Customer Reviews

Dan Coates Complete / Advanced Piano Solos (The Professional Touch Series)

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Since so many have already given comprehensive reviews, I thought a list of the songs in the book would be helpful.

Angel Eyes - Jim Brickman
Annes Theme (Anne of Green Gables) - Hagwood Hardy
Anywhere the Heart Goes (The Thorn Birds) - Henry Mancini
Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do) - Burt Bacharach et al
As Time Goes By (Casablanca) - Herman Hupfeld
Ashokan Farewell (The Civil War-Ken Burns) - Jay Ungar
Beauty and the Beast - Alan Menken
Because You Loved Me (Up Close and Personal Theme) - Diane Warren
Can You Read My Mind? (Superman Theme) - John Williams
Canon in D - Johann Pachelbel
The Colors of My Life (Barnum) - Michael Stewart
Colors of the Wind (Pocahontas) - Alan Menken
Desperado - Don Henley/Glenn Frey
A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes (Cinderella) - Mack David et al
Evergreen (A Star is Born) - Barbra Streisand
Favorite Son (The Will Rogers Follies) - Cy Coleman
Forever - Kenny Loggins/David Foster
Friends & Lovers - Paul Gordon/Jay Gruska
From a Distance - Julie Gold
The Greatest Love of All (The Greatest) - Linda Creed/Michael Masser
Happy Birthday to You! - Mildred and Patty Hill
Heart (Damn Yankees) - Richard Adler/Jerry Ross
Hey There (The Pajama Game) - Richard Adler/Jerry Ross
The Homecoming - Hagood Hardy
How Could I Ever Know? (The Secret Garden) - Lucy Simon
How Do I Live? - Diane Warren
How Do You Keep the Music Playing? (Best Friends) - Michel LeGrand
I Believe I Can Fly - R Kelly
I can Love You Like That - Steve Diamond et al
Everything I Do I Do it For You - Bryan Adams et al
I Don't Want to Miss a Thing (Armageddon) - Diane Warren
I Say A Little Prayer - Burt Bacharach
I Swear - Gary Baker/Frank Myers
I WIll Always Love You - Dolly Parton
If My Friends Could See Me Now! (Sweet Charity) - Cy Coleman
If You Believe - Jim Brickman
In This Life - Mike Reid/Allen Shamblin
Karen's Theme - Richard Carpenter
Kei's Song - David Benoit
La Vie En Rose - Louiguy/Edith Piaf
Love and Marriage (Married with Children) - James Van Heusen
Love Solo - Dan Coates
May You Always - Larry Markes/Dick Charles
Miss Celie's Blues (The Color Purple) - Quincy Jones/Rod Temperton
Misty - Erroll Garner
My One True Friend (One True Thing) - Carole Bayer Sager et al
My Unknown Someone (The Will Rogers Follies) - Cy Coleman
Noelle's Theme (The Other Side of Midnight) - Michel LeGrand
Oh! What It Seemed to Be - Bennie Benjamin et al
Once Before I Go - Peter Allen/Dean Pitchford
One Moment in Time - Albert Hammond/John Bettis
Open Arms - Steve Perry/Jonathan Cain
Over the Rainbow (The Wizard of Oz) - Harold Arlen
The Prayer - Carole Bayer Sager/David Foster
Ragtime - Steven Flaherty
The Rose (The Rose) - Amanda McBroom
Saving All My Love for You - Michael Masser
Send in the Clowns - Stephen Sondheim
Separate Lives (White Nights Theme) - Stephen Bishop
She Loves Me (She Loves Me) - Jerry Bock
Suicide is Painless (M*A*S*H) - Mike Altman/Johnny Mandel
Star Wars Main Theme - John Williams
Summer Me, Winter Me (Picasso Summer) - Michel LeGrand
Tears in Heaven - Will Jennings/Eric Clapton
Tell Him - Linda Thompson et al
That's What Friends Are For - Carole Bayer Sager/Burt Bacharach
Through The Eyes of Love (Ice Castles) - Marvin Hamlisch
New York New York Theme - John Kander
Time to Say Goodbye - Francesco Sarori
Tonight I Celebrate My Love - Michael Masser/Gerry Goffin
UnBreak My Heart - Diane Warren
Up Where We Belong (An Officer and a Gentleman) - Jack Nitzsche et al
Valentine - Jim Brickman/Jack Kugell
We've Got Tonight - Bob Seger
What's New? - Bob Haggart
The Wind Beneath My Wings (Beaches) - Larry Henley/Jeff Silbar
You Can Always Count on Me (Musical City of Angels) - Cy Coleman

This book contains some of the most beautiful arrangements of popular music I have ever heard. Many of the pieces were unfamiliar to me when I bought the book, and others were songs I didn't particularly like. But Coates's arrangements are so beautiful that I love almost all of these songs now. This book is honestly titled: it is for advanced players. This does not mean that it is Rachmaninoff, but most pianists will find it challenging. Determined intermediate pianists can reasonably expect to memorize, play, and enjoy many of these pieces...but it will take some serious practice. Many of the arrangements make extensive use of the keyboard's higher registers -- where many pianists have limited experience. And some songs contain multi-measure passages where 3 are played against 2. Large leaps are common (including in some arpeggiated chords), as are chords with 6 or more notes. The book is well bound (so that it lays fairly flat), and the printing is generally clear and well formatted. Most of the pieces are 3 to 5 pages long. These pieces are worth the extra effort they require, and once the skills are learned, they'll be available forever.

This book contains the most satisfying piano arrangements of popular music that I am aware of. This is a gem in a vast sea of mediocre sheet music. Much if not most of the sheet music available has lifeless harmonization. When performing the typical arrangement, the performer strains to imagine the beauty of the original recording but realizes the voices, instruments and percussion are all missing. With all this missing the song has no soul and hence no reason to be performed.

The solos of this Dan Coates edition tower above all of the other popular edition books I own. Coates' arrangements allow the pianist to perform as a soloist. Rather than following the harmony of the original recordings like a drone, Coates' skillfully harmonizes and tailors these songs to beauty of the piano.

These songs are a joy to perform. Anyone who buys this book will have opportunity to sound like a professional.

Dan Coates offers the nicest piano compositions of all the composers' music I've played. His music flows across your fingertips. It does require much practice for me to get these advanced songs down, but well worth it. These compositions create beautiful music for the piano.

For any pianist who plays for weddings, receptions, formal dinners, or other secular functions, this book will be an invaluable asset. Dan Coates' signature easy listening-style piano arrangements will enhance the mood and atmosphere of any social gathering. Perfect for background music in a crowd, or to play for your own pleasure and satisfaction, these medium-to-difficult arrangements will make anyone sound like a professional.

Intricate, Detailed Renditions...Difficult Segmants for the Advanced Pianist.

I'm 20 yrs. old and I have been a pianist for 16 yrs. I have also taught piano for 6 yrs. I HIGHLY recommend this item because these pieces are not simple versions of the origional composed pieces. I'm always put out as I receive an ordered book that is too simple or does not contain a single key-change. Dan Coates is a professional composer who finds new ways to present the enlightening pieces her arranges. Don't try to pass me up by simplifying the music, I want the real piece! He never fails to start the piece establishing the main melody and then gradually building until he finishes with a finale worth presenting to the President. I could not rate higher...well done Mr. Coates!

The songs in this book are challenging yet worth it once you've learned them. The arrangements are well-written and flow smoothly when they're up-to-speed. The difficulty range is not huge, and tends to hover between intermediate and advanced. The left hand usually plays broken chords which are simple, yet effectively lay a base for the right-handed melodies. A great selection!

Dan Coates writes in a style much like my own, so I really enjoy the selection of songs and his arrangements of them. I've searched for years for a book like this! So pleased with it. There are 77 songs, most of them will always be timeless favorites. Some of the pieces are a little challenging, but I like that. I've been asked to play for a wedding and reception. Most all of these songs will be appropriate for the occasion, and they are professional-sounding, too. I'll be proud of this book for years to come, unlike many I wish I had never wasted my money on and are now collecting dust.

This is one of my favorite piano solo books. Some of the music takes work as it is mostly level 4-5, but the arrangements are wonderful. I take this book with me wherever I know there will be a piano. I'm a senior citizen who has played for years and Dan Coates improvisations fit my abilities very well. I hope there will be another book from him one of these days.

I play for numerous weddings where the bride chooses piano for the service music. These arrangements are a wonderful resource for these events. They are absolutely gorgeous, and they are a great source with a mix of classical, sacred, and modern songs. The arrangement of "Prayer" is worth the price for the whole volume. It is one of the best values I've encountered in many years.