A First Book of Chopin: For The Beginning Pianist with Downloadable MP3s (Dover Classical Piano Music For Beginners) Paperback – March 14, 2003

Love this book! If you aren't sure if it's your level or not, I was playing level 3A-3B in the FunTime piano book series, and this Chopin book has been a great next step. Challenging in the right away.

Great book. I love it

-----This is the perfect book if you are a beginning pianist and are interested in learning the music of Frèdèric Chopin. NOTE: These are 'Easy' Piano Arrangements.There are a total of 23 titles with 2 of the titles revisited later on:· Prelude, Op. 28 no. 7· Mazurka, Op. 67 no. 2Total = 21 unique songs (listed below)As a beginner to Chopin's music, I also purchased the following two CD's:Chopin: Greatest Hits contain 10 songs from the book and Chopin: Favorite Piano Works contain 6 songs for a total of 13 unique songs. (3 overlap) .. including:CHOPIN GREATEST HITS:· Polonaise for piano No. 3 in A major ("Military"), Op. 40/1, CT. 152· Waltz for piano No. 6 in D flat major ("Minute"), Op. 64/1, CT. 212· Fantasy-Impromptu for piano in C sharp minor, Op. 66, CT. 46· Nocturne for piano No. 2 in E flat major, Op. 9/2, CT. 109· Prelude for piano No. 7 in A major, Op. 28/7, CT. 172· Polonaise for piano No. 6 in A flat major ("Héroique"), Op. 53, CT. 155· Etude for piano No. 3 in E major, Op. 10/3, CT. 16· Prelude for piano No. 20 in C minor, Op. 28/20, CT. 185· Prelude for piano No. 15 in D flat major, Op. 28/15, CT. 180· Piano Sonata No. 2 in B flat minor, Op. 35, CT. 202 Marche funèbreCHOPIN FAVORITE PIANO WORKS:· Fantasy-Impromptu for piano in C sharp minor, Op. 66, CT. 46· Nocturne for piano No. 2 in E flat major, Op. 9/2, CT. 109· Waltz for piano No. 3 in A minor, Op. 34/2, CT. 209· Waltz for piano No. 9 in A flat major ("L'adieu") Op. 69/1, CT. 215· Ballade for piano No. 1 in G minor, Op. 23, CT. 2· Polonaise for piano No. 6 in A flat major ("Héroique"), Op. 53, CT. 155Each song in the book is also preceded by a paragraph with background details. For example from the first song:"(This is) The seventh Prelude from Chopin's 24 Preludes, Op.28, composed when he was 26. The music is really a delicate waltz, made up of rhythmically identical two-measure phrases. Originally in the key of A major, this version states the melody alone in the easier key of G major, then adds a simple bass line. The music is light, airy and elegant."Here is the complete song list and the introduction from the title page:"Chopin knows what sounds are heard in our fields and woods," wrote a critic. "He has listened to the song of the Polish villager and he has made it his own." But the composer's adopted France brought a new elegance and refinement into his music, and Frèdèric Chopin, revered as "the poet of the piano," was welcomed into Paris's highest social and courtly circles. The story and music of a great composer forever torn between two worlds appear in the pages that follow.CONTENTSIn approximate order of difficulty01. An Elegant Chopin Melody (in French Ballroom Style): Prelude, Op. 28 no. 702. A Plaintive Chopin Melody (in Polish Mazurka Style): Mazurka, Op. 67 no. 203. Lullaby: (Berceuse, Op. 57)04. Mazurka: Mazurka, Op. 67 no. 2 (revisited)05. Mazurka in F: (Mazurka, Op. 68 no. 3)06. Etude No. 3: (Etude, Op. 10 no. 3)07. Prelude No. 7: (Prelude, Op. 28 no. 7 (revisited)08. An Early Nocturne: (Nocturne, Op. 9 no. 2)09. A Late Nocturne: (Nocturne, Op. 55 no. 1)10. First Ballade: (Ballade No. 1, Op. 23)11. Ballade in F: (Ballade No. 2, Op. 38)12. Funeral March: ("Marche funèbre" from Sonata No. 2, Op. 35)13. Mazurka in C: (Mazurka, Op. 33 no. 3)14. Grand Waltz in A Minor: (Grande Valse Brillante, Op. 34 no. 2)15. "Farewell" Waltz: (Waltz, Op. 69 no. 1, "L'adieu")16. "Minute" Waltz: (Waltz, Op. 64 no. 1)17. "Organ" Prelude: (Prelude, Op. 28 no. 20)18. "Raindrop" Prelude: (Prelude, Op. 28 no. 15)19. Fantaisie-impromptu: (Fantaisie-impromptu, Op. 66)20. "Butterfly" Etude: (Etude, Op. 25 no. 9)21. "Military" Polonaise: (Polonaise, Op. 40 no. 1)22. "Heroic" Polonaise: (Polonaise, Op. 53)23. Scottish Dance: (The first of the Trois Ècossaises Op. 72 no. 3)-----~

Book was great because I love chopins compositions and his repertoire is very complex so this book provides a great solution for any beginner who wants to add what I call real piano music to their playing list however the pieces are much too short only a page of a multi paged masterpiece, but it still is a great book loved it.

I've been searching for something like it and so glad I found it. Not too hard but not too easy either. Simple patterns. Although the songs are simple the tunes remain true to the originals.

I like the arrangements and the descriptions. Some of the pieces are more challenging, which will help increase proficiency.

This series of books really is for beginners, as they claim. I'm not sure that this "A First Book of..." series gives much sense of the sounds of the composers. As a mostly self-educated pianist, perhaps I am edging a bit more toward the intermediate level at this point without realizing it while still being intimidated by actual classical sheet music. I am looking at this from the perspective of an adult learner. For young kids studying classical piano, this series might offer good material...I'm not sure. Ask an expert...not me!

These books are exactly what we have been looking for. Our studio, Fox Music Instruction (find us on Facebook), has a focus on inspiring our students to explore the depth of expression found in classical music. Because of this, we have found it somewhat difficult to source arrangements of classical masterpieces that are appropriate for the level of our students. These books address that need wonderfully. There are around a dozen "First books" focusing on a single composer's works and two other books that are more general and help students explore many different composers' works in the same book.The only downside to the series is that there are no offerings specifically suited to primer or early level 1 students. These books are more levels 2-4 approximately. However, that does not detract from the value of what is offered in my view. We have decided to implement these books as a regular part of the repertoire curriculum for our students (who are of the right level) henceforth.In summation, while these books may not suit the needs of every student or studio, they do a wonderful job suiting the vision of our studio and the needs of many of our students!