Selected and Reviewed by Andrew Eales
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Of the piano education composers who have arrived on the scene in recent years, Victoria Proudler has made a very particular and special impact, and whether talking to colleagues locally, online, or at conferences, her books are frequently mentioned as must-have collections.
The Piano Grades Are Go! series already includes collections for Initial to Grade One (reviewed here) and for Grades 2-3 (reviewed here). And I think the reason that they have made such an impression is fairly easy to explain.
While more advanced players might invest in a single-composer collection to develop their repertoire (both for performance and leisure), learners at earlier levels tend to be focused on developing their skills and understanding. They value material that is musically broad, with a clear grade/level, explicit educational structure, and helpful pedagogic content.
Unlike some composer collections, the Piano Grades Are Go! series very clearly ticks these boxes, and Proudler’s music is engaging, memorable, and stylistically on point.
Now available, Piano Grade are Go! Grades 4-5 is the third and final book in this popular series, taking the series to upper intermediate level, and inevitably expectations are sky high. So is this collection another winner? Let’s find out…
Intermediate Superskills
Readers unfamiliar with the brilliant first two books in the series would do well to look back at my earlier reviews of them, and here’s a reminder of the superb educational rationale underpinning these collections, explained by the composer herself:
In case you didn’t catch all those superskills in the video, the playing techniques developed through these pieces are:
Grade 4: arm movement, communicating character, cantabile, evenness, hand crossing, playing in thirds, tone quality, and rhythm.
Grade 5: forearm rotation, communicating style, balance, waltz style, tonal colour changes, stride bass, and staccato.
As usual, the focal superskill appears in a speech bubble at the top of each piece, a reminder to teachers and learners, and the two-page introduction to the book includes more detailed advice about the pedagogic pivot and benefit of learning to play each piece.
One way teachers might want to use the collection would be to pick individual pieces that can be employed as study material to help a player overcome a particular challenge, or improve a specific aspect of their technique or musicianship. Piano Grades Are Go! can thus be used as a set of attractive études to support learning.
In her introduction to the book, Proudler asserts,
“Pianists who enjoy learning carefully chosen pieces, developing exactly the right skills needed to perform in different styles, learn far more quickly. These solos therefore include many styles commonly found in Grades 4-5…
The pieces are designed to be rewardingly accessible, allowing pianists more time to focus on expressive performance whilst capturing the imagination of both listener and learner.”
A Musical Feast
As in the two previous books, these pieces succeed equally in their musical and pedagogic aims, and several highlights will make enjoyable recital pieces for performers and audiences alike.
They traverse a satisfying range of styles from classical, jazz, dance, and contemporary genres, usefully adding to the impressive musical range developed in the previous volumes, while highlighting the versatility of the composer herself.
And it is the engaging, playful, rewarding quality of Proudler’s music that will, I suspect, draw teachers and players deeper into the material, persuasively encouraging a more comprehensive and systematic exploration of all the pieces.
Again, the piece titles give an imaginative flavour of the music itself, and the stylistic challenges included. They are as follows:
- Toccatina in A minor
- Stakeout!
- Petite Musette
- Sicilian Dance
- Midnight Manor
- Tango Nocturno
- Summer Rain
- Wild West Gigue
- Be-Bop Baroque
- Étude Espagnole
- Aurora
- Twilight Waltz
- Sunshine on the Water
- Turnabout Rag
- Rhapsody in G
You can listen to snippets from each piece here:
As for the presentation, EVC Music have made it a priority in recent years to produce the highest quality publications. Since I reviewed the previous two books in this series, the publisher has switched to using cream paper for the whole series, a hugely welcome move that not only adds to the clarity of the notation, but lends a greater sense of value-for-money and elegant class to the book itself.
The notation is carefully, spaciously, and excellently engraved; it includes helpful fingering and pedalling markings throughout, and it is evident that composer, engraver, and publisher have collaborated effectively and worked hard to provide an eminently high-end score.
Closing Thoughts
A priority in good elementary and intermediate piano teaching and learning should always be placed on introducing players to the multitude of magnificent musicians who have contributed to the repertoire, and who continue to expand it. It is natural that at this level teachers are sometimes cautious about recommending single-composer collections.
Victoria Proudler is clearly a marvellous musician and writer, with a deep and practical understanding of piano education that lifts her work above that of many others currently composing for learners. By embedding her music within a clear pedagogic framework and a notably progressive scaffolding, Proudler has enabled her work to shine brilliantly and become a lasting fixture in piano studios.
This concluding volume in her Piano Grades Are Go! trilogy is an undeniable triumph, and deserves a prominent spot in the music library of intermediate pianists. I am certain that the series will become a mainstay in my teaching repertoire, and that these pieces we prove to be essential staples of grade examinations and concert performances for years to come.
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