Piano Pieces for Children (Everybody's Favorite Series, No. 3) [Paperback]

Maxwell Eckstein (Editor), Albert Barbelle (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 1992

One hundred compositions, progressively graded for grades 1 through 4, ranging from the works of the great masters to the folk tunes and dances of many lands.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Founded in 1947, Hal Leonard Corporation has become the worlds largest print music publisher, representing some of the greatest songwriters and artists of all time. We are proud to publish titles of interest to all musicians as well as music lovers, from songbooks and instructional titles to artist biographies and instrument price guides to books about the music industry and all the performing arts.

Product Details

• Paperback: 191 pages
• Publisher: Amsco Music Publishing Co. Inc. (January 1, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0825620031
• ISBN-13: 978-0825620034
• Product Dimensions: 11.8 x 9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #57,195 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A classic, June 18, 2010

By 

A reader (Branchburg, NJ USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Piano Pieces for Children (Everybody's Favorite Series, No. 3) (Paperback)

I was given a used copy of this book over fifty years ago. I enjoyed playing from it then and now (from a new copy I bought in the 1960s for $1.75). It has a wide breadth of pieces from the 18th and 19th centuries, some of which are original piano pieces and others which are arrangements of traditional songs and orchestral works. The selections are attactive and a pleasure to play. There is an abundance of fingering and performance markings (but no mm suggestions), the staves are large enough to read easily yet the pieces are each given enough space so that the notes are not squeezed together. This book is not only for children and should provide any student pianist a lot of material containing most of the basic technical challenges. It is also a time capsule as it represents a view of what advanced beginners were playing eighty years ago.

Why not five stars? A problem with this book (and many other of its type) is that the user cannot tell how much each piece was edited. This is not an issue for well-known orchestral pieces or traditional songs arranged for the piano, but there are lots of original works for keyboard in this volume. Which are simplified, which are heavily edited, and which are pretty much in their original form? For example, the two Chopin preludes on p95 are subtly simplified, whereas "Fur Elise" appears to be in its original form, with fingering, pedaling and phrasing markings added. Brahms's "Hungarian Dance No. 5" has been both simplified and transposed. Which are arranged for piano from a non-keyboard original? Unfortunately, we just don't know.

In addition, there are errors sprinkled through the book. These are mostly obvious and should not present any issues for someone with musical experience but may cause problems for children.

Finally, some of the editing is just plain wrong. The expansion of the trill at the bottom of the Gavotte from Bach's French Suite #5 is incorrect (also: the piece is titled "Gavotte in G" and its source is not identified).

That said, I recommend this collection. Just be careful! Although it may not deserve all of them, I give it four stars for nostalgia.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Piano pieces for Everyone!!, October 31, 2006

By 

M. M. Sudirgo (Stowmarket, United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Piano Pieces for Children (Everybody's Favorite Series, No. 3) (Paperback)

Very good for beginner who want to start playing piano. Favorite and famous songs for all time.

Fun to learn and play the music. Not only for children!

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best way to learn classical classics, March 3, 2008

By 

Lorraine Stevenski "Lorrainesfav" (Clearwater, Florida) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Piano Pieces for Children (Everybody's Favorite Series, No. 3) (Paperback)

I have my original version from 1964 all tattered and torn. I will buy this book for my nephew who has taught himself to play piano. I could not give up my own version as it is too dear to me. It is a timeless reference in learning to play piano at any age.