Total Piano

Terry Burrows' book is an excellent overview of classical piano for the inexperienced and non classical keyboardist. The book combines historical factoids along with useable theory and technique displayed in an attractive layout. I would recommend it highly for those players who are more attuned to the right hand melody/left hand chord school and in fact have used it that way myself as a useful adjuct to pop and jazz study. Typical instructional materials for non-classical styles lead the self learning student down a perilous path of developing bad habits that impede growth. Just because you don't desire to play Chopin doesn't mean you shouldn't pick up the basics of which fingers should play which keys! This book painlessly adds this and other practical information while offering a teasing intro to "serious" piano. When you finish you might still just want to play easy Ellington out of fake books, but Chopin might look pretty good after all.

I bought this book in a bargain book bin without the CD and I am now re-ordering it because I want the CD too. I am an adult piano student who is taking lessons for a second time. As a child, like so many others, I was ordered into lessons by enthusiastic parents with a local college music student. There was little formal thoeory, less fun, and not much sunk in. As an adult with a fairly good ear, I am now taking lessons at an excellent music school but I have found the early theory knowledge is half remembered and often not much of a help in my current practice. I needed a theory refresher course that was light, fun, easy to follow that I could review quickly. Many are too juvenile or too intense. I flipped through this book in a store, it was cheap and well I thought what the heck, it looks like an easy read so I bought it. It is great. An easy read for adults and teens, but not too difficult for older kids with easy excercises. I think a person could learn the basics of the piano with it. At this point I have to say there is no substitute for the experience and feedback of a professional pianist if you are just learning the instrument. However, this book is helping me fill in the gaps in my musical background very nicely. I am sending my current copy to my niece who is just learning the instrument but whose mom and grandmom who only learned to play a little, aren't always sure how to answer her theory questions when she is doing her practice and piano homework. I think they will find this a good, well explained reference and she will find it a great accompaniment to her current music and theory texts.