Playing the Piano for Pleasure: The Classic Guide to Improving Skills through Practice and Discipline

I first read "Playing the Piano for Pleasure" more than 45 years ago when I was a college piano major. It was recommended by my professor who affectionately referred to it as the "Cookbook." I have held onto my tattered paperback copy for all these years since it has evidently been out of print for a very long time. Needless to say, I was delighted to find that it is now available again, and for my Kindle as well! This book is a treasure for anyone who has been drawn into the joys of music-making at the piano. It was written for serious amateurs who love classical piano music, but it contains such practical and sage advice that now I recommend it to my own college students. The author's tips on how to practice effectively and efficiently make it worth the price alone since so many would-be pianists end up wasting a great deal of time and effort on pointless practice procedures and are never able to truly conquor a difficult piece. Every page of Mr. Cooke's book offers suggestions worth taking--except for his advice to occasionally take a break and smoke a cigarette! (Of course, one has to remember that this book first came out in 1960...) If one studies and follows the advice in this book along with help from a good teacher and practices piano regularly for only one hour each day, it is truly amazing what an enviable repertoire can be learned over the course of several years. Countless people all over the world have discovered that playing the piano is a rewarding, life-long pleasure and definitely one worth pursuing. I highly recommend this book for students, teachers, and performers for those who are serious about learning to play.

This is a great book with specific, workable techniques for improving your piano playing skills. The way that he outlines how to break down a piece of music and learn it is enlightening. My question is, why did I not receive this type of instruction when I first learned to play the piano? This would have saved me years of frustration. Nevertheless, I have the tools now to improve my playing.I was truly amazed when I looked at the copyright date of the book, 1941!! The info has been around for decades!!If you like playing the piano for your own enjoyment, this book is invaluable. Follow his tips and you will see noticeable improvement in your playing within a week. You must practice faithfully on a daily basis. His techniques take the boredom out of practice.I immediately went out and bought an abacus to use as my counter to easily keep track of the number of times that I practiced the"fractures"Buy this book if you want to improve your playing, start where you are and go from there.

It gets pretty detailed at times, but it is an excellent book for anyone who values their time yet wants to make good progress on the piano. I would presume that even someone bent on attaining the professional level would benefit from this approach to practice. It really taught me to not fear any part of a piece. In fact, it taught me how to attack the hardest parts to smooth out the piece with much less effort than just playing it through a zillion times. What amazes me is how fast memorization takes place using this method. I think of my late-middle-aged memory as sieve-like, yet I have pretty much fully memorized two pieces in only a month and a half (one small part left to perfect in Beethoven's Minuet in G.) I can see how well this extrapolates to larger pieces.

The product was exactly as advertised. It arrived in perfect condition because it was well-packaged. I highly recommend this company as a great company with whom to do business. FIVE STARS!!

There is a lot of good advise here but I find it quite tedious to read.

I just love this book. Cooke is from a time when making music in the home was more the norm than exception and many, many homes had a piano and someone who could play it well enough. The book celebrates amateur musicianship, where amateur means "love for something" as much as it means non-professional, craft, practice, and the joy of music and making it. The lessons and approach to practice and learning seem eternal - several of my piano teachers echoed his sentiments during my lessons. It's a gem.

Have you been lacking a direction in your piano practice? Would you like to find a practical routine that insures progress? Then this is the book for you. I love this book, it makes me want to practice and gives detailed direction as to the approach. Not only the approach, but also how to build a repertoire, grow a it and keep it in mind. In addition there are examples given of how work out difficult parts and various methods of memorization. If you've ever wanted to start piano or progress in your talents ~ then this is for you!

This is the most inspiring book that I have ever read about playing the piano. The author lays out a clear plan for amateur pianists that seems imminently doable.

Voy a la mitad del libro y confirma lo que yo esperaba. Escrito por y para los pianistas amateur sin importar la edad. La sección dedicada al Repertorio es muy diferente a lo que yo tengo en mente, pues está enfocada 100% a piezas clásicas. En la actualidad hay mucha variedad de música para piano en diferentes géneros con muy buenos compositores. Por lo demás lo recomiendo mucho.

I borrowed this book from a local library (left side one, reprinted in 1970) as Alan Rusbridger's Play It Again recommended. When I read it on half I feel I should keep it. So I ordered a used one (right side one, in very good condition, like new). This book provide so many details for the amateur to learn and practice piano. I didn't get those details from teachers or YouTube. I will read it again and again.

Muy interesante.Me gusta el enfoque del libro puesto que es mi caso y me ayuda a perseverar en la práctica.Además encuentro de mucha utilidad muchos consejos y trucos que hay.

Das ist wirklich eine ideale Hilfe für Amateure. Gut geschrieben, witzig und sehr konkret, so dass man sich sofort ans Klavier setzen und loslegen kann.

I've read a lot of books about piano practice, and so far this one is the best I found. It also has a good suggestion for repertoire, in five groups, starting from easier pieces.