What, another piano tutor? Aren’t there enough of them out there already?
Who wouldn’t like to be able to sight-read through a book of beautiful music at the piano, as easily as reading a newspaper? Fluent music reading is truly a wonderful skill to have, to enjoy and to share. People often tell me they took piano lessons as a child but gave up, and now wish they hadn’t. Some of them are parents who are sending their children to me for tuition, to give them what they themselves missed out on. You’d imagine three years (say) of private tuition costing, say, $3,000 would have anyone fluent in any new language—including the language of music! This is unfortunately often not the case. Many things go into becoming a pianist, and a good teacher develops them all. But the truly vital thing is to integrate fluent note-reading into every nook and cranny of the art.
Good reading and writing skills are necessary for learning any subject, and in the same way, fluent note-reading at the piano is the key to everything else: making progress, growing in skill and confidence—enjoying the instrument! I tell my students, ‘Look, once you can read music you can get hold of any song you like—in any style, classical, jazz, rock, pop, country, western, you name it—and play it for yourself! Buy it from the music shop or online, put it up on the piano, and just play it!’.
Many piano teachers and parents would love to have a piano course that ‘really works’—one they could wholeheartedly endorse. For the 35 years of my concert and teaching career I wished I had a turnkey method for imparting note-reading in a more-or-less foolproof manner, one that was enjoyable and not full of clunky, childish and easily-memorized pieces. I wanted a solid framework, a tool for communicating the joy of fluent music reading. It’s worth repeating: this is the non-negotiable key to success in learning piano, just as fluent reading and writing skills are the non-negotiable key to success in all education generally.
In 1991—a mere 19 years ago!—the idea crystallized: if I wanted a piano course like that, then I would have to have write it myself. My two eldest daughters were then 6 and 4, thereby constituting ideal guinea-pigs for my first attempts. Had I had any inkling of how long it would take or how hard it would be, I would probably never have started. Always imagining success was around the corner, I found myself repeatedly returning to square one with yet another prototype.
But through 2009, Pianophonics 1-15 in its present published form was tested by around 30 primary school students here in sunny Adelaide, South Australia. The result is literally a whole new world of piano teaching and learning. Happy parents, happy students, and a happy teacher: what more could a piano teacher want? Every student with committed parents is flying.
When you get your copy you’ll first see an innocent-looking set of attractively laid-out children’s pieces with titles like Spanish Dance, Bells and Echoes, as well as a few small exercise. This is the child’s-eye view, and precisely what a beginning piano student ought to see. But an experienced teacher will see—under the hood so to speak—far more than this. Underneath, it’s a sequence of learning events that has been optimized in every possible way during ruthlessly rigorous real-world testing and modification.
Above all, Pianophonics places a tool in the hands of serious and dedicated piano teachers (and home-schooling parents) around the world. There is no more hit-and-miss with the note-reading, and motivation is maximized without compromise or ‘dumbing-down’. The biggest motivator is always the sense of achievement and growing mastery that comes with the aquisition of a real skill. Every child—or adult, for that matter—can learn to read music at the piano fluently as a matter of course with Pianophonics.
For around the cost of a piano lesson—$US24.95, including airmail shipping anywhere in the world—you can purchase Pianophonics 1-15 by clicking on the Buy Now button below. You will be taken to Paypal secure pages where you can use Visa or Mastercard, or pay via Paypal. To purchase by check (available for US and Australian customers), or for wholesale purchase of 10 or more copies, please leave a note on the Contact page to receive details.
Q: Why do you ship from Australia?
A: Because that’s where I am. Here we’re always ordering books from other countries, especially from the US and the UK. We’re used to it and it doesn’t faze us, though it might have done the first couple times. This might be the first time you’ve considered ordering from overseas, let alone from as far away as Australia. But there really is no risk other than the minimal, residual one involved in sending anything by post anywhere. Australia Post is right up there in reliability with the Swiss PTT—it has to be. (I wouldn’t be so rude as to suggest it might be better than USPS). Allow 7-10 days for airmail delivery, included in the purchase price. And if you’d still like options such as insurance, rapid delivery, Fedex etc then just leave a message on the Contact page and I’ll get right back to you. It goes without saying that I’ll fix up any problem ASAP.
Q: I wanted to buy Pianophonics 1-15 but was taken to a Paypal site, so I cancelled the order.
A: Go back again and buy it. You can use your credit or debit card on the Paypal site with complete security, and you don’t need to login to Paypal to do so. Your card statement will say PIANOPHONIC or PIANOPHONICS, depending on provider.
Q: Why Pianophonics 1-15?
A: Because at the end of 2010 I will publish Pianophonics 16-30, and in 2011 Pianophonics 31-45. And that may be it. It would be easier to say Pianophonics 1, Pianophonics 2 and Pianophonics 3, but then a student might say, I’m not a complete beginner so I’ll start with book 2. There is too much that is new, too many concepts in lessons 1-15 that have been thought through from scratch. Lesson 16 will be precisely that – the lesson that comes after 15. It’s worth having a slightly ‘clunkier’ title to make that as clear as possible.
Q: Do you welcome customer feedback?
A: Yes I do! I want to know everything! I want to know who’s using Pianophonics and how they’re getting on. I want to know of any problems or issues that arise, and offer help and advice by email or via the web page.
Q: Who are you and who runs this website?
A: My name is Mark Freer, and I’m a concert pianist, music educator and church musician in Adelaide, South Australia. This website is entirely my own doing, and is obviously still quite a simple affair. I created it using the free WordPress software along with the Thesis theme, separately purchased. You too can do the same.
