Adult All-in-one Course: Alfred's Basic Adult Piano Course, Level 2 Plastic Comb – Large Print, June 1, 1995

I bought all 3 levels of this course book for my husband and he has had a great time teaching himself piano for fun. I recommend it. Very easy to pick up and start at any level.

Let me start by saying that I am a 24 years old and a really young piano student (barely 4months as I am writing this review).A friend brought me the first book of Afred's series as a gift when he came back from UK while I had already started working on another book with my teacher.When I received the first book I showed it immediately to my teacher, she studied it for a few days and asked me to order the other books of the series, because we are going to work on them.Now I am almost done with the first series (NOT Afred's series. Remember I was already working on another book until i received the first Afred's book) and I am studying Afred's first at the same time. I have to say that Afred's is way above my current one, because it has A LOT well-known songs, the transaction from one technique to another is smoother while making sure that you go from the easier techniques to the most difficult, it has exercises and explanations before you "go on stage" so you know what you are about to face.Overall, 5/5 from me.

My efforts to reteach myself to play the piano had kind of stalled but ALFRED'S BASIC ADULT PIANO COURSE has put me back in gear. I kind of dithered between starting with level 2 or level 3 and though the first few pieces in level 2 were very easy for me I soon found I really did need the review offered in level 2 and a quick scan of level 3 shows me I would have soon become frustrated with it without going through this book first. A tuneful selection of folk, jazz ragtime and classical music make up most of the coursework and there is a lot of emphasis on chords and fingering - skills I missed in my piano lesson days of long ago. The book is bound with a sturdy plastic "comb" good for me as I am notoriously hard on piano music. There are pen and paper exercises to review notes and chords as well as lots of beautiful music pieces. If you are faithful in practicing this series will teach you a great deal about the piano and keep you motivated to continue.

The correct book

Will teach you the basics. Progresses slower then the Alfred books, but both will likely work well. As I’m fond of staying, I personally don’t believe any of these books can replace a good piano teacher. There are just to many subtleties that a book can’t teach. If you don’t have access or are unable to afford a teacher then this is the next best thing. Most want to know if this or the Alfred books are better, but it depends on your learning style. I believe this series is a bit less frustrating and moves slower which may be good due to the potential frustration of learning to play an instrument that requires a fair amount of multitasking.

Coming from someone who eased their way through the first book, I'll tell you that you should complete that one before doing this one if you are new to the piano like I was a few months back. But if you have some experience behind the piano and have been playing for a little while, you can pick up right here. It picks up right where book 1 left off at and continues. It has some great pieces in here that are easy to understand, but at the same time challenge you at some points that is saying that you are an intermediate like me. And most importantly, it does a good job instructing you on how to play through out the book. When I first started in book 1, I needed a teacher to help guide me but after 50 pages or so I was very capable of handling it on my own the rest of the way and that continues in book 2 so yes, you can sort of guide yourself throughout the journey.

I am nearing the end of Alfred's All-in-one Book 1, so have only browsed this book. But, I can comment on what I like about the methodology and the books:1. The progression of theory, exercises, and performance materials is very well thought out. When Palmer says this exercise should be practiced daily, do it. It really helps improve your technical skills.2. The quality of the construction is high - big easy to read notes and spiral bound so the book lays flat on the piano music stand.3. The songs are interesting and varied, introducing different genres of music.The only slight drawback is there is ample opportunity to improvise on a number of the songs and try your hand at composing, but Palmer does not point this out. It is definitely worth doing, really reinforcing a thorough understanding of chords, keys, chord inversions, and other concepts introduced in the text.

I have completed Level 1 of this program and now am excited to get on with Level 2! The program is easy to follow, fun and I am learning lots!