I have a little girl who is learning piano via the Schaum series of books. I help her as much as I can during her practices, but I have no sight reading ability whatsoever and many times have no idea if she is playing a song correctly.
I tried looking for CD versions of these books that would, hopefully, contain samples of the songs but can’t find anything. Is there anybody out there who knows where I can find audio versions of such immortal classics as “The Goofy Gopher”, “The Dandy Lion”, “At the Ice Cream Counter”, etc?
Would it help anything if you recorded all or part of her lessons? If her teacher could be induced to play it correctly once, that could help you to compare/contrast. Many cell phones, smart phones, iPhones, iPods, etc. will allow you to record audio with, at most, the download of an application.
Of course, when I was that age, we didn’t have any of that technology stuff - Mum would swear she wasn’t listening, but then she’d swoop in from the kitchen anytime she heard something that didn’t sound right to her.
That sounds a bit over the top for a child learning piano. None of my family know anything about music or how to read it, yet I still managed to work my way through the grades. I never recorded myself or listened to recordings until I was at the advanced levels (grades seven and eight for me, through Trinity, but I’m not sure what grading system your child is going through).
I think she’ll develop more in her music if she works out herself how the music should sound, based on the notes and annotations on the page, rather than simply trying to copy a recording.
How old is your daughter and how often are your lessons? I started weekly lessons when I was eight and no members of my family ‘helped’ with practice, except to say the occassional ‘That sounds a lot better, well done’ type comments.
She’s 8 and her lessons are weekly, with daily practices. Her teacher says her sight reading is excellent and she does make steady progress through the books. I would just like to know what the songs are so that when I listen to her practice (and since we live in an apartment, it’s not as if I’m hanging over her shoulder - I’d hear her if we were as far apart as possible) I can know how she’s progressing.
I completely agree with this, btw - I don’t want it to be believed that I’d rather her follow a recording. Again, these recordings (if they exist) are more for me so if she asks my help (which she does at times), I at least know what the bloody song is supposed to sound like.
I used those for a brief time when I was about 7. I could actually still hum some for you. “Crunchy Flakes” was “Jingle Bells”–that I remember! There was also “Porcupines have prickly quills / Don’t go near their fav’rite hills…” which was “Papa Haydn’s Dead and Gone.”
I recall not thinking much of his lyrics even at that young age. Now, nearly fifty years later, I write my own!
