Resource Guide for February 2006 - by Dorothy Kirkpatrick
I will first list in a table what the student receives with each method and the cost before tax. Then I will describe each method and list the pros and cons of each before comparing them.
| Faber Piano Adventures | Snell/Hidy Piano Town | Alfred Premier Piano Course Alexander, Kowalchyk, Lancaster, McArthur, Mier | |
| Lesson | X | X | X |
| Theory | X | X | X |
| Technique | X | X | X |
| Supplemental Performance | X | X | X |
| CD Included | X | ||
| At Home Book involving parent | X | ||
| Flash Cards Included | X | ||
| Music Bag/Binder Included | X | ||
| Cost before tax | 24.35 | 26.80 | 29.95 |
All three methods begin with posture, finger numbers, hand position keyboard geography of 2 and 3 black key groups.
Faber explores two, then three black key groups ascending and descending. The quarter note equals 1 beat or count is introduced and used to play black key groups, one finger at a time. Along with the introduction of rudimentary rhythm, the forte and piano dynamic marks are used in familiar songs. The music alphabet is introduced with the relationship to black key groups. They are followed with steps and bar lines leading to middle C position and adding the dotted half note. The staff line notes, space notes, are introduced sequentially as line, space, line. The top staff is shown as right hand and bottom as left hand, then the clefs are added and landmark notes middle C, treble G and Bass F are introduced with notes between being filled in next. Time signatures introduced 4/4, and ¾ are introduced between Bass F and Middle C notes. Skips are introduced just before Bass C and C Major position followed by octave leaps. Tied notes across the bar line equals a new rhythm. Speaking in rhythm and adding the quarter rest conclude the beginning book of Faber Piano Adventures which is published by FJH. Accompaniments are interesting for the teacher but sometimes confuse the student because of the complexity of rhythm.
Pros
1. Units are well organized
2. Words are well matched for good rhythm
3. Good practice guidelines on each page
4. Grand staff is introduced in its entirety and related step by step to the keyboard from bass space 1 to space above the treble line 5, or low bass A to high treble G
5. Excellent supplementary material suggestions
6. Pace is not too slow or too fast for average beginners age 6
7. All concepts are reinforced well before the next concept is introduced
8. Student fills out information blocks that require looking at a few key parts of the score before playing.
9. Rhythm is introduced fairly
Cons
1. Units are often so large that it is difficult to coordinate theory, technique, performance and lesson books
2. Accompaniments use notes of shorter value than the student knows and is sometimes distracting
3. Accompaniment is directly at eye level for the young or small student, and below the student score
4. Could use more analysis
5. Skips are not introduced until ¾ of the way through the book, create less interesting music
6. ¾ time is not introduced until well past halfway through the book
7. There are very few pieces using ¾ time. It is possible that the quadruple time causes students to habitually add a fourth beat to ¾ time
Piano Town is a relatively new addition to methods available being introduced early in 2004 and was written and composed by Keith Snell and Diane Hidy. It introduces the quarter and half notes immediately. Name the notes and clap in rhythm, then play black key groups in rhythm. Many questions ask students to analyze before attempting to play. Stepping up, down and repeat are early elements followed by whole and dotted half notes. The music alphabet is introduced on the keyboard in the same way as the Faber method. Unlike Faber, the accompaniment parts are high on the page, leaving the students score at eye level. Another plus is that the teacher has the student’s part written on the ‘vocal’ staff above the accompaniment. Also, the accompaniment is written with note values that are the same as the student plays. Steps and skips are introduced at the same time. Time signatures are introduced with 4/4, ¾, and 2/4 following each other and use a quarter note instead of a bottom number. The Bass staff is introduced first with landmark F and middle C with the notes between then being filled in. The treble staff is introduced in the same manner and is followed by the grand staff with landmark notes and then bass line 1 through treble line 5. Middle C position is explored and intervallic reading is learned beginning with seconds through 5ths. A diagram of the keyboard demonstrating what a second, then a third, etc. look like on the keyboard as well as the score. Eighth notes are introduced between thirds and fourths. Slurs and ties follow each other and are followed by forte and piano. Harmonic and melodic intervals, C chord and whole rest, half rest, quarter rests are next. Sharps are introduced. In G major position the repeat sign is added, then staccato articulation. The G chord and flats are added before a review of middle C and C major positions.
Pros
1. Corner of each page contains a colored box with a description of the topic for the page
2. Fast paced, which is good for many students and makes this good for mature young students as well as the beginning ten year old
3. Teacher coordinates the technique book to the lesson page by the correlation notation on each page
4. Teacher accompaniment is above the student eye level
5. The accompaniments are written using the same note values that the student has learned so as not to distract or confuse the student
6. The students notation is included on a third staff on the teachers staff
7. Student analyzes the music to answer a number of questions about the music prior to sight reading
8. Short biography on major composers on lesson pages where the composers composition is used
9. The art work tells a story, is interesting to the student, and connects concepts in each book and over several pages as well as continuity throughout
10. The review/glossary at the end reminds students of everything they have learned. It can also be used to check off the list as they learn the concept
11. It is very easy to coordinate Technic, theory, performance and lesson page by page because of the reference pages on the top of every page in every book
Cons
1. The fast pace may not be good for students who need more reinforcement
2. Technique exercises are not explained, but are left to the teacher to explain the connection to the lesson
3. The review is easily forgotten as a check off list, or even overlooked until the book is completed
The newest method that I know of is the recently introduced Alfred’s Premier method. Black key groups, using quarter notes and rests are followed by half note, forte and piano, whole note and 4/4 time signature. The damper pedal precedes the music alphabet. Anchor note D on the keyboard fixes C, D, and E. Mezzo forte is followed by other anchor notes G and A. The whole rest and ‘steps’ precede ¾ time and dotted half notes. The staff introduction uses ascending and descending notes as well as repeat with red arrows showing the directions. Bass clef, treble clef, middle C are shown on the Grand staff showing the RH middle C and the LH middle C. Last are the half rest, beginning landmark notes, then adding bass C before introducing ‘stepping and skipping.’ All these methods are for students beginning piano around age 6 or 7 although Piano Town is described as being quite useable for a beginning 9 or 10 year old as well. They all begin with a very similar introduction to piano posture and hand position. Faber is the most “traditional” method using treble G and bass F as landmark notes, progressing to middle C position and ending with C major position. Fingering suggests that different fingers be used on same notes. A few questions relating to finger number on, name the key, and other questions that encourage students to look at those particular items. Piano Town is the most progressive with more intervallic reading and is also the most fast paced method of the three because the student is playing tonic chords in middle C, C major and G major 5 finger positions. It also has the student analyze the music in ways that the others do not. In addition, it is very easy to find the particular page you are looking for when reviewing material because the ‘call outs’ are in the outer corner of each page. Piano Town is also unique in the placement of the accompaniment with the addition of the student’s part where the teacher can read it best, on the same staves. Piano Adventures by Faber has concrete suggestions for technical exercises. Piano Town, on the other hand, has technical exercises without benefit of directions on the page. It is assumed that the same technique will be studied as was introduced in the lesson. Teacher discretion allowed? Alfred has completely omitted the technique book at the beginning level. It may be just as well to spend more time in the lesson book and do the technique at the same time. With the addition of CDs in the Alfred Premier, young students who are generally resistant to the use of a metronome are more apt to practice with the CD at practice tempo and play correct rhythm. The flash cards furnished with Alfred Premier are an added plus as well. The best thing about the Alfred Premier may be the “At Home” book with interaction between parent and child not only encouraged but outlined and directed if the parent will use it. It does not require the parent to know or even understand music to interact using this guideline and is extremely supportive of the child.
Pros
1. The ‘At Home’ book has the best information to parents I have ever seen. It certainly exceeds any notes to parents in any method book.
A. The parent is directly in the students practice and enjoyment of music
B. Helps parents to prepare students for performance as well as offering praise after a performance
C. There are specific practice procedures for each page
D. There is a wonderful mystery story, divided into chapters that make reference to songs in the lesson book to correlate the ‘At Home’ story to the lesson book, with footnotes at the bottom telling which page(s) to use at that point in the story
E. It is also a lesson planner for the teacher to make assignments and write notes to the parents
F. There is a place for parents to write notes to the teacher
G. And a practice record
3. It introduces the Bass clef first
4. The fingers to be used on any particular note change so as to not associate a finger with a particular note
5. Uses keyboard anchors to learn the names of the white notes
6. Visualizations of each new concept are very well done
7. There is plenty of reinforcement
8. The whole rest is explained as Rest for whole measure and receives 3 counts in ¾ meter
9. Composer biographies are included where it applies
10. The CDs which are included have practice tempo and performance tempo for each song
Cons
1. The ‘At Home’ is helpful only if the parent actually reads it and uses it
2. I did not find a cross reference in the Lesson book as to which flash card to use with that page
3. Students play off staff for half the book, this may not work well for a more mature 7 year old
4. Eighth notes are not added until level 2A because ‘it is a stumbling block for some students.’
In conclusion, I find that all three methods are very well done and certainly are excellent teaching materials. I would recommend Piano Town and the new Alfred Premier method because of the amount of theory demonstrated on each page and the way it is presented. I prefer Piano Town particularly because of the analysis, which is more comprehensive and because of the way interval reading is used. The analysis really makes a student look at the entire score, rather than a couple of places. As I mentioned earlier, Piano Town may be a little too fast paced for some students.