarding technique. I didn't feel i was progressing hardly and when the teacher asked me what i would like to play i felt i shouldn't be making that decision. I like a structured way of learning, so i can see results. I have stopped taking lessons, and looking for a new teacher. Thank you.
A piano teacher gave me the first book during the pandemic and it took me just over a year to work my way through it, practising 30-40 mins a day 5 days a week. Theres a guy on RUclips (let's play piano methods) who explains each lesson and the stuff I would have probably missed and I found that really helpful. I managed to finish it so just started the 2nd book and the first 2 pieces are really easy while the 3rd is really difficult so I can see the issue with the random difficulty. Although it is really nice to struggle through a tough piece and then have a really easy one that you can almost sight read, so perhaps thats part of the psychology of giving you confidence and then destroying it repeatedly lol
I really appreciate your reviews on different method books like these. Can you do a review on The Classical Piano Method by Schott Publishing? It supposedly suits “returning” piano students and looks different from any of the more popular method books.
I came back to piano 3 months ago after having left Music once at Medicine to become a surgeon (always something that has got to do with hands). Finished Beyer, learnt Chopin prelude n.4 and Bach prelude Cmaj. I love jazz and have scheduled to study the Oscar Peterson exercises. But I would like do other exercises. What kind of test do you recommend? Mikrokosmos, Czernyana, Schumann, Burgmuller, Hanon, Cesi Marciano, or others? Thank you for your precious advices
As a young child, my first piano lessons were from Michael Aaron books!! ha I still have the books. Grade One and Grade Two!! This would have been in the 1960's. Glad to see that they are still around!!
Started a 10 yr old on Michael Aaron grade 1 since I had it. It seems to work fine but maybe that is because it’s the second instrument (plays violin already for a few years with Suzuki method). What method book and level would you recommend to supplement? With modern or variety of songs and genres? Method book for “second instrument” beginners isn’t something I’ve seen addressed online!
Bought a new digital piano (Yamaha P125B) since I can't afford acoustic piano. I chose the book Fabers piano adventures for learning piano. My question is about the pedals. Do we actually need 3 pedals to learn piano ? Do classical music pieces use 3 pedals throughout the music? Damper pedal I got. But other two I have to buy. I need to buy a stand, so if damper pedal is the most used one then I will buy a z stand for my piano(portability) or else I have to go for the wooden stand (quite hard to move around) to use the 3 pedals.
I learned from these books as a teen. I returned to the piano a few months ago and am almost done working through adult piano adventures book 2. I bought a used copy of Michael Aaron book 3 to supplement my lessons. I have enjoyed some of the familiar songs. If I remember correctly from 40 years ago, when I finished book 3, book 4 seemed much much harder. I gave up. Do you find this to be the case? Seems like John Thompson book 4 was much harder also. I am planning on progressing to piano adventures 3b because I need the additional instruction and slower pace. For some reason I am also afraid of piano adventures level 4 and that I am destined to crash and burn when I get there. Is it a big jump to level 4 in all methods, or am I just being silly?
Grade 4 is quite a bit jump in Michael Aaron but nowhere near as huge as in John Thomson. The JT book 4 and 5 are up to Grade 8. They are not in print anymore, only books 1-3, I think they must have realised that books 4 and 5 are completely out of context. Piano Adventures level 4 is totally manageable.
Thank you so much for that word of encouragement. I have been having a blast returning to the piano and have been amazed by the breadth of teaching materials available. I have found your videos to be a huge help in choosing method books. Thanks again...now I no longer need to fear the "dreaded level 4" books. 🎶
Thank you for all of your videos. I'm a very mature beginner who started taking lessons using the book1. Unfortunately, my teacher didn't teach a great deal regarding technique. I didn't feel i was progressing hardly and when the teacher asked me what i would like to play i felt i shouldn't be making that decision. I like a structured way of learning, so i can see results. I have stopped taking lessons, and looking for a new teacher. Thank you.
A piano teacher gave me the first book during the pandemic and it took me just over a year to work my way through it, practising 30-40 mins a day 5 days a week. Theres a guy on RUclips (let's play piano methods) who explains each lesson and the stuff I would have probably missed and I found that really helpful. I managed to finish it so just started the 2nd book and the first 2 pieces are really easy while the 3rd is really difficult so I can see the issue with the random difficulty. Although it is really nice to struggle through a tough piece and then have a really easy one that you can almost sight read, so perhaps thats part of the psychology of giving you confidence and then destroying it repeatedly lol
I found the adultvbooknonevin the public domain. Thanks a lot. I tend to enjoy using book one along with the adult book one.
I really appreciate your reviews on different method books like these. Can you do a review on The Classical Piano Method by Schott Publishing? It supposedly suits “returning” piano students and looks different from any of the more popular method books.
I came back to piano 3 months ago after having left Music once at Medicine to become a surgeon (always something that has got to do with hands). Finished Beyer, learnt Chopin prelude n.4 and Bach prelude Cmaj. I love jazz and have scheduled to study the Oscar Peterson exercises. But I would like do other exercises. What kind of test do you recommend? Mikrokosmos, Czernyana, Schumann, Burgmuller, Hanon, Cesi Marciano, or others?
Thank you for your precious advices
How do the Aaron book grades compare to ABRSM grades?
As a young child, my first piano lessons were from Michael Aaron books!! ha I still have the books. Grade One and Grade Two!! This would have been in the 1960's. Glad to see that they are still around!!
Started a 10 yr old on Michael Aaron grade 1 since I had it. It seems to work fine but maybe that is because it’s the second instrument (plays violin already for a few years with Suzuki method). What method book and level would you recommend to supplement? With modern or variety of songs and genres? Method book for “second instrument” beginners isn’t something I’ve seen addressed online!
Bought a new digital piano (Yamaha P125B) since I can't afford acoustic piano. I chose the book Fabers piano adventures for learning piano. My question is about the pedals. Do we actually need 3 pedals to learn piano ? Do classical music pieces use 3 pedals throughout the music? Damper pedal I got. But other two I have to buy. I need to buy a stand, so if damper pedal is the most used one then I will buy a z stand for my piano(portability) or else I have to go for the wooden stand (quite hard to move around) to use the 3 pedals.
Nah, you only need the damper pedal. For a loooong while at least
I learned from these books as a teen. I returned to the piano a few months ago and am almost done working through adult piano adventures book 2. I bought a used copy of Michael Aaron book 3 to supplement my lessons. I have enjoyed some of the familiar songs. If I remember correctly from 40 years ago, when I finished book 3, book 4 seemed much much harder. I gave up. Do you find this to be the case? Seems like John Thompson book 4 was much harder also. I am planning on progressing to piano adventures 3b because I need the additional instruction and slower pace. For some reason I am also afraid of piano adventures level 4 and that I am destined to crash and burn when I get there. Is it a big jump to level 4 in all methods, or am I just being silly?
Grade 4 is quite a bit jump in Michael Aaron but nowhere near as huge as in John Thomson. The JT book 4 and 5 are up to Grade 8. They are not in print anymore, only books 1-3, I think they must have realised that books 4 and 5 are completely out of context. Piano Adventures level 4 is totally manageable.
Thank you so much for that word of encouragement. I have been having a blast returning to the piano and have been amazed by the breadth of teaching materials available. I have found your videos to be a huge help in choosing method books. Thanks again...now I no longer need to fear the "dreaded level 4" books. 🎶
Also... that's really interesting that John Thompson is no longer in print for the higher grades.