Musicals Books

i bought this for my brother who started taking piano lessons a while back, and it's got a great selection of some the most beautiful music i've ever heard (i love john williams). good if you love jurassic park, etc. & many other timeless musical scores!

Boook was in GREAT shape, super super super fast shipping. Wonderful seller. Buy from this person! Thank you so much! We used one of the songs as a joke in our wedding (Indianna Jones theme song... I'm an Archaeologist) and people LOVED it! Thanks for helping to make our special day even better!
A+++++

If you are looking for a book with various themes of John Williams, look no further. This book contains many of his great hits from, like the book says, 1969-1999. It includes the themes from Born of the Fourth of July, Jurassic Park, Star Wars, Jaws, JFK, Schindler's List, E.T., Close Encounters, and Superman. It also includes Duel of the Fates, The Imperial March, Luke and Leia (for all you Star Wars fans), Cadillac Of The Skies, Hymn to the Fallen, Seven Years In Tibet, Scherzo For Motorcycle and Orchestra, and many more. If you are a fan of John Williams and play the piano, this book is for you! P.S. Also look for the 2-CD set of the same name which includes all of the same songs.

This is the best piano book in the world.

This book has all of Williams's best. The songs sound really good on the piano and are easily reconizable. I recommend it to any John Williams fan.

A beautiful book. Louise Palanker has written a touching and moving story. You will want to share & discuss with your children.

"Journals" was perfect for me, as one who grew up during WWII. My grandchildren loved it because Lanie's experiences approximate their own, and their parents are of the author's vintage. The juxtaposition of the two journals--Lanie's and her father's--made the book very readable and absorbing.

Of course I'm prejudiced. I'm Louise's Mom. But the book is truly splendid. It's of great interest to adults and an inspiration to the young.

This book is a gentle yet glorious reminder of those typical adolescent feelings of angst we all had ~ about every thing and every one! And that's important for those of us who have young people in our lives who are living through those mysterious, painful and joyous times themselves. Palanker's tale of a young girl weaving her way toward adulthood is made all the more memorable when juxtaposed against her father's dangerous early years. His sacrifices as a soldier during World War II places her adolescent "sufferings" in context and creates a perspective all youngsters should learn about. This is a book for girls and boys alike. I urge everyone to read it and pass it on!

I think this book is wonderful in so many ways! It's a beautiful right-of-passage story for teens...especially girls. It's a girl coming to a deeper understanding of who her father was by putting him in the context of history. It's a powerful example of "keeping the memory alive"with an age-appropriate tale describing what made the "Greatest Generation" so great! This should to be a must-read for middle schoolers!

Far more than a simple listing of where and what the Kinks played over the years, this book provides a detailed look at the lives of the Davies brothers in particular, as well as some of the other members of the band. Some of the songs have even more meaning when you learn of the stories and details behind them. And it's a tremendous benefit to have a US/UK discography so that there's no doubt what may be missing (if anything) from your Kinks kollection.

What leaps out at me from all of the details is a portrait of tremendously-talented songwriter Ray Davies as a reluctant rock star who may have been happier working in film or the musical theater, and a portrait of tremendously-talented guitar player Dave Davies as a man who wrestled with depression back in the days before anyone took that seriously. It's no wonder they fought a lot.

If you love the best of the British Invasion bands, buy this book. You will be glad you did.

This book is amazing. Trying to get the whereabouts together for a period of 35 years from one of the most erratic bands ever. It took 18 years of researching, collecting data in all corners of the world to get this book done. The Kinks did things on a spur of the moment, unlike The Beatles' or The Rolling Stones' management, who were better organized and as a result the information can be drawn from the source. Information on The Kinks had to be found in numerous archives, libraries and fans' scrapbooks. I think Doug Hinman would have thought twice before starting if you had told him this 20 years ago!
Hinman's book is flooding over with dates, facts and information about The Kinks for a period of 35 years. There are photos in this book that I had never seen before, and I've been through quite a few books on The Kinks.
The best Kinks book in 15 years. No question about it!

My favorite thing on earth is The Kinks....I've read all the other books....THIS RULES!!!!!trust me. MANCOW

this day by day historical look at the kinks' touring and recording dates is thoroughly researched to the best of the author's ability. the book provides interesting and fascinating glimpse into not only the music of the group but also the personalities and attitudes of its members, especially ray davies, one of the greatest lyricists in rock history. the kinks are probably the most underrated of the great british invasion bands, at least on american shores, and certainly one of the most interesting, and this work will give fans and readers hours of enjoyment, as well as inform them about quite a few facts that they didn't previously know.

This is a terrific account of the Kinks history from the early 1960's up to the later 90's. Instead of merely listing set lists from each tour, Doug Hinman researchs and documents exactly what was going on with the Kinks at each point in time. The most famous Ray and Dave Davies fights are included of course, but there is much more to the Kinks than just that. Each year lists the album, singles, how the commercial success or lack of affected the band, the management, the concert crowds, etc. It does not pull any punches in listing dissapointing crowds during many years or concerts that were cancelled for various reasons. Full accounts of interactions with The Beatles, The Who and other bands they've shared bills with are also included. A terrific read for the Kinks fan. I enjoyed it immensly.

I like the spiral binding, easy to keep the pages flat, you get a large number of music pieces, many well known, nice variety. The only problem is they are not exactly easy for a beginner and I found one piece (so far) where the note just does not fit, it sounds off comparing to what I remembered, however that may be just me.

I have been playing for about 10 months and enjoy this book, but most of it's too hard for me. The advantages - LOTS of music, a good variety, not just classical like in some books (though there's nothing remotely modern in here - no pop or rock or anything). But as one reviewer said, it's not "easy", just easier, and it's not for beginners. For example, most beginner books have most or all the music in C, F or G or their minors (either no or one sharp or flat), in this book, a lot is in keys with 2 or more sharps or flats. The two isn't so bad, but the "or more" is a challenge. Also, the music requires a lot of playing both hands simultaneously (as opposed to beginner books that have more playing mainly chords and close half or quarter notes on the left hand, so that the amount of simultaneous movement is reduced).

This AMSCO Publications product (1998) contains some of the same
compositions found in their Library of Piano Classics book (1987); but the latter has 350 pgs of unaltered (I think) classical music, while the former
has 239 pgs of simplified classics and light standards.

Both books contain Debussy's Le Petit Negre in the same form. Therefore I suppose that the publisher considers the real composition easy enough to include it unaltered in Easy Piano Favorites. But other classical
compositions common to both books are indeed simplified. This is
accomplished by using fewer notes, rewriting in "easier" keys, and shortening
the original compositions so as to leave out hard parts. For instance, Liszt's
Liebestraum in the "hard" book is six pgs. long and is written in the key of
A flat (4 flats). In the Easy Piano Favorites book it is two pages long and is
presented in the key of F (1 flat). Beethoven's Fur Elise, generally considered
to be easy enough (key of C, etc) that generations of piano teachers have
taught it to generations of students, is 4 pgs in the original. In Easy Piano
Favorites it remains in the key of C, but has a different (easier?) bass and takes
up only one page.

Your reviewer, who once played reasonably well in his youth in his own
living room, has forgotten most of his piano skills in his old age. But I can play much that is in Easy Piano Favorites, and expect to be able to play most of it
in the foreseeabe future. I'll never be able to say that about the contents of
the more difficult Favorite Piano Classics.

What a nice surprise to open a book with almost 150 of the world's best classics in easy to play arrangements! This book contains 237 pages of music from the early composers such as Bach, Handel, Beethoven, Mozart, Brahms, Chopin, Grieg, Liszt, Mendelssohn, Schubert, Schumann, Tchaikovsky, etc. It also contains music of such great composers like John Philip Sousa, George Gershwin, George M. Cohan, Gonoud, Jerome Kern, Irving Berlin, etc . This book is beautifully bound with a sturdy, plastic comb making the pages easy to turn on the piano. The pages are quite legible and bright. This book is highly recommended for all ages. My students love it. It is a spectacular collection and quite a bargain for this amount of repertoire.

A great book for first or second year piano players. Covers classical as well as favorites. The spiral binding helps to keep the book open. Both my daughter and I are enjoying this book.

This was a good experience the price was right the delivery was timely a great overall experience was had.

Craig Wright not only provides us with a nicely packaged history of music, composers, and culture, but also gives us a peak into the personal lives within the societies of these periods. Each chapter contains excellent listening exercises to be used with works on the included CD and there are excellent illustrations and photographs that "bring you back" to each age of music. I recommend it as a general reference source for accomplished musicians, and as a nice guide for all classical music fans.

When I signed up to take Music Appreciation I was a bit nervous. Though I have grown up around music and musicians, I have never enjoyed "music class." I was pleasantly surprised by the conversational and topical way this book was written. It is interesting and informative regardless of your level of music understanding or proficiency. I thoroughly enjoyed both the listening exercises and the composer biographies.

I took Craig Wright's class at Yale, from which he wrote the text. The listening exercises are great--not too difficult, more just to guide listening--and it really can help guide a musical novice to proficiency.

Wright's book is a great introduction to the Western tradition, and a fair introduction to the world's music as a whole.

I know that there are cheaper alternatives out there, especially "The Vintage Guide to Classical Music," which I also recommend. But in this case, the CDs are worth the extra money. They correspond with the listening exercises in the book, and before long you really can tell an oboe from a french horn, a cello from a, well, a tuba, and so on. You learn to recognize and pay attention to meter, key, etc.... You really get on your way to understanding classical music, from which genuine appreciation can grow.

He also gives a fairly solid introducion to music as a whole, not only the classical Western "art music" tradition, but jazz, blues, rock, world music, and so on.

I can say that, to my knowledge, no other book out there does that.

I don't think any introduction is needed before this book; it can be the first you ever read on music even if you have no background whatsoever. The book to follow up this is, IMO, Fred Plotkin's "Classical Music 101" and Copland's classic, "What to Listen For in Music."

I learned a lot from this book and his course, which I failed when I was in college--evidently, attendance was mandatory after all! And I thought the teaching assistant having a crush on me would help.... Shame on me!

Simple man would have been the greatest addition they could have made but as they allow us to try and emulate them - I'm not going to complain.
great book -bought easily for a good price.
thankyou.

I'm a begginner and this book helped me rock my way to the stage. The tab is perfect. Most correct tab i ever read. I started 2 monthes ago and now we started a Lynyrd Skynyrd tribute band. Our next show is on Jan, 1 at times square New York. See you there.

This is a great tab book. This tablature flows right through the pages into your guitar. Keep up the good work guys!!

This is a damn great guitar tab. Amazin' songs like Free bird and What's your name If you play rock you gotta have it!!

It is a very good book for the guitar beginners that love the Skynyrd music. If you're on the road for a long time, you always can learn something useful with these songs.

I really like this cd. It isn't heavy metal. Just good rock music. A nice sing along and dance cd.

The book came promptly and wrapped very nicely. I was pleased with the purchase.

well, pretty good SHABRE umm its got all you need youll know that cd front to back. SHABREE

I bought this book with some hesitance - Hal Leonard's "Recorded Guitar Versions" stamp usually stands for quality tablature, but I was doubtful it could capture the complexity of the harmony and keyboards on Maroon 5's debut disc. I'm not a Maroon 5 fan, but there were a few specific riffs I hoped to learn, and I would be upset if the book omitted them.

I freely admit that I was wrong. I own dozens of sheet music books and, aside from full score books (such as those for Ben Folds Five), this is by far the best book of guitar transcriptions I have ever purchased.

There are a few specific elements that really emphasize the detail of this transcription. It notes every guitar part with very little compositing (e.g. chorus of "She Will Be Loved). It rarely uses a repeat or a DS when a repeated verse has a unique melodic element (a glaring omission is the third verse harmony of "Sunday Morning"). Also, it doesn't OVERUSE figures the way some books do, forcing you to flip back and forth more often than you play.

The guitar arrangements in the book are so authentically transcribed that it would be superfluous to describe them all. There is relatively little rhythm notation relying just on chords - almost everything is indicated exactly by tab. Solos are well done, with occasional editorial notes to aid your playing. Often what sounds like a keyboard or horn part is actually made-by or doubled-by a guitar, which means very few riffs are left out.

Parts played exclusively by keyboard are captured faithfully throughout the book. "Sunday Morning" takes care to notate piano chords with the correct inversions so they sound right while playing along. "Tangled" meticulously notates clavichord for guitar. The only major keyboard parts not transcribed are the lengthy intro and ambient effects on "Secret," and the brief into on "Not Coming Home."

Even the effects notes are detailed, which makes the book great for bands who want to copy the exact sound used by Maroon 5. The whammy notations are varied and specific. A common amount of detail is "Delay set for eight note regeneration w/one repeat." One of the guitars on "Shiver" goes the extra mile, noting "dist. & octaver. Set octaver for one octave below with equal mix of wet and dry signal."

Harmony vocals are notated to perfection. Again, this is so consistent it hardly warrants specific examples. The five-part harmony is intact on "Sunday Morning," as is the four-part on the live "Not Coming Home." In fact, the book often notes harmony vocals I couldn't even hear before owning the book.

Yet another great detail about the book is the fully notated fades. The "This Love" coda does NOT use a "repeat with ad lib" - it transcribes each note of each layer of Adam Levine's vocals down to the last word you can possibly make out before the fades out becomes inaudible. Same for the vocals and guitar solo on "Sweetest Goodbye," and the solo on "The Sun."

The solo guitarist is not left out in the cold, but is occasionally presented with a challenge. In my experience so far some of these songs don't lend themselves to solo acoustic versions without some re-arrangement. On tracks without a primary rhythm guitar part, like "Must Get Out" or "Through With You," the book helps you by providing implied tonality chords, but it doesn't provide their chord frames.

If you plan on mostly performing solo covers from this book you should have a good grasp on how to integrate multiple guitar lines and riffs into a solo arrangement. If that sounds like too tall a task for your skill level, consider buying the piano/guitar/vocal version of this book. (Also, if you are a baritone, consider de-tuning and/or shifting pitch/position with a capo if Adam's vocals are too aerobic for your range.)

I highly recommend this book to vocalists, guitarists, bands, and arrangers (especially for school bands or acappella). You'll be purchasing one of the best Hal Leonard books currently published, especially when it comes to guitars and vocals. The only way it could be improved is if it was reissued as a full score with bass and drum tabs.

I am Intermediate piano player and really like the way the songs are made. These songs can be played solo and still sound really nice and sound like you are the jazz man, but sound just as well in a band or group. I mean, these songs sound great and just like the real version. It all the songs note from note as they are in the cd. It's just a good songbook.

I've been playing guitar for more than 25 years, and in that time I have never come across an instructor that can explain complex topics in simple understandable terms like Matt Smith does. Whether it's for explaining the modes, double stops, tritone substitutions, playing "outside", or whatever, Matt's book is a tremendous tool for taking your playing to the next level. A perfect integration of theory and practical application.

you must get this book it makes it easy to learn what you need to know to master the guitar ,beginners and pros welcome ...albert carey ,deja blue records

There are many guitar books in the world, the majority of them being very useful to the aspiring guitarist's adventures. But Matt Smith's Chop Shop easily is placed in the top 5 guitar books. He has successfully made the most complex ideas for the guitar easy for us!! From understanding the key signature, to pentatonic scale control on the whole fretboard, to learning modes--everything is explained in a manner that instantly hooks you. He also expresses the importance of behaving like a professional, which is something you don't find in other books. I highly recommend all intermediate to advanced guitarists to put this in their collection within arms' reach.

This book is Awesome! It contains sooo many gems of information essential to expanding one's playing. This IS the Ultimate guitar players handbook. Literally, within minutes of having picked up the book I was coming up with more interesting chord progressions. I have been in a rut with my playing, can't really afford weekly lessons at this point, and found this book to be the perfect solution. It's about 20 lessons for less than 1/2 the price of one. It's very straightforward AND it comes with a cd so that you can hear the examples. Buy this book and quit your day job!

I have had the oppertunity to meet, study, and play with Matt at the National Guitar Workshop at the Nashville site and was blown away by his knowledge of the art of music. I came home and as soon as i sat down, i forgot almost half of the information he gave me and i would try to understand the scribbles written on the sheets of paper that was given to me during my week in Nashville. I took the course again this last summer and i still needed more guidence. Thankfully, his book is out and it's like having him here in my own home! He covers everything you could imagine! I thank him for writting this excellent book and for the publishers who let him do it his way. Good luck to you Matt!

I think that You can get more of Play Solo Guitar with Juan Martin, Vol 2 if you first have practice Vol 1. It,s exellent work to build your skills in Flamenco

It's a great flamenco guitar learning book...
Got full of flamenco's teq. writtin in both Notation and Tabs...
it's really worth it...
My sug. to all people who wish to learn flamenco and do play the guitar still go for Level 1 befor jumpin to level 2...

I also have his first book. He is an amazing guitar player. The CD is also nice to just listen to. This book will provide plenty of hours of practice to keep you busy. You definitely get your bang for the buck as there are plenty of songs, the tabs also show you which fingers to use and the DVD is really helpful. I highly recommend this, if it were lost or stolen i would buy another.

Vol. 1 and 2 are great, especially for the self-educated guitarist. The DVD's are clear and easy to follow. The pieces are fun to learn and play.

I'd already purchased Juan Martin's Flamenco tutor volume 1, and was thoroughly delighted by it : it is well-graded, with a logical progression, the music is great and Juan's smiling explanations and remarks are crystal-clear. I could not wish for a better introduction to playing flamenco guitar, and I have recommended it to all my classical guitar students.

The second volume is a logical continuation of the first. I've yet to get to work at it, but after scanning through it rapidly, I am convinced it will yield hours of enjoyment (and hard work) to enthusiastic players. And as always, Juan's sensitive and brillant playing really wants you to get at it !

Alan Bennett

I highly recommend "The Banjo Encyclopedia: Bluegrass Banjo from A to Z". I learned to play the banjo clawhammer style about seven years ago and have enjoyed developing as an amateur banjo player.

However, three-finger picking style seems to be the predominate way of playing, for some time, and I can recognize its advantages for producing a more sophisticated style.

I have looked at a number of books and never taken the leap from clawhammer style to three-finger picking until now because it has taken "The Banjo Encyclopedia: Bluegrass Banjo from A to Z" to give me what I need to make that leap.

I have great confidence in the book. I like the accompanying disk. I expect to grow with Ross Nickerson's method as successfully as I did previously with my teacher and books.

Very Good. who knew any one could write so much on the banjo. Very good to get goin and doin it right from the start.

This is a great way to begin your banjo journey. I have taken lessons with Ross and he is a fantastic teacher. He has an easy way about him that draws you into the instrument instead of scaring you off it.

The book is written in that very same style. It is very comprehensive but it is broken up into sections that allow you to progress naturally. You will find yourself going back to chapters well after your "beginner" stage. He shows you many different styles of playing and even how to mix them together! I think it's better than the Scruggs book. (but you should own that as well - just because)

If you play banjo or are thinking about it, buy this book. Trust me.

In the old days, banjo techniques were passed down orally from generation to generation as part of regional and familial folklore. Today, aspiring 5-string pickers have a multitude of high quality instructional materials readily available. Ross Nickerson has an impressive resume as a performer, recording artist and teacher. One of his primary goals is to help avoid having to learn everything the hard way. He provides time saving, practical lessons and advice. The Banjo Encyclopedia is very comprehensive, covers many topics, and is a tool that should be referenced regularly.

He starts at square one with the basics of holding the banjo, using picks, reading tab, tuning, positioning hands, and overcoming difficulties. Rolls and exercises are then covered. Chapters are dedicated to right hand technique, as well as that for the left hand. By the end of Chapter 3, one is learning "Banks of the Ohio" and "Bury Me Beneath the Willow." An important lesson that many books fail to present is practice habits and practicing priorities. Nickerson does a fine job emphasizing the importance of a good practicing routine. Basic Scrugg's picking is then addressed and related to the songs, "Sitting on Top of the World" and "Nine Pound Hammer." Melodic and single-string styles of playing introduce some fiddle tunes, and then the author has us put it all together along with rhythm and chordal backup. Chapter ten broaches the subject of improvisation, before we get into kickoffs, turnarounds, and endings. Playing at slower tempos and in waltz time are covered. Finally a chapter on banjo maintenance by Mike Munford addresses all the parts. Advanced songs taught include John Henry and Train 45. The accompanying CD is 78 minutes long, and clear references to the disc tracks are given throughout the book. Nickerson teaches in a very straightforward style, although I might have slightly changed the sequence of some of the instructional material. The Banjo Encyclopedia is a welcome and thorough study of the instrument, most appropriate for beginning and intermediate players. (Joe Ross, staff writer, Bluegrass Now)

I bought this based on customer reviews and it appears to be all it's cracked up to be. However I wanted to warn folks that a book this thick and perfect bound is not very practical. You will have to break the spine to get it to flatten out and actually use. Or you can have it trimmed and rebound at a print shop. I noticed that the website, BanjoTeacher.com, does offer a spiral-bound version and am sorry I didn't go that route. I just don't like tossing my credit info all over the internet, so it would be nice if Amazon could carry the spiral bound edition as well.