Advanced Piano Solos Christmas Encyclopedia [Sheet music]

Tom Roed (Arranger)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1997

Fifty titles (includes duet versions of some Christmas favorites): Angels We Have Heard on High * Auld Lang Syne * Bring a Torch, Jeannette Isabella * Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer * (There's No Place Like) Home for the Holidays * Jingle Bells * Silent Night * Ukranian Bell Carol (A New Age Rendition) and many others!

Product Details

• Sheet music: 159 pages
• Publisher: Alfred Publishing Co., Inc. (August 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0769209831
• ISBN-13: 978-0769209838
• Product Dimensions: 11.7 x 8.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #843,748 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Collection, January 31, 2007

By 

Michael Mcewen - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Advanced Piano Solos Christmas Encyclopedia (Sheet music)

This is the best collection of solo piano Christmas music I have found. The arrangements are probably not advanced, but they aren't easy either and they sound great (i.e harder than they are). I especially like "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" and "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" which has been reworked in a jazzy vein.

If you are an advanced player, you will be able to sight read these easily. Intermediate players should be able to practice and get them up to speed without too much trouble. I always get a great response when I play these for people.

The printing is very clear; no squinting to read the notes on the staff. I also appreciate the clear musical notation and instruction (metronome speeds are listed, none of this Keverenesque "Mystically playful" nonsense).

If you are looking to find a great Christmas book, look no further. This is the only one you will need.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not advanced, but worth owning, December 7, 2006

By 

Grumpy Reader "greader" (Spain) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Advanced Piano Solos Christmas Encyclopedia (Sheet music)

The level of difficulty here is advanced-beginner or lower-intermediate, definitely not advanced. But the arrangements are very well done so that they sound a lot more advanced than they are. They're great for sight-reading on the spur of the moment, which is what most players probably want from Christmas music. After all, it's played only once a year and is probably not something you want to spend a lot of time practicing. Most Christmas favorites--some you might not expect--are included. Also, several of the arrangements are startlingly original and wonderful fun to play. I recommend this collection strongly and give it four stars only because of the misleading title.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My Favorite Christmas Collection, November 3, 2008

By 

Kathy Parsons (Florence, OR United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Advanced Piano Solos Christmas Encyclopedia (Sheet music)

Tom Roed is my favorite arranger for more advanced pop, jazz, and Christmas music and his "Christmas Encyclopedia" is the ultimate collection of full, fun-to-play arrangements of forty-three solos and six duets. Usually in a collection this big, I'll find at least half of the arrangements are duds, but there are only a few songs in this book that I really don't like (and they are usually songs that I don't particularly like anyway, not the arrangements!). I have used various incarnations of this book (there have been many over the years! This is the "complete" collection, at least up to 1997!) with my advancing students, and these pieces were wonderful in recitals because they are different, sometimes very spirited, and always showier than most standard Christmas collections and teaching books. I got a few standing ovations myself with the bluesy "Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town," the boogie-woogie "Rudolph," and the wild and rockin' "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree." Also on the fun, up-tempo side are "Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer," "Up On the Housetop," and "The Chipmunk Song." Slower but still jazzy are "Christmas Time Is Here" (my favorite arrangement of this song!), "The Little Drummer Boy" (a student favorite), "Winter Wonderland," "Patapan," and "The Ukranian Bell Carol" - all exceptional. In the graceful and beautiful category are "Away In a Manger," "What Child Is This?," "We Three Kings of Orient Are," "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," and the stellar (and difficult!) "O Holy Night." More advanced players will find this book essential for holiday parties and there are plenty of sacred pieces for church musicians as well. I enjoy playing in a variety of styles, so this is my all-time favorite Christmas book. The arrangements vary in difficulty from intermediate to fairly advanced, and most of them involve a lot of chord reading and octaves. Love it!