Premier Piano Course Lesson Book, Book 1B
By Dennis Alexander

This is by far the best piano method around. I probably belong to the minority that thinks that the Faber method is way overrated (I find the pages overly busy and the music subpar, something even my students complained about). The Premier method on the other hand is very nicely...

laid out and the music is generally very pleasant and covers a mix of genres, including classical, ragtime, blues and some excellent "Totoro"-like pieces in the more advanced books. Is it perfect? Of course not - no method series is. Some books (like 1B, 2A, 3, 5, 6) are stronger than the rest, and some pieces are almost annoying (like "The Food Court" and "The Autograph", both in 2A, an otherwise excellent book). Does it move too slowly? Probably in some instances, but so do most other methods. Having said that, proper pace varies from student to student. Students who think the method is too slow should be able to learn half a dozen new pieces for the next lesson. Otherwise, the pace is fine.

I found the Premier series to move too slowly, especially for a slightly older beginner. It may work well for a student who needs more time to get a solid grounding. It also seems to wait a long time to introduce new concepts (ie eighth notes in the middle of...

2A). Alfred's Basic seems to move a bit more quickly. I will be switching that, or to Faber, for now.

Though it can move too slowly for some, I like this series a lot. The two biggest perks: songs that start with different fingers on C (avoiding "position" playing), and ear training exercises in the theory books.