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Classic Piano for the Adult Beginner

An Integrated and Accelerated Approach for Adults

Classic Piano for the Adult Beginner uniquely combines 3 books into one, with a detailed and complete instructional method, a collection of carefully selected and edited compositions, and an annotated listening guide. In the manual you find explanatory text, finger exercises, and musical examples presented in a concise and flowing sequence. Basic notation, rhythm and terminology are explained thoroughly and worksheets reinforce assimilation of the material. The repertoire anthology offers 48 original elementary to intermediate compositions by well-known composers. To enrich practice, the included history and listening guide explains the development of keyboard instruments, discussing the most significant composers and their works, including a section on jazz, with a discography of famous pianists to explore via recordings or YouTube. This book is ideal for any adult beginner who wishes to gain the distinct reading and playing skills that only the classics afford. 

Classic Piano for the Adult Beginner
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Treasures from the Piano Bench

A Collection of Pieces Students Love to Play and Instructors Love to Teach

These wonderful new collections present a unique approach that combines the very best of standard classical piano selections with lesser known gems. Because the pieces increase in difficulty and cover a large body of repertoire, students can enjoy working from the same book for years.  Featuring delightful contrasts in keys, tempi, and periods of music history to maintain student interest throughout, the books offer intuitive yet not excessive fingerings, phrasing, and interpreted ornaments. Volume I ranges from traditional folk songs and easy through intermediate classical repertoire.  Volume II incorporates octaves and fuller chords, and continues into the lower advanced level.  Together these two volumes provide literature of the highest quality and are appropriate for students of all ages!

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A young woman sitting at a grand piano in a cozy room with bookshelves and a window in the background, looking down.
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Testimonials

  • “In her two-volume Treasures from the Piano Bench, Ms. Cacioppo makes intelligent repertoire choices which show a deep understanding of the literature. Many selections are not found in other compilation books, which makes her contribution stand out. I have used these volumes with many students over the past semester and have been very pleased. I would recommend them to any piano teacher looking for a fresh addition to their teaching library."

    Chad R. Bowles

    Chair, Piano Department

    Peabody Preparatory

    Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University

    chadrbowles.com

  • "Christine Cacioppo has developed an outstanding teaching method for the adult beginner, something that is urgently needed in college piano courses and private instruction. I was especially impressed with the introductory section on getting acquainted with the keyboard; instructions are clear and specific, and there are excellent segments on notation, rhythmic patterns, meter, key signatures, hand position, in other words, everything the student should know about getting started. The pieces are carefully edited from very simple items to the intermediate level with more challenging tasks for the student to move forward. The historical section on composers and suggested recordings is also well done and provides a great overall perspective on music from each era. I highly recommend this new edition!"

    Althea Waites

    International Steinway Artist

    altheawaites.com

  • "Of the three books, Treasures from the Piano Bench Vol. II is both my favorite and the book I'll use most often in my teaching. The repertoire in Book II is beautifully arranged and formatted. Some of the IMSLP scans, Dover publications, and even other teaching arrangements we're stuck with can be completely baffling, font-wise, to my students and I think it intimidates them a lot. Seeing Chopin, Bartok and Debussy written with space and clarity makes them leaps and bounds easier to read and takes some of the "jitters" out of the learning process. Other volumes/collections of repertoire like this are riddled with poor fingerings, strange phrasing, and errors everywhere - but I didn't find anything of the sort in here".

    Michael Stambaugh

    Composer, Pianist and Instructor

    Settlement Music School

    Philadelphia, PA

  • “Classic Piano for the Adult Beginner is a compendium that covers everything, right from the beginning pupil to the intermediate student, including technic, hand position, etc. A great collection of well-chosen repertoire, expertly arranged and edited. It also provides a valuable history of keyboard instruments and explanation of their mechanics, which most pianists know very little of, but should. [...] The dual volumes of Treasures from the Piano Bench are two wonders!! Terrific (topped off with Rameau)! I hope teachers will purchase and recommend these – they have a lot to offer.”

    Robert Palmieri

    Professor of Piano (ret.)

    Contributor to Clavier Companion

    Editor, The Piano: An Encyclopedia (Routledge)

    Author, 20 Piano Exercises (Oxford)

    Bellingham, WA

  • "Christine Cacioppo’s Classic Piano for the Adult Beginner is an outstanding addition to the pedagogical literature. I am quite impressed with the enormous amount of information packed into this volume. Along with a clear presentation of pedagogical necessities for the student, there is a useful survey of composers and their style. A bonus is the compact yet thorough discussion concerning the development of keyboard instruments. The rapid yet logical progression of difficulties in the chosen repertoire will serve the adult student quite well. I would definitely recommend this volume to any teacher of adult students."

    Dr. Charles Abramovic, Professor

    Department of Keyboard Studies

    Boyer College of Music and Dance

    Temple University

    Philadelphia, PA

  • "The Treasures from the Piano Bench volumes offer excellent pedagogical resources for the teacher and outstanding economic value for the student with their increasing level of difficulty and breadth of musical materials. The editing, fingering and notated ornaments are well thought out, conserving lesson time and facilitating the student’s reading and understanding of the music."

    Nadine E. Shank, Professor of Piano

    Director of Piano Studies and Collab. Piano

    Dept. of Music and Dance, Fine Arts Center

    University of Massachusetts

    Amherst, MA

  • "I introduced your music in my Piano Pedagogy class this past semester. I thought both books, Treasures from the Piano Bench and Classic Piano for the Adult Beginner, are good for both private and group class settings. I like everything about them - great choice of repertoire (both well known and unfamiliar), the spiral binding with easy page turns, clean & big notation, helpful information, etc. It is attractive and user-friendly."

    Dr. Janice Park, DMA

    Instructor of Music & Coordinator of Secondary Piano

    Hall-Musco Conservatory of Music

    Chapman University

    Orange, CA

  • “Christine Carlson Cacioppo has been teaching piano to students of all ages for many years and out of this experience come self-published collections that all teachers can benefit from. How many times do you say “I really should put together my own repertoire anthology”? I stopped counting. While there are tons of collections out there very few have all of the requirements that I insist on like standard repertoire, good fingering, editing, and nice layout on the page as well as a binding that will stay on the piano. Christine has accomplished this in her two volumes of Treasures from the Piano Bench, a collection of original piano compositions that children love to play, and now a new title to help the older beginner: Classic Piano for the Adult Beginner.”

    Julia Chukinas

    Piano Instructor

    Owner of Calliope Music

    Ardmore, PA

  • "I am thrilled to have found this book! I have taught piano for 25 years and there has never been anything out there that compares to this. There is no reason to use a plethora of smaller adult books that don't go into the depth that this book does. The way the pieces are organized works really well for anyone learning, and it is the only adult piano book I have seen that incorporates a history of the keyboard as well as listening recommendations. Truly outstanding! The price is extremely generous for the size and it arrived in perfect condition."

    Music freak (Amazon customer)

Shop Piano Books

Treasures from the Piano Bench Vol. I Treasures from the Piano Bench Vol. I
Treasures from the Piano Bench Vol. I
$24.99
Treasures from the Piano Bench Vol. II Treasures from the Piano Bench Vol. II
Treasures from the Piano Bench Vol. II
$24.99

$5 flat-rate shipping within the continental U.S.

Classic Piano for the Adult Beginner Classic Piano for the Adult Beginner
Classic Piano for the Adult Beginner
$29.99
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Christine Cacioppo

has been teaching piano to students of all ages for many years. In addition to her private studio, she taught "Introduction to Piano" at Haverford and Bryn Mawr Colleges and was a member of the piano faculty at The Haverford School's Conservatory of Music. She holds degrees in piano performance (Kent State University) and musicology (New York University) and continues to study and perform. Treasures from the Piano Bench is an outgrowth of her knowledge of music history, theory and composition, as well as a lifetime of cultivating a love of music in children and young adults. Classic Piano for the Adult Beginner is the newly created result of her decades of adult piano teaching. Christine's other interests include cooking, gardening, travel, architecture and literature. Her husband is composer and pianist Curt Cacioppo and her sons Charles and Nicholas are professional musicians in the New York, New Jersey and Philadelphia regions. She currently lives on Cape Cod in Massachusetts.

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