Before you read the post in its entirety, do know that there are giveaways for PianoBookClub’ers and non-PianoBookClub’ers alike 🙂
If you’re a member of PianoBookClub, then you already know that Trevor and I release a new piano book to our members every single month.
Which means that, just last year, we released 12 different piano books for kids and teens, for a total of 80+ piano pieces!
Now, as is the case with our children, Trevor and I love all of our PianoBookClub books equally. But we often wonder… what are your favorites? Or, if you’re not already a member, which ones would most likely be your favourites?
So we figured… we might as well ask!
And since it’s the season of award shows we decided to ask you to vote for your favorite PianoBookClub books from 2015 in a series of “Award” categories.
Why this is much more than an “Awards” Post…
As you probably guessed, this post isn’t so much about the awards as it is about getting your feedback and using it to guide the direction of PianoBookClub through 2016 and beyond.
And when we say beyond, we mean waaaaay beyond. The coming years of PianoBookClub will see the release of some of our most inventive titles to date (our “brainstorm book” currently has 173 potential titles just waiting to be brought to life!)
But right now… let’s get on with the voting!
Below we have included the title page images of each of the 12 books that we released in 2015. In the comments section at the very bottom of this post, we would like you to tell us these three things:
- Which book from 2015 was your favorite?
- Which book from 2015 was your students’ favorite?
- Which book from 2015 was most useful to your piano students’ development?
And hey! If you’re not already a PianoBookClub member you can still participate! In the comments section below tell us…
- Which book would get the most use in your studio?
From all of the people who comment, five current PianoBookClub’ers and three not-yet-PianoBookClub’ers will be selected at random to receive their choice of three PianoBookClub books published within the last two years (and if you already have them all… we’ll find three different Teach Piano Today products for you!) 🙂
And the Nominees Are:
Note: The books below were released in 2015 and are now retired. However, every month (in addition to a new release) we bring one book out of retirement and make it available for purchase by current PianoBookClub members only.
I’m a game club member and love them. From comments and titles, I think I would like the Arranmore book. Considering joining but would be helpful to see some sample songs.
Silver Screen Playbook is the one I printed the MOST! With Guardians coming in a close second.
But in truth, I love them all!!!
I haven’t yet signed up to receive these wonderful-looking publications, but will do so soon! Since I have quite a few beginners, “Nuts About Note Reading” looks very appealing to me!
I just now joined, so I am not a well-informed judge. Must I choose only one?! I would anticipate that “Nuts About Notereading” might get the most use in my studio. Thank you for all you do.
The answer to all 3 questions is Nuts About Note Reading, probably because the majority of my students used it. I loved the stories, as did the students, and it reinforced important concepts. We still talk about Sheldon.
1. Guardians of Arranmore
2. Mutterwump Masterpiece
3. Nuts About Note Reading
Great stuff! Thanks!
My tweens are obsessed with The Pop Waltz Prophecy and I love the work it’s encouraging them to do with their left hand. So far it’s the book that I’ve used the most!
I would love to see some motivating pieces for my late beginners. I have a lot of students who are 10 years and older who are just starting and it’s a challenge to find accessible music that delights them the same way it delights their more advanced peers.
The Silver Screen Playbook is the winner in my studio. My teen and pre-teen students who can play them love them. Especially Bluestone.
Really?! You’re going to make me have to choose just 1? They are all so creative and fun.
My favorite: The guardians of Arranmore, Silver screen playbook is a close 2nd. For my more beginners….Beat Box manifesto and Nuts about note reading.
Students’ favorite: Silver Screen Play Book. Beat Box Manifesto.
Most useful: Silver Screen play book has been a life-saver for a couple of my boy students. For a beginner student, Nuts about Note reading has really helped her.
I haven’t tried the Vamp Battles yet, but am looking forward to using it!
I love the variety you have and how there are books for different learning levels. I’ve got some older boy beginners and Books like the Beat Box Manifesto, The Mutterwump masterpiece, and Intervalactic have been really fun for them and not to “little kid-ish”
I’m not part of PianoBookClub, but it does sound like a great resource!
The book I would probably use with my students the most is “Rhythmic Haunting”.
Thank you so much for all that you do to make our lives as teachers easier! I love your free downloads!
I would love more sheet music for teens and Christmas. New Age sounding songs. Three Ships and In the Bright Sky were giant hits.
I have them all and think they’re all great!
Nuts About Note Reading is a favorite of my younger students and mine as well. Just yesterday, a student was giggling as we read through the story! The Silver Screen Playbook and Guardians of Arranmore are favorites among my older students. I’m excited to use Vamp Battles. Intervalactic and Nuts About Note Reading are most useful in teaching! But I love them all!
My favorite? Arranmore
My students’ favorite? Tinker
most useful to my piano students’ development? Tinker
Pop waltz prophecy is my vote. My teen and tween girls love it!
I am so glad I became a piano boo club ember. I can’t wait to get my book each month, like a kid at Christmas! You guys rock!
1. My favorite: Silverscreen Playbook
2. Student fav: Nuts About Note Reading
3. Best development: Mutterwump Masterpiece
Having to choose above was not easy. I am so impressed with the materials you are sending out and love to use it. It has infused a new energy and enthusiasm into my teaching. THANK YOU
Man oh man — I have to PICK? sheesh. Ok — so my favorite of 2015 was…….all of them. Ok, I cannot say that – well then if I MUST pick one favorite it would be NUTS ABOUT NOTE READING. I have had many new students start this year (YEAH!) and since my studio is called ACORN Music Studios – Sheldon was just the right fit to help my new students start learning their notes! I bought a beanie baby squirrel to help with the lessons (other mascots are an Owl named yahooti and a hedgehog named Herbie). My kids LOVED the story that went along with the music. The other favorite that helped one of my teens really get recharged about music was Vamp Battles. He LOVES LOTR and Harry Potter – so this was right in his zone of what he wanted to learn! He and a good friend are preparing to do one (or more!) of these at a Fine Arts Festival in May. I love all of the books though – hard to choose (there are a few I don’t have yet……..cannot wait to get them!). :o)
Nuts about note reading all around!
Kids favorite: Nuts about Note-reading, and the one I use most often, especially with transfer or new students who need to brush up on their note-reading but don’t want to admit it
My favorite: Guardians of Arranmore – great pieces for
teens, followed by Silver Screen
I am recruiting a group of teens for a Vamp Battles group session
I haven’t subscribed yet but, I think Silver Screen Playbook sounds like it would appeal to some of my teens. Also, Intervalactic might go over with the students who like Star Wars which is so popular now.
I just became a member at the end of 2015 so have the last 2 books and love them!
Intervalactic is amazing for my young boy students who love the thought of the astronaut moving through the levels.
Pop Waltz Prophecy has been so fun for my teen students. It’s something that they can follow along with easily while strengthening their LH technique, and the pieces are so beautiful that they keep working ahead!
I just joined in January 2016 but the first piano book I received is a big hit with my students. Including specific rhythm activities in a 30-minute lesson can be challenging but it’s essential to good sight reading and polishing pieces. So, using a piano book seems like a great solution. I vote for The Rhythmic Haunting!
Since I just joined I only have one book “The Popwaltz Prophecy”- so that’s the favorite so far. The music book that really intrigues me is the “Silver Screen Playbook”. If I had the Mutterwump book I think my students would get a lot of use out of that:)
I am also interested in how I can purchase the pieces that are re-released for book club members. How do we know which past book is out of retirement?
I am a very enthusiastic member of PianoBookClub, and have enjoyed all the books that I have received!
My favorite book so far is The Silver Screen Playbook with its lush melodies. The older students in my studio love the Guardians of Arranmore, and my younger ones are crazy about Nuts About Note Reading, with the adorable Sheldon. The Mutterwump Masterpiece is a favorite of everyone, and helps students with rhythms and change in dynamics, so I would rate it as most useful.
Thank you for sharing your wonderful compositions with us and opening our eyes to beautiful and challenging music!
My Favourite – Silverscreen Playbook. I liked the variety of styles.
Student Favourite – Guardians of Arranmore. Super for recitals, garnering requests from other students to learn the pieces.
Most Useful – Rhythmic Haunting. This was my go to resource for group class!
THE SILVER SCREEN PLAYBOOK would get constant use in my studio. I am not yet a member of the Book of the Month Club. I had gotten interested last year when I saw a post about this particular book, because I have students who love “movie music.” Hmm… I love it, too. 🙂 Admitting procrastination here. By the time I was ready to join, the book was not being offered that month. Silver Screen has come to mind often. I still want to use it!
1. My favorite is probably The Guardians of Arranmore. It completely revitalized my teens! I have one in particular who wasn’t doing much practicing until this came along, now she is busy memorizing all of them!
2. My student’s favorite had to be The Mutterwump Masterpiece. They loved the aliens and how the piece developed into the Intergalactic Finale!
3. The book that got the most use in my studio this year was DEFINITELY How to Babysit a Brontosaurus. Every single one of my 2nd year students played every piece from this book…. it is even coming around in our “20-Piece-Challenge” (they’re bringing their favorites up to Performance Quality!)
Thanks so much for writing such fun music!
Hi
I’ve been a member for a couple of years now and love the variety.
1. My fav – The Guardians of Aaronmore
2. Students Fav – The Mutterwumps Masterpiece
3. Student development – Tinker
Thanks so much for all of them.
I just joined, so I haven’t heard/seen any from 2015. Is there any way to see them in order to vote? Otherwise I’ll have to wait for the 2016 awards! Intervalactic sounds as though it would fit my spring recital theme of planets, stars, space… 🙂
Nuts about note reading was a big hit with my younger students. Also my favorite. So fun to hear them laugh at Sheldon’s dialogue! I liked the Silverscreen Playbook, too. I haven’t seen Guardians, but it sounds like one I might want.
Wow – a hard choice – currently the Pop Prophecy is HUGE with my older students. TeddTales continues to be a favorite and has been my favorite to teach. Nuts about note reading has helped my students a lot – those who are struggling to just start learning the notes – especially left hand. Thank you so much for all you do – my studio would not be as much fun with all your fun song books and games.
Piano Book Club is the best $8.00 I spend a month!
1. The Guardians of Arranmore
2. The Silver Screen Playbook
3. Awesome in 8 Minutes but that must have been an older book because it’s not on the list… Even my 65 year old students is loving reading lead sheets! But I guess of this year the most useful was Guardians of Arranmore.
I have them all, and my only problem is that there isn’t time to use every book! So – my favorites become my students’ favorites because that’s what we use! 🙂
Favorite for beginners: Nuts About Note Reading (with How to Babysit…. in second place)
Favorite for more advanced: Guardians of Arranmore (with Pop Waltz Prophecy in second place)
Most important to my beginning students’ development: Nuts About Note Reading
Most important to my more advanced students’ development: Pop Waltz Prophecy
I haven’t yet used, and am really excited to try, these:
-Tinker
-Ruby Wigglesworth
-Intervalactic
-Vamp Battles
Now if you could just share your secret about how to accomplish a month’s worth of work in a week, I’d be able to use all of them! (Andrea and Trevor, you obviously have more hours in a day than the rest of the world!)
For off….I LOVE PIANO BOOK CLUB! For this piano teacher, PBC has provided so many pieces that just spark my students creativity and excitement about piano each month. I have recommended it to so many piano teacher friends of mine, and it now it feels like we have a genuine “book club” to talk about every month when we get our cool new music dilivered to us. Thank you both for this awesome gift to so many of us teachers!
Okay…down to business…
(I own 7 of the books from 2015)
1. My favorite would probably be “Vamp Battles”! Sadly, I haven’t been able to play through too many of these with my students… However, when I was planning over winter break, I figured out exactly which students I will be giving these duets to in the next few months– they’re gonna go crazy for the music!
2. I would say my students favorite book had to be “How to Babysit a Brontosaurus”. They nearly burst with excitement when they saw they got to play sheet music with dinosaurs ON the music! (Especially my elementary ages boy students).
Second answer would be “PopWaltz Prophesy” for my teen students…they love the dramatic storyline, and I love that they are learning about music history in a creative way!
3. Most beneficial as of late is “Intervalactic”! This was the music I welcomed my students back with this month. Since many of them saw “Star Wars” over Christmas, they are too excited to be playing “outer-space music”. They love the warm-up games, and I love that my young students are becoming interval masters and that my older students have fresh pieces to sight read through each week.
Books I am dying to try:
1. The Silver Screen Playbook
…and…
2. The Guardians of Arranmore.
Thanks again for making us piano teachers seem “cool” with all of our new music!!!
Wah! Want back issues! I am a former book club member, and of the ones I have, I have to vote for Guardians of Arranmore. My older teens love the lush illustrations and the whole Celtic, romantic theme. I do intend to rejoin, but am wondering when/if at some point members will be able to buy previous offerings?
Hi Kathleen – starting in your second month of membership you start to receive access to the past books each and every month for the same $8 with unlimited printing rights 🙂
My favorite was probably “The Guardians of Arranmore” because I love the music in general. Unfortunately I only have one student right now who can play at this level.
Students favorites were, depending on their level and individual interests, “Nuts about Note Reading”, “Mutterwump Masterpiece” or “Tinker”
Most helpful was probably “Mutterwump” mainly because it helped a boy who was not excited about piano get excited (along with the wonderful games from your piano game club.) I really like all the music I have gotten and will use it all eventually
I only became a member last night. I was drawn in by the Pop Waltz Prophecy. I had a student reject a stuffy method book song focusing on the alberti bass and knew she’d be motivated by the sound of your book.
I have used and loved the free title “Into the Woods”.
Thanks!
Hi from Argentina!! 🙂 I’m not a piano book club member but I always follow your posts and ideas for my studio =) they’re awesome… I think that the book it would have most use is nuts about note reading since a have a lot of 7 to 9 – years-old beginners.
cheers from southamerica!!!
I think that Tinker would get the most use, since we’ve been doing a lot of composing this year.
Tinker is what moved me to become a subscriber and it has been a great tool in my studio. A student favorite, too. I also love the Pop Waltz Prophecy and look forward to having the bulk of my students mature into that level this year. Intervalactic has fit the bill perfectly for a artistic player who simply struggles with reading. She has been playing more confidently! A win!
Hi! I am not a member but it sounds like you’ve got a lot of great ideas for teachers. It’s hard to vote based on the titles if I don’t know what the books are like, but I’ll do my best.
I suppose I would vote for Vamp Battles because I really try to get my students to improv and realize that they can write or makeup music too. Also I am always looking for duets for younger students and this sounds like super fun.
Honestly though, most of my students are level primer, 1, or 2A (Faber), and need simple pieces. So whatever books you have that suit that level and make practicing more fun, I would use the most. Especially for beginning boys.
I should mention that I have one Arranmore song and I LOVE it! I wish I had more older students I could give that to. It is not hard, but so cool, even I would use it in a recital. 🙂
Thanks for all you do!
Hi, I am not currently a pianobook club member but I plan to be by next month! I believe the ‘Nuts about notereading’ book would get the most use in my studio because I have many beginner students who are still learning basic notes. Having fun songs for them to play is sometimes a challenge and I’m sure they would have a great time with that book. Thank you for this opportunity 🙂
I joined up before you even started after you gave us a preview. The books are all great! It’s awfully hard to pick a favorite, but I like the Silver Screen one a lot. Arranmore is a close second.
My younger students loved Nuts about Notereading and the older ones liked Arranmore and Silver Screen.
The most helpful is also hard to choose because I used them to spark the interest of different students for different reasons. I sent Tinker and Nuts about Note REading to all students to work on during the summer. Also Mutterwumps. They loved getting the email from me with a new book each month. Most of them print the pages and put them into a notebook like I do. I have a whole shelf of your books and they love to pick one and play it.
Piano Game club is great too though I have soooo many games now, it’s hard to use them all.
Wonderful, creative job!
I have been a member since the beginning and I love all of the books! If I have to pick a favorite, it would be the Silver Screen Playbook. The music in that was very motivational to several of my students. I would say that was their favorite book as well. As far as most useful to development…I like the Rhythmic Haunting. I made that my theme for the month and the kids loved it. Great work! Thank you for all you do!
I’ve been a book club member in the past, but am not currently. My teenagers really like Guardians of Arranmore, and my young elementary students just love the Brontosaurus book!
I thought the “Beat Box Manifesto” looked like fun. Many of my students have a hard time keeping a steady tempo.
I used the Christmas samples you kindly sent us in one post to try them out and my students love them! The pictures were nice and appealing and the loved the leveling as in a video game. I’m not a member of the Piano Book Club, but every day I’m giving it serious thoughts. Right now, well, I would like to have the whole Intervalactic book to continue using it without a Christmas theme, as I have several students that are learning intervals and such 🙂
I am not a piano book club member, but my boy students love the Fearless Fortissimo series, and even some of my girls, too!
I became a member in August, so I missed out on many of the ones that look like they were favorites! I just started using Popwaltz Prophecy with one of my teenage girls that had lost interest in the songs in her lesson book. I just introduced it this week, but she seems to like it so far!
I think my favorite so far is Nuts about note reading. I have some students that came back after the break that seem to have forgotten their notes on the staff, so we will be using this book soon! It is so cute for beginning music readers!
Students favorite so far is probably A Bag of Halloween Tricks! They had a lot of fun eating candy when they were playing and enjoyed the sound effects they got to make by playing along with the story!
Most useful in Development- Intervalactic! Loved this book and its emphasis on intervals, something that I am constantly working on with students!
My personal favorite was “Guardians of Arranmore”. My students aren’t quite to that level though, so not one of theirs. My student’s fav has been “Nuts about Note Reading”, whether they see it at their first lesson or after three months. This isn’t a book club book, but the TEDD tales has been the most helpful in my students’ development. I am waiting my breath hoping for the next edition! I would also love more prep and level 1 duets between students.
My favorite was Silver Screen! The whole idea of movie trailer music really ignited my tween and teen students to think creatively and I have one girl who still comes into every lesson and plays the opening of Moonshot as soon as she sits down!
Silver screen was also my older students favorite. I even had 16 and 20 year old brothers arguing about which one would get to play the pieces first! (and after, I told the first one to play about the composer, Andrea, he lorded it over his brother that he new all about “Miss K’s Canadian composer friend”! )
For my younger students Nuts About Notereading is their ABSOLUTE favorite. One little boy who forgets at least one of his books at every lesson suddenly always brought his bag to make sure he had Sheldon and the student would ask me to give him more pages! (Wow, asking for more assignments! Great!)
The most useful would be the same: Silver Scren for older students and Nuts About Notereading for the younger ones (and even the not so young… one little student’s older sibling, also a student but more advanced) heard us reading about Sheldon and came over to join in the fun!
Thank you, Trevor and Andrea for all you make and share with us! Just the amount of things you can keep up so well is enough to motivate me when I think I’m busy!