This first-year text is designed for the college instrumental and vocal major who needs to satisfy the normal keyboard requirement. It contains practical materials for a life-long career in music: studying scores, playing simple accompaniments, understanding keyboard harmony, reading lead sheets, realizing chord cymobls, improvising and so on. Playing solos and ensemble music with the proper technique rounds out piano study.
This widely adopted text includes eight chapters and an appendix. It covers a full year of study in its eight chapters. It also includes a CD with tracks prepared by Dr. Geoffrey Haydon. Dr. Reid Alexander has selected appropriate classical repertoire and composer Professor Tony Caramia has written many new solos for this edition. Additional solos have been composed by Dr. Lyke and Dr. Haydon. Dr. Ronald Chioldi has been responsible for the Musicianship Activities and Technique sections at the end of each chapter. Dr. Lyke has added many new selections for the sight reading and harmonziation segements as well as arranging folk popular songs and ensemble pieces.
The popular songs are by noted American composers such as Irving Berlin, Jerome Kern, George Gershwin and others.
Students will enjoy the variety of keyboard activities and teachers will find lesson planning and testing uncomplicated. This text is not meant to be a page by page approach, but one where the student and teacher are able to select from a variety of levels. Suggestions for evaluation appear at the end of each chapter.
