put put put put put put put goes the flashy speed boat

July 11, 2015 2:58 AM

What is a good contemporary first piano method for a four-year-old these days? I was taught with the Schaum method, and taught my children up to about grade 4 after which they moved on to other teachers. But when I think about it, children I've known who've learned guitar, say, have had much more of an intro to musicality and enjoying music, and trying out different things. Reading music and getting the notes right is important, but imo, with hindsight, the effects of Schaum were a bit rigid. So I'm asking, has anyone any recommendations for a first piano course with emphasis on pleasure in music, widening horizons and appreciating different genres?
posted by glasseyes to Media & Arts (4 answers total)

My 6 year old son enjoyed a class in Georgia called Kids Keys that used colors to help learn notes. They played in a group from day one and I know that's something I never learned as a kid with Schaum. The program was chroma-notes, and maybe you could find something like it in your area. Link for GA: http://www.fineartsmatter.com/kidzkeys
posted by banjonaut at 4:40 AM on July 11, 2015

As far as early music lessons, kids seem to like Music Together lessons (it varies a lot, depending on the teacher, and the music is pretty awful for the adult attendees). For piano, my kid's teacher uses Nancy Faber's books.
posted by The corpse in the library at 8:12 AM on July 11, 2015

It's not "contemporary" but my mom and I both learned with John Thompson's books. Some of the pieces are simplified versions of other piano works and some are specific for teaching a method, so there's a mix which keeps learning interesting. We used the "Modern Course" books but those might only be suitable for someone who's already learned to read music. The publisher also has an "Easiest Piano" course but I don't know about those.
posted by fiercekitten at 10:59 AM on July 11, 2015

Response by poster: Thanks all, I'll look into these other courses. Though maybe the playing in a group thing might be on the right lines as far as enjoying playing goes - a bit hard to orchestrate (ha!) for a 4-year-old taught at home. I'll see if I can rope her uncle into making music with her, who didn't have nearly as many formal lessons but plays for fun and messes about with different kit much more than his siblings.
posted by glasseyes at 7:45 AM on July 12, 2015