From Keith Snell & Diane Hidy— -...

From Keith Snell & Diane Hidy

The Perfect Place to Learn to Play the Piano

The Groundbreaking New Piano Method For Students Age Six and Up

Neil A. Kjos Music Company Distributor

Piano Town, the highly anticipated new elementary piano method by Keith Snell andDiane Hidy, is the perfect place to learn to play the piano! A Multi-Key method with aMiddle C start and a special focus on intervals, Piano Town combines the best ofpedagogy with innovative new ideas. Students will love the contemporary feel as theydiscover the musical wonder of Piano Town. Teachers will love the success of itsinteractive discovery learning approach!

A Middle C Start Leads Effortlessly into Strong Interval Reading in Every KeyPiano Town introduces your students to the piano withpre-staff notation at the Primer Level. Following that,reading on the staff begins in Middle C position, the easieststarting point for learning to read and the best key for earlymusical melodies. New intervals are introduced individually,giving students a chance to become familiar with thecorrect fingering and visual appearance on the staff. Theresult? Strong note reading skills and a satisfyingmusical experience.

Logical Sequence of KeysThe concept of key signatures can be difficultfor students to grasp. Following theintroduction of C Major, Piano Townintroduces F Major so that the key signature isimmediately accessible to playing the musiccorrectly in the five finger position. It is easierfor students to understand the relevance ofkey signatures when they use the accidentalimmediately. Key signatures in Piano Townare thus introduced in middle C position so students actually useaccidentals and understand their importance.

The introduction of each new key is supported technically, theoretically,and musically. The keys are presented in an order that is easy forstudents to learn and understand. Piano Town begins with the mostfrequently used keys in piano music and works toward the moreremote and less often used key signatures.

Keys Presented in Cumulative Order of Sharps and FlatsLevel One:

C, F, and GLevel Two:

D, A, and ELevel Three:

Am, Dm, Em, Bb, GmLevel Four:

Eb, Ab, Db, Gb, B

LEADING-EDGE PEDAGOGY

Neil A. Kjos Music Company www.kjos.com

LEADING-EDGE PEDAGOGYFour Books/Five Levels

Lessons Theory Technic Performance

for

PrimerLevel One Level Two Level Three Level Four

Consistent Grading and Smooth Pacing With Page-by-Page CorrelationThe controlled, steady pacing of the Piano Town curriculum introduces one element at a time. Eachconcept is presented in a consistent, reliable format. This clear presentation helps students recognizeand focus on new skills and information.

Natural, Effortless TechnicPiano Town looks out for your students physical as wellas psychological needs. Stronger and weaker fingers areconsidered in the construction of each piece. PianoTowns technic studies start with the stronger, morecoordinated center of the handfingers 2 and 3thengradually moves out to 1, 4, and 5, taking care to avoidawkward use of 4 and 5.

The music focuses on melodies that promote a natural,effortless legato, avoiding over-use of repeated notesespecially with weaker fingers. This gradual, evenly paced,and systematic development of technic incorporatingphysical training in a natural sequence, builds yourstudents confidence, capability, satisfaction, and success.


LEADING-EDGE PEDAGOGYAccompanimentsNurture Musical,Rhythmic PlayingExciting duet parts add texture andflare to the simplest of pieces; theyalso help teachers prompt studentstoward rhythmically accurateand musically shapedperformances. Duets areprinted at the top of thepage in score form. Thisway the teacher can easilytrack the student part whileplaying and the students arenever distracted by theprinted accompaniment.

Students Learn TransposingTransposition skills are essential to improved reading,technical fluency, and theoretical knowledge. In PianoTown students are taught to think by intervals, helpingthem become more secure with lines and spaces andmuch more facile with transposition.

Piano Town introduces transposing in Level One.Thereafter students are provided with many opportunitiesto transpose comfortable pieces into familiar keys.Transposing thus becomes an integral part of the learningprocess benefiting their sight-reading, technic, and theory.


UNIQUE NEW TEACHING AIDSQuestions Help Students and TeachersPiano Town helps students develop the habit ofscanning through a piece to see whats there, one ofthe most valuable tools for any pianist.

Before each piece in the Lessons books, studentsare asked important questions whose answers theymust find by reading through the piece. Questionsare designed to prep each new piece by drawingattention to new concepts as well as reviewing thosepreviously learned.

Questions also provide teachers with the tools forunderscoring new concepts, reviewing olderconcepts, and preparing successful sight-reading,practice, and performance.

Call-outs Introduce All New ConceptsA pointer line pairs each new term with itsdefinition, and each new symbol with itsexplanation. Definitions and explanationsof new concepts appear when and wherethey are needed: in the music.

Tabs For TeachersTabs at the top of each page are a quick and easy way to check the new concepts being introduced.


Right from the start Piano Town introduces yourstudents to real music that their families will love to hear.Music that is both attractive to students and pedagogicallysound creates a complete package. The skillfulpresentation of the pieces makes teaching themsuccessful each and every time.

EXCEPTIONAL MUSICALITYTHROUGHOUTStudents Play Classics from the BeginningPiano Town introduces students to classic melodies in thePrimer Level. Simplified arrangements of Bach, Beethoven,and Tchaikovsky join with favorite folk tunes and originalmusic. Classical literature in its original form is introduced inLevel One and used almost exclusively in Levels Three andFour. At the same time students learn about the lives of thecomposers through brief biographies.

Prepares Students for Intermediate RepertoireAfter completing Piano Town, students will be ideallyprepared to begin Level Three of Keith Snells PianoRepertoire Series. Here youll find a wealth of choices, allwith the same high quality selection and editing.


Concepts Tie Together with Art and Lyrics Piano Town quickly becomes a real placea supportive and diversecommunity of family andfriends, a place where a new, exciting adventure is justaround the corner.

For the first time ever Lessons,Performance, and Technicbooks are correlated not onlyby concept but also by themesor storylines. Its an easy andentertaining way to remember allparts of a conceptespeciallywhen the story is aboutdinosaurs, adventures, friends,and family.

ART & LYRICS STIR THE IMAGINATIONA Creative Style That Matures Along with the StudentArt and lyrics encourage imagination and help students explore the expressive nature of music. Theart, music, and lyrics of Piano Town change and mature as levels advance and the music becomesmore sophisticated.


ABOUT THE AUTHORSKeith Snell began teaching when he was fifteen years old, under the guidance of his pianoteacher/mother. Since that time he has maintained an independent piano studio with students rangingfrom advanced high school students to typical young beginners. Keith received his B.M. and M.M. inPiano Performance from the University of Southern California. He is co-author of Piano Town, and thehighly acclaimed Fundamentals of Piano Theory series. He is also well known to teachers as the editorof the Neil A. Kjos Master Composer and Piano Library Repertoire series, and as producer of therecordings that accompany both. Keith has shared his insights about piano teaching in workshops andmaster classes throughout North America and abroad.

Diane Hidy is well known as a performing and recording artist. She is a former winner of the MusicTeachers National Association Collegiate Artist Competition, among numerous other competitions. In1987 she was the first woman to become a Beethoven Fellow of the American Pianists Association, andshe made her Carnegie Hall debut in 1991. As a recording artist Diane is best known to piano teachersas the performer on the Neil A. Kjos Master Composer and Piano Repertoire series CDs, all of whichcorrelate with the print volumes edited by Keith Snell. Her recording, Lullaby, The Journey Begins wona Parents Choice Award in 2002. Diane attended the Juilliard School and holds degrees from theUniversity of Southern California and Peabody Conservatory. Diane maintains a piano studio and enjoysteaching her students who range from 5 to 75 years of age.


PIANO TOWNLessons Theory Technic Performance

____ MP100 Primer ____ MP110 Primer ____ MP120 Primer ____ MP130 Primer____ MP101 Level 1 ____ MP111 Level 1 ____ MP121 Level 1 ____ MP131 Level 1____ MP102 Level 2 ____ MP112 Level 2 ____ MP122 Level 2 ____ MP132 Level 2____ MP103 Level 3 ____ MP113 Level 3 ____ MP123 Level 3 ____ MP133 Level 3____ MP104 Level 4 ____ MP114 Level 4 ____ MP124 Level 4 ____ MP134 Level 4

($7.95 each) ($5.95 each) ($5.95 each) ($6.95 each)

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