Sheet Music Reviews – Page 4

Essential Piano Technique: Levels 2-3

Selected and Reviewed by Andrew Eales
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Penelope Roskell’s Essential Piano Technique series has already established itself as a benchmark resource for introducing healthy piano techniques in an imaginative and musical way.

The first three books appeared in 2023. Primer A, Primer B, and Level 1 publications take the beginner up to around Grade 1 in the UK, and in my review here I concluded,

“I cannot overstate how highly I recommend these three volumes. Beautifully presented, but modestly priced, they establish a new benchmark for teaching children the foundations for a healthy piano technique.”

With the latest two additions to the growing series, Roskell provides a similarly useful and significant resource for players progressing through Late Elementary to Intermediate level, Grades 1-4.

In this review, I will look at these Level 2 and Level 3 books in turn, and consider what part they might play in piano lessons and the development of learners…

Carolyn Miller • Piano Expressions

Pianodao Music Library

Selected and Reviewed by Andrew Eales
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Carolyn Miller is one of America’s most beloved educational composers, her many collections of original pieces and other educational titles consistent bestsellers in the States.

Miller’s many Willis Music Company titles are not as well known here in the UK, although the recent inclusion of her music in the Joy of Grade 1 Piano book, the Willis Student Recital Collection, and growing interest from the exam boards has begun to increase her visibility.

Selecting music for The Willis Student Recital Collection, I played through several complete collections of Miller’s music, and found myself spoilt for choice. Having become familiar with her previous work, I would say that her latest collection is among her best yet, and for those wanting to discover her music, it is a great place to start.

Piano Expressions has a delightfully imaginative and eye-catching cover, and brings us a generous selection of 17 brand new “captivating solos for the advancing pianist”. Suitable for players at UK Grade 2 to 5 level, they have an appeal that will surely make them popular with players and audiences, and a concise educational logic that will equally appeal to teachers.

Edition Peters Piano Classics

Pianodao Music Library

Selected and Reviewed by Andrew Eales
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In recent years, Edition Peters have published biennial Piano Anthology collections of exam pieces linked to each new ABRSM syllabus, recently adding Grade 5, 6, and 7 volumes to their popular, long-standing Grade 8 series.

These offer great value, and a broader range of music than the exam board’s own Selected Exam Piece publications. You can read my review of the 2025-26 Edition Peters Piano Anthologies here. I have often recommended these useful collections, and it is only a pity that due to regular syllabus changes, they have a short shelf life.

Sound the trumpet, strike the drum, and give a warm welcome to the recently arrived Edition Peters Piano Classics. Unshackled from any specified syllabus, this sturdy anthology has been designed for longevity, and offers a compelling selection of repertoire that will surely have wider international appeal, beyond just those taking UK grade exams.

Presenting a judicious selection of 32 “selected examination and performance pieces“, with scores revived from their past and present Edition Peters Piano Anthology publications, this bumper compendium offers a broad range of core classics suitable for the advancing player at around Grade 8 level.

Read on for a full list of pieces (including their previous ABRSM grading), and my general thoughts about this hugely rewarding anthology…

Halloween Favourites

Pianodao Music Library

Selected and Reviewed by Andrew Eales
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As Halloween approaches, many teachers and players ask about top choices of easy, but spooky, piano music to enjoy on these darker evenings.

Most method books and many anthologies include suitably scary thrills, but when it comes to whole collections dedicated to exploring the ghoulish and macabre, here are my top choices.

Most of these collections are suitable beyond the October month of Halloween, offering fantastic, magical music that can be enjoyed around the year.

Between them, these titles will thrill players from elementary to intermediate level, as shown. Simply click on the images and titles below to read the full reviews…

Jakub Metelka • Puppet Theatre

Pianodao Music Library

Selected and Reviewed by Andrew Eales
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Jakub Metelka is one of the notable new names contributing to the burgeoning piano education literature in recent years. His distinctive music stands out by avoiding clichés, presenting imaginative and thoughtful challenge, earning him recognition as a significant voice in the developing pianist’s repertoire.

I have reviewed all three of Metelka’s previous collections:

Jakub Metelka: Modern Piano Studies

These imaginative and appealing miniatures cover every major and minor key, addressing important aspects of technique and notation-reading at upper intermediate level.

Jakub Metelka: Little Virtuoso

Metelka has created a superb resource for the ‘Little Virtuosos’ of the title: I cannot think of another collection that so imaginatively caters for eager youngsters who have quickly reached early advanced level.

Jakub Metelka • The Secret Garden

Jakob Metelka’s ‘Secret Garden’ presents 15 “modern nocturnes” for prodigious youngsters, and is thus a more lyrical counterpoint to his ‘Little Virtuoso’ collection. And these pieces are again superb…

Metelka’s pieces often have a clear learning objective, combined with appealing musical content. But many of them prove to be rather harder to play than first impressions suggest: he clearly aims to challenge learners, while expanding their musical understanding, technique, and expressive engagement.

Now he brings us a fourth collection. Puppet Theatre is aimed at less advanced players, delivering his easiest pieces to date. But are they really all that easy, or is Metelka up to his usual tricks? Let’s find out!

The Eugénie Rocherolle Collection

Pianodao Music Library

Selected and Reviewed by Andrew Eales
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Eugénie Rocherolle (1936-2025) was born and raised in New Orleans. The music of the city would inspire her compositions throughout her life. She also spent formative time in France, studying with the legendary Nadia Boulanger in Paris, and later returning to explore the country with her growing family.

Although her career as a published composer began with choral and band music, Rocherolle’s teaching expertise and pianistic instincts soon propelled her to be one of the top educational piano composers of her generation.

In her later decades, Hal Leonard’s Eugénie Rocherolle Series brought well-deserved international fame, and grew to include more than 30 collections of original piano solos, duets, and superbly crafted arrangements of pop and jazz favourites.

Eugénie Rocherolle’s Reflective Piano Solos

Eugénie Rocherolle’s ‘Reflective Piano Solos” is the latest addition to the many superb publications in her Hal Leonard series. But is it what it seems?

Eugénie Rocherolle’s Romantic Stylings

“Romantic Stylings” is as easy to recommend as it is to review: eight superb and varied intermediate pieces, which are bound to bring joy to players at around UK Grade 4-5 level.

Eugénie Rocherolle’s Fantasia del Tango

For those who enjoy the tango genre, this collection is an easy winner, offering engaging material delivered with excellent attention to the needs of the intermediate player, and with genuine stylistic affection.

In Summer 2024, while preparing a compilation of her favourite works, Rocherolle was diagnosed with stomach cancer. The heart-breaking news focused attention on completing this long-planned anthology of pieces for Late Intermediate players (around UK Grades 5-6).

The Eugénie Rocherolle Collection includes two new, final compositions, and was ultimately completed by Hal Leonard editor Charmaine Siagian following the composer’s passing away on 4th March 2025.

Tunes for Ten Fingers

Educational Resources

Selected and Reviewed by Andrew Eales
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Last summer I brought news and an in-depth review of OUP Music’s updated Third Editions of Pauline Hall’s classic Piano Time series. Having long used the series, I was impressed by the refreshed editions, with superb new illustrations by Rosie Brooks, online audio demo tracks, and welcome tweaks to the progression.

I also welcomed the fantastic new pieces by Kristina Arakelyan, Reena Esmail, and William Chapman Nyaho, joining established favourites by Hall, Alan Bullard and David Blackwell from previous editions.

OUP Music have now launched matching new versions of their primer series for young children: Tunes For Ten Fingers, More Tunes For Ten Fingers, and Fun For Ten Fingers.

I am pleased to see that the changes here broadly follow those of Piano Time, giving the books a more diverse, contemporary relevance and appeal. Once again, new Rosie Brooks illustrations are a delight, and the audio tracks can be streamed or downloaded. Pedagogy and progression are streamlined, with Janet Bullard and Jeanette Gallant on board as consultants.

In this review, written for the benefit of others using this series, I will outline the changes in more detail.

Junior Performer

Educational Resources

Selected and Reviewed by Andrew Eales
Find out more: About Pianodao Reviews

Pam Wedgwood’s Up Grade! series from Faber Music has been a fixture of the piano education library for many years, and one of her most understandable successes. Based on a simple concept of offering “light relief between the grades”, the books have proved a popular step in the pianist’s development.

Entering the same space, The Willis Music Company have just released a new set of books from Christopher Hussey which give the concept of “between grades” repertoire a welcome update. Junior Performer includes three books, each covering two grades, thus bridging the gaps from Beginner to Grade 5.

Rather boldly describing itself as “The Perfect Resource for Between Piano Grades”, the series clearly has ambitions, and I have already heard from Pianodao readers keen to know how well it succeeds…