Presto! It’s Piano Magic
Scope and Sequence - Book 1
by Dennis Frayne
Presto! It’s Piano Magic: Scope and Sequence — Piano Method Book Series, Book 1
Presto! It’s Piano Magic, Book 1: Part 1
Introduction to the Piano and Keyboard Instruments, Pitch and Pitch Direction, Black Keys and White Keys, Singing, Clapping, and Playing, Memorizing Music, Posture and Piano Hands, More about the Piano and Keyboard Instruments, Hands and Finger Numbers, Review.
Introduction to the Piano and Keyboard Instruments. Encouraging enthusiasm for playing the piano, learning about the piano and related instruments, accepting all students - their uniqueness and individuality - regardless of the type of instrument they are starting out on, and introducing possibilities of learning to play on other piano and keyboard instruments in the future.
Pitch and Pitch Direction. Understanding and hearing pitch going up, going down, and staying the same. Conceptually, aurally, and directionally on the piano keyboard. Encouraging student singing, listening, moving, and audiating (complete musicianship) from the very beginning. Building relevant and useful music vocabulary from the very beginning.
Middle C. Introduce Middle C and practice identifying pitches higher than and lower than Middle C on the piano keyboard. This is a foreshadowing concept, but it is useful to start developing the vocabulary and visual familiarity with the location of that important guide note. It is not necessary for students to memorize it yet, or even understand why it’s called that… The teacher should simply keep referring to it.
Black Keys and White Keys. Seeing the patterns, the layout, the shapes of the black and white keys on the piano keyboard. The piano keyboard layout has meaning; it is not random.
Singing, Clapping, and Playing. Developing as complete musicians from the very beginning. Singing the songs first, identifying pitch direction, then clapping and/or conducting a beat while singing, then learning the song on the piano (blended rote, picture reading, and tracking), and then singing while playing.
Memorizing Music. Encouraging students to memorize all songs, singing while playing, and to develop a repertoire of music that can be played at any time, for enjoyment and for recital.
Posture and Piano Hands. Good posture and tension-free piano playing technique from the very beginning. Encouraging natural hand shape, beginning with just the slightly naturally-curved “middle” or “tall” finger of the right hand to start (playing a singable melody on the black keys), then adding the middle finger and thumb of the left hand (playing a two-note harmony on black keys and white keys).
Hot Cross Buns | Hush-a-Bye
More about the Piano and Keyboard Instruments. History and how they work. Learning about the parts of the piano, the mechanisms, and continuing to build music vocabulary. (Take a piano apart and look inside, or watch a video such as: How Pianos Work!)
Hands and Finger Numbers. Ensuring students can distinguish right hand from left hand, and identify and use piano finger numbers. Learning songs that use all five fingers, on the black keys and white keys.
Merrily We Roll Along
Mary Had a Little Lamb
Go Tell Aunt Rhodie
These first four or five songs should be taught partly by rote, and partly encouraging some tracking / reading on the page. It is not necessary to “teach” the notation. Simply point it out, track the notation with your finger while they play, and even the youngest students will “get it” well enough. Encourage tension-free playing, good tone production, memorization, and singing while playing from the start!
Review. Pitch and pitch direction, aural pitch recognition, good posture and tension-free piano playing, piano hands and finger numbers, and piano, keyboard and music vocabulary. Singing, clapping, playing, singing while playing, and memorizing a repertoire of songs. Gaining facility playing with both hands on the piano keyboard, including black keys and white keys. Encourage student to perform a solo recital for a friendly audience.
Presto! It’s Piano Magic, Book 1: Part 2
The Music Alphabet, The Music Alphabet and the Piano Keyboard, Middle C plus Direction and Distance from Middle C, Technique - Hands Crossing Over, Introduction to Music Notation, Scales, Keys, and Modes, plus Solfege, Technique - Left Hand Melody plus Hands Crossing Over, Minor Mode Solfege, Review.
The Music Alphabet. Practicing until students can say, with ease, the music alphabet forward and backward (up and down), and identify which letter comes before or after any other letter.
The Music Alphabet and the Piano Keyboard. Using the patterns of the black keys, the shapes of the white keys, and the relative positions and order of the letters of the music alphabet, students learn the names of the white keys on the piano keyboard. It is useful to understand the concept and definition of “octave” at this time (distance of 8 notes, going from A to A, B to B, C to C, etc.).
Middle C plus Direction and Distance from Middle C. Understanding Middle C as an anchor note or guide note - an important note in the middle of the piano keyboard that we will use to identify other notes, such as the first C above Middle C, the second C above Middle C, the first C below Middle C, the first G above Middle C, the first F below Middle C, etc.
Note: This method does NOT teach “C position” or any other unsound “position” pedagogy. Far from it - we teach freedom of movement and graceful, tension-free playing all over the piano keyboard, crossing hands, and playing on black keys and white keys from the very beginning. Middle C is an important reference note, not a position.
Technique - Hands Crossing Over. Playing a melody with alternating left hand and right hand notes, hands crossing over appropriately for free and graceful playing.
Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star
Baa, Baa, Black Sheep
Pease Porridge Hot
The ABC Song (plus The ABC Song - Backward)
Introduction to Music Notation. Increasing relevant and useful music vocabulary, and exposing students to the wide variety of music notation styles throughout history and of other genres, instruments, and cultures. (This is not yet learning to read common practice music notation on the staff - this is quite literally an introduction to the idea of reading symbols and text on the page and interpreting it for playing at the piano and singing.) Thus far students have been loosely reading pictures and shapes of black key / white key combinations, and then letters of the music alphabet, with simple, symbolic, relative references to the distance up and down from Middle C.
The Cuckoo Song
Hooray!
Scales, Keys, and Modes, plus Solfege. Increasing relevant and useful music vocabulary, introducing students to the concepts of scales, keys, and modes, and further developing musicianship through the use of solfege (solfeggio, sol-fa, solfeo). Students learn to play the C Major Scale and the A (Natural) Minor Scale, one octave, playing hands separately and very slowly, with the correct fingering, from memory, and singing on solfege while playing.
C Major Scale, One Octave
A (Natural) Minor Scale, One Octave
Three Blind Mice
Un elefante
Technique - Left Hand Melody plus Hands Crossing Over. Playing with melody in the left hand, and with right hand crossing over left hand to play bell-like harmony notes.
Balonku
Minor Mode Solfege. Introducing “Do-based Minor” and “La-based Minor” solfege.
Wayfaring Stranger
Review. The music alphabet, forward and backward, up and down, and on the piano keyboard, identifying notes on the piano relative to Middle C, music notation vocabulary, major and minor mode solfege, C Major and A (Natural) Minor scales. Singing, clapping, playing, singing while playing, and memorizing a repertoire of songs. Gaining facility and freedom of movement playing up and down the piano keyboard. Encourage student to perform a solo recital for a friendly audience.
Presto! It’s Piano Magic, Book 1: Part 3
Accidentals - Sharps, Flats, and Naturals, Half Steps and Whole Steps, plus Intervals, First Five Major Scales (C G D A E), Transposing, Key Changes, Modulations, Review.
Accidentals - Sharps, Flats, and Naturals. Learning how to name the black keys, and developing relevant and useful music vocabulary for raising and lowering pitches, altered and unaltered notes, and the symbols used to document sharps, flats, and naturals.
The Wind
Half Steps and Whole Steps, plus Intervals. Building from the knowledge of sharps and flats, developing relevant and useful music vocabulary for moving from one pitch to the very next pitch, or from one pitch to another pitch, skipping over one pitch, and Interval. (An octave is an interval of 8, half steps and whole steps are intervals of 2.) Students practice identifying half steps and whole steps visually on the piano keyboard and aurally by ear.
Hush! Little Baby
Happy Birthday to You
America (My Country ‘Tis of Thee) or
God Save the Queen
First Five Major Scales (C G D A E). Teaching scale patterns (major scale as a pattern of half steps and whole steps = WS WS HS WS WS WS HS). Musical structures are logical and based on patterns, they are not random. Students learn that as sharps are added to scales, the previous sharps are retained in order (F#, C#, G#, D#). Each of these five major scales use the same fingering, and students should learn and play them each one octave, hands separately and very slowly, with the correct fingering, from memory, and singing on solfege while playing.
C, G, D, A, E Major Scales, One Octave
La Raspa
La Cucaracha
Transposing, Key Changes, Modulations. Expanding relevant and useful music vocabulary while introducing playing in different keys. Song is learned in three different keys: C Major, D Major, and E Major. (It’s also a good time to help students experiment playing earlier songs in different keys, such as Hot Cross Buns and Mary Had a Little Lamb in C, G, D, A, and E.)
Michael, Row the Boat Ashore
Review. The music alphabet, forward and backward, up and down, and on the piano keyboard, identifying notes on the piano relative to Middle C, music notation vocabulary, major and minor mode solfege, intervals, accidentals, identifying half steps and whole steps visually and aurally, including the pattern of half steps and whole steps for major scales, and memorizing the C Major, G Major, D Major, A Major, E Major, and A (Natural) Minor scales, one octave. Singing, clapping, playing, singing while playing, and memorizing a repertoire of songs. Gaining facility and freedom of movement playing up and down the piano keyboard. Encourage student to perform a solo recital for a friendly audience.
Presto! It’s Piano Magic, Book 1: Part 4
Music Notation: The Staff, Music Notation: Clefs, Music Notation: Clef Signs, Music Notation: The Grand Staff and Ledger Lines, Technique: Three-note Chords and Holding Isolated Notes, Note Identification Practice, First Five Major Scales (C, D, D, A, E) - Hands Together and Two Octaves, Rhythm, Technique: Playing Right Hand Louder than Left Hand, Rhythm: Pick-up Measure, Rhythm: Dotted Notes, Ties, and Fermata, Review, Completion of Book 1: Prize and Certificate.
Music Notation: The Staff. Introduce the staff and related music notation vocabulary by providing a brief history of its origin and development. Using one line, draw circles to represent pitches, on the line, and higher than and lower than the line, with varying distances. Add additional lines to demonstrate how one might achieve greater accuracy with pitches. Notes on lines vs. notes on spaces. Demonstrate the mechanism of naming one line’s pitch, and other pitches being determined by going up or down the music alphabet from the one named pitch. Compare how it might be represented with one line vs. five lines - the staff we use today.
Music Notation: Clefs. Introduce clefs as guide notes that tell us the pitch of one note. Review the mechanism of naming one line’s pitch, and other pitches being determined by going up or down the music alphabet from the one named pitch. The naming of one line’s pitch is called a clef. Two common and important clefs we use today: the G Clef, also called the Treble Clef, and the F Clef, also called the Bass Clef. The G Clef or Treble Clef points to the first G above Middle C. The F Clef or Bass Clef points to the first F below middle C. (The following song use letter names written on the staff using a G and an F to identify treble clef and bass clef guide notes.)
Paw Paw Patch
Music Notation: Clef Signs: Introduce the present-day treble and bass clef signs by demonstrating how they evolved from fancy G’s and F’s. Note naming practice using treble clef G and bass clef F as guide notes, and going up and down one note each. Relate those pitches to the piano keyboard, relative to Middle C. (The following songs use large note-heads with the letter name written inside.)
London Bridge
Los pollitos
Music Notation: The Grand Staff and Ledger Lines. Introduce the grand staff and related music notation vocabulary including bar, double bar, brace, system, and ledger line. Identify the location of Middle C on appropriate ledger line of the grand staff, in relation to both the treble clef and the bass clef. Demonstrate how the staff can be expanded upward and downward to add notes above and below the staff using ledger lines. Review notes on lines vs. notes on spaces in relation to ledger lines. Discuss the pattern of “two ledger lines above the treble clef is the second C above Middle C, and two ledger lines below the bass clef is the second C below Middle C. Ensure student understands that moving from line to space to line to space is moving up and down the music alphabet one letter at a time, and map this relationship to the piano keyboard.
Technique: Three-note Chords and Holding Isolated Notes. Develop facility to play three-note chords, and to hold one note down while playing other notes with the same hand. (Students unable to do this should leave off a note.)
Duérmete, mi niño
Au clair de la lune
Go Down Moses
Note Identification Practice. Play games, drill, use paper-and-pencil worksheets, flash cards, online apps, practice at the piano keyboard, using guide notes and several notes at a time up and down from the guide notes. Help students memorize positions and relationships between pitches, and patterns. Do not use mnemonics or other artificial devices. Memorize a few notes at a time well, rather than jump up and down the staff arbitrarily. Identify and practice patterns, and intervals (primarily seconds and octaves). Identify and practice notes with accidentals.
Presto’s Grand Staff Assistant - Note Finder
First Five Major Scales (C, D, D, A, E) - Hands Together and Two Octaves. Review scale patterns (major scale as a pattern of half steps and whole steps = WS WS HS WS WS WS HS). Each of these five major scales use the same fingering, and students should learn and play them each hands together, and then two octaves, hands separately and very slowly, with the correct fingering, from memory, and singing on solfege while playing (when feasible). When ready, play two octaves hands together. (Coordination, thumb-under technique, tension-free playing, and good sound production - not speed - are the goals at this time.)
C, G, D, A, E Major Scales - Two Octaves, Hands Together
A (Natural) Minor Scale - Two Octaves, Hands Together
Rhythm. Introducing relevant and useful vocabulary related to rhythm, and the symbols and shapes of the notes involved in documenting rhythmic music notation. Whole Note, Half Note, Quarter Note, and Eighth Note. Vocabulary includes note-head, stem, flag, beam, pulse, beat, down beat, bar, bar line, measure, beats per measure, subdivisions of the beat, and time signature.
Technique: Playing Right Hand Louder than Left Hand. Develop facility to play the right hand melody louder than the left hand harmony accompaniment. Continue developing facility to hold one note down while playing other notes.
Little Birdie
Song of Happiness
Bought Me a Cat
Rhythm: Pick-up Measure: Introducing concept, implementation, and notation of a pick-up measure.
The Herring Song
Rhythm: Dotted Notes, Ties, and Fermata: Introducing several notes that receive a duration not yet accounted for with the rhythmic notation learned so far. These include dotted notes, ties, and the fermata.
De colores
For S/He’s a Jolly Good Fellow
Review. Music notation vocabulary, staff, clefs, grand staff, and note identification practice, major and minor mode solfege, intervals, accidentals, identifying half steps and whole steps visually and aurally, including the pattern of half steps and whole steps for major scales, and memorizing the C Major, G Major, D Major, A Major, E Major, and A (Natural) Minor scales, two octaves, hands together. Rhythmic notation including note values, beats and subdivisions of the beat, time signatures, dotted notes, ties, fermatas, and pick-up measures. Singing, clapping, playing, singing while playing, and memorizing a repertoire of songs. Gaining facility and freedom of movement playing up and down the piano keyboard. Encourage student to perform a solo recital for a friendly audience.
Completion of Book 1: Prize and Certificate. Congratulations are in order! Use the Prize and Certificate Order Form to select prize and provide mailing address.
