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John Thompson's Modern Course for the Piano - The First Grade Book
There are 26 reviews so far.
Good to get basics
"I bought this to help relearn the basics after not playing for many years. It was a good choice for that purpose."
— LauraG from Spring Hill, FL on December 30, 2011
still well worth it!
" Thompson piano course has been around for many years-I used it as a beginning piano student. It is a method that encourages note reading and pattern reading as well as sight reading.I have tried other method books but find that Thompson books meet more of my students needs. I use supplemental materials as warranted."
— jwisdom from Antelope, CA on September 18, 2011
john Thompson
"I have used his series for many years and it is the best ever written advances students rapidly "
— Anonymous on July 25, 2011
Delightfully dated, but encouraging
"I picked this book up in a secondhand store, with the intention of teaching myself to play the piano. I already play other instruments and have always harboured a desire to play a keyboard, tackle complex harmony and improve my sight-reading. I found the finger numbers others have mentioned aren't such a problem. You can zone-them-out with a bit of discipline, though I guess children would be tempted to rely on them. It helps being 49 years old - and probably blind as a bat! I found the descriptions interesting and the establishment of the finger patterns helpful. The pieces are understandably antiquated, the illustrations and lyrics delightfully kitsch by today's standards, but it's a charming and methodical tutor."
— Art Bristow from Bristol, UK on April 20, 2010
John Thompson First Grade Book
"You people are great......fast shipment, excellent condition of music.... I use all the John Thompson Series...as I grew up on them....and my students do well in them and develop skills needed. I also use Czerny and Hannon......."
— Margaret from NE Kansas on December 1, 2008
Great piano book to get to the next level
"I got this piano book for my 10-year old daughter, who has been playing piano for 2 years. We originally used her piano teacher's copy of the book, and eventually we got our own copy. It is a wonderful book for when your child is ready to move beyond short, simple pieces of music and start playing something a little more sophisticated. I love listening to her play when she is reading out of this book! When my husband comes home from work, his house is filled with beautiful music, thanks to several of the pieces in this book."
— Jennifer from Kankakee, IL on February 22, 2008
Bringing Back Memories with my granddaughter
"Presently, I am teaching my 7 year old granddaughter to play the piano. I went through all 5 books when I first started taking piano lessons 66 years ago at the age of 5. I also used the Technique is fun book. This book makes it very easy to learn to play, especially for a young child's mind. It has been said "no education is complete without music". My thanks to John Thompson for making life complete for all who choose to use this book. I studied music for 12 years and went on to get a scholarship in The Julliard School of Music. Classical music was my choice. Franz List said "music is like an insane assylum -- classical is the ward for the incurrable". I must add, the price has only gone up $3.95 in 66 years. Thank you John Thompson and Sheet Music Plus for making this book available."
— Anna Marie Geimer from Ambridge, PA on October 27, 2007
Must have for beginners
"This is a classic that most people learned from. It is a pleasure to see my children learning the same tunes I did."
— Karen B from Morristown, NJ on August 23, 2007
got more than I bargained for
"The author really describes how to play the music with feeling."
— Anonymous on August 22, 2007
Very good
"I love the way John Thompson's books flow. I start my students in the Teaching Little Fingers to Play and keep them going through the rest of the series. It progresses in difficulty very nicely."
— Lisa from Kentucky on February 27, 2007
Good practice book
"I use this book with my early intermediate students for practicing sight reading. The music is simple enough they are able to sight read both hands together as a reasonable speed, giving them a great sense of accomplishment."
— BJ Strong from Virginia on February 14, 2007
DANGER! Too Many Finger Numbers
"When I tried to learn piano as a 7-9 year old student, I learned to become way too dependent on finger numbers from this book. It set me back soooooooo much. I could play all the pieces in the book well, and still could not play a single line of easy music without the numbers. It was painful, but I had to completely start from scratch using a different method. On the plus side, the music is great! Now I am a piano teacher and I often give my students pieces from this book, but first I white out most of the finger numbers! I wish they would reprint it without the so many finger numbers. It would be a great book to teach out of in that case. Most serious piano teachers that I know avoid using this book exclusively because of this problem. I hope that I can save someone a little bit of time with this review. Learn to read notes on the staff first, then go back and play these great pieces. "
— Anonymous from Mesa, AZ on January 9, 2007
Generations of piano
"My Mother, sister, cousins, aunt, and daughters all learned .. starting with "Teaching Little Fingers to Play". First, Second, Third grade etc. John Thompson has a good method of learning. It may not be the easiest in areas, but after you learn it, it becomes a way of life. Piano music being a way of life is fantastic and fun. "
— JoAnn M. from Kent, WA on December 21, 2006
Crippled me for life!
"When I was 10 years old I desperately wanted to learn to play piano. I was introduced to the John Thompson Method. What I learned was finger notations! Though I played beautifully, I knew something was terribly amiss. My teacher didn't realize what was happening, and I was too naive to explain my experience. So, I stopped taking lessons after two years. I resumed in high school. My new teacher had me again study from the John Thompson book. I was so dependent on finger notations that, as the music got harder, practice was so frustrating that I quit after another year. It would have been so much better for me to have had a simpler book that contained far fewer finger notations. When my daughter requested piano lessons at the age of 7, I was relieved that her teacher started her on the Faber method. She slowly learned theory and note-reading. At age 14, she is a fine site-reader. It is difficult for her to believe that I took piano lessons for three years and cannot read sheet music! "
— Chris from Central Ohio on December 13, 2006
delightful
"This book is a must if you have had any experience playing the piano and can read music, perhaps self taught by another method, reached a difficulty this book brings about a feeling of achievement. the pieces are not too long and not repetitive so you learn and enjoy the variety in one piece. Aids understanding with simple tunes delightful book with some lovely pieces in it. A must have for anyone self teaching or understanding reading early music."
— Anonymous from Surrey on October 31, 2006
SOOOOOOOOOOOOO FFFFFFFFFFUUUUNNNNNNNNNNN
"GReat book loved it it was sooooooooooooo fun to read and play the music."
— Sam from Costa MEsa,CA on October 17, 2006
Use with Caution
"John Thompson's later books are excellent sources of attractive and varied Classical repertoire. The First Grade book is valuable to teach students patterns in music, taking the five-finger position through all the keys, and a sense of the cadence chords in all the keys. It needs to be used with other materials because of the tendency for children to become "finger number addicts." Some children find the songs very attractive, others do not, and as someone else pointed out, Faber and Faber's first two levels of their method have kid-friendly pieces in them and their method is solid."
— Susan Grant from Austin, TX on August 14, 2006
True Review
"This series is absoltely the best, period. I have taught, alfred, baistain, noona, piano adventures, and all of the major courses, but none is as comprehensive and challenging as this course. If your students can finish, with quality just the grade 1 book, they will be pianists for life. No other series can claim that."
— Anonymous from San Francisco, CA on July 9, 2006
Good In Many Ways
"I have used this book with students for many years. It is effective by virtue of the repertoire. However, I dislike the fact that the fingering is written over every note in the book, because students (especially at the level at which they would work with this book) will often read the numbers instead of the notes. I have to go through each piece and black out the fingering, which makes the book look messy, and is a general hassle. Other than that, John Thompson bk. 1 is a good resource for teachers."
— Anonymous from Brooklyn, NY on July 1, 2006
For serious students
"Although the little pieces in this method seem to be simple enough, they are more challenging than those in most other beginner books. The music is attractive but requires a good sense of tone, phrasing and articulation. I use this method for the students who have more aptitude and interest than average. After they mastered this volume, they have a solid base."
— Anonymous from Philadelphia, PA on May 23, 2006
Boring
"I have just started taking piano lessons and I find this book very boring. I would have preferred familiar tunes. After a few minutes of practice, I just can't take the boring tunes. I can't wait to get through this book, I will not let my piano teacher talk me into the second level."
— Anonymous from Rhode Island on March 18, 2006
This book is serious business
"I went to various piano teachers and gave up on the piano each time. Just because a pianist can play does not mean that he or she can teach effectively. Purly by chance, my final piano teacher taught me by the John Thompson books and now, I am a pianist myself. This book is serious business. Parents should make sure that their kids are taught by the John Thompson book series."
— Anonymous from NJ, USA on January 7, 2006
One of the best methods
"I highly recommend this book for the 'serious' students. It takes the students from elementary to early intermediate rather quickly. It teaches concepts much faster than some of the newer, more popular method books such as the Faber series. This book covers 3 levels of Faber in one book. After the students finish with book 1 of the Modern Course, they can start playing easy Classical repertoire. If your students like more fun stuff, then use the Faber series."
— Anonymous on December 10, 2005
Student turned teacher
"I remember using this book as a child taking piano lessons and the greuling process of learning the songs in it. I didn't like piano lessons then, but thankfully I stuck with it and I love to play now. The songs are more challenging than some I've seen, and this aspect molded me into the pianist I am today. I remember the songs and the lessons each had to teach, and still use the skills when I play now. I am starting to give piano lessons and I am definitely going to use this series of books. I think this series produces the skills to be a great pianist."
— Anonymous from Ohio on November 30, 2005
Better the 2nd time around
"I first used this book as a pre-teen taking piano lessons - but as a typical teenager, I gave up the piano for other hobbies. 20 years later, I walked into a music store looking to begin where I Ieft off. I was thrilled to see an old friend still being printed (the salesman assured me this would never go out of print). It helped that I remembered the tunes - but this time, I practiced the excersizes and quickly learned to transpose the songs into other keys. The songs are very simple, yet each song has a different lesson to help the student get to the next step. I plan to purchase the coordinating Hanon series for 1st grade players to firm up on scales and chords. "
— Anonymous from New York, NY on November 28, 2005
This was OK
"This book was ok, but the songs were not very fun songs! Faber is much better in terms of enjoying playing the music. With this book playing was a chore, with Faber it is fun!"
— Anonymous on November 2, 2005
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