The Total Keyboard: The Complete Guide to Playing, Performing and Recording on the Piano and all Types of Electronic Keyboards - Softcover

Burrows, Terry

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1586637037 ISBN 13: 9781586637033

Publisher: Friedman, 2000

Synopsis

You can sound like Thelonius Monk, Art Tatum, Herbie Hancock--and you'd love to sound like them. But, you can't become a great keyboardist without becoming a good one first. Once you have those skills, the whole world of music opens up to you-and then you can partake of the infinite possibilities provided by modern technology: the fundamentals of MIDI programming and sequencing, digital sampling, and computer hard disk recording. Start by developing your command of the keyboard. Then try different music styles from classical, pop, and jazz, to programming modern up-to-the-minute dance music like garage and techno. A 12-lesson music course takes you from absolute beginner to expert who's able to complete pieces of music. Best of all, by studying the basics of traditional piano theory you can easily apply your knowledge to the modern-day MIDI keyboard--the central instrument of the contemporary music scene.

About this title

Reviews

In his newest book, Burrows, a prolific author of music tutorials (e.g., Total Guitar), attempts to show how to play keyboard instruments. After introducing the instruments and offering some music history, he presents ten lessons that span many musical styles, from classical to techno. These lessons are intended to take the reader from "absolute beginner to expert," but because they contain a hefty dose of music theory and are well beyond the teach-yourself mode, they just don't work. Following is a nicely done chord dictionary that serves as a "reference guide for playing 27 different chord types in all twelve keys." The concluding chapter focuses on synthesizers, MIDI, programming, and recording. There are discrepancies in the invention dates for the VCS-3, Minimoog, and E-mu Emulator, but as an introduction to electronic keyboards and their myriad musical possibilities, this section provides an understandable look at an intricate subject. Sidebars, diagrams, pictures, and a glossary further supplement the text. While this book has its strengths, public libraries would be better served by Blake Neely's Piano for Dummies or Brad Hill's The Complete Idiot's Guide to Playing the Piano.
Janet Brewer, Murray State Univ. Lib., KY
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Friedman
• Publication date: 2000
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1586637037
• ISBN 13: 9781586637033
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 192