Alfred's Basic Piano Library: GM Disk -- Hymn, Level 3  Cover Image

Alfred's Basic Piano Library: GM Disk -- Hymn, Level 3: Piano General MIDI Disk

$14.95 USD
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Alfred's Basic Piano Library: GM Disk -- Hymn, Level 3  Cover Image

Alfred's Basic Piano Library: GM Disk -- Hymn, Level 3: Piano General MIDI Disk

By Willard A. Palmer, Morton Manus, and Amanda Vick Lethco

Level: 3

Item: 00-8566

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Alfred's Basic Piano Library: GM Disk -- Hymn, Level 3: Piano General MIDI Disk isn't in MakeMusic Cloud just yet...but it could be. Let us know you'd like to see it, and you'll help shape what comes next. In the meantime, start a free trial and dive into thousands of interactive titles your students can play along with today.

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Additional Details
Series: Alfred's Basic Piano Library
Publisher: Alfred Music
UPC: 038081061832
SKU: 00-8566

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About the Authors

Willard A. Palmer
Dr. Willard Palmer stands as an internationally recognized musician, scholar, and educator whose prolific career spanned multiple instruments and musical genres. A child prodigy who performed piano on radio at age 13, he studied under Mae Vardeman, whose instruction in piano technique became foundational to his lifelong musical pursuits. His early years combined formal training in accordion and piano with radio performances and ensemble work during his college years at Whitworth College and Millsaps College.

Palmer's scholarly and compositional achievements proved equally remarkable. He authored 789 published works, ranging from accordion and piano methods to guitar instruction books, Hammond Chord Organ materials, and choral compositions, many translated into German, Japanese, French, Dutch, and Spanish. His expertise in Baroque music ornamentation earned him worldwide recognition and shaped the acclaimed Alfred Masterworks publication series. The University of Houston honored his contributions by inviting him to establish and teach the institution's first successful college accordion courses for 18 years.

Beyond the classroom, Palmer served as choir director of Memorial Lutheran Church in Houston, Texas and directed the Riemenschneider Bach Institute. His scholarly achievements were recognized with a Doctor of Humanities degree in 1971 and a Doctor of Music degree in 1983. He maintained active membership in the American Federation of Musicians Local #65, the American Accordionists' Association, and the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers.
Morton Manus
Morton Manus served as president of Alfred Music Publishing Co., Inc. for over six decades, from 1952 to 2016. He inherited the company from his father Sam, who founded Manus Music in 1922 during New York's Tin Pan Alley era and later merged it with Alfred & Company in 1930. A trained clarinetist and pianist with a business degree from City College of New York, Morty transformed the family business into a global force in music publishing.

During the 1950s, Manus fundamentally reimagined Alfred Music by developing educational instructional series for accordion, guitar, piano, and recorder. This shift toward quality music education products positioned the company as a leader in the field, moving well beyond its original focus on popular sheet music. The company's growth necessitated significant expansion, leading to the relocation of its main office to Los Angeles in 1975 and its distribution center to upstate New York.

Under Manus's continued leadership, his sons Ron and Steve joined the company in 1988 and 1992 respectively, advancing the family's vision. Together they expanded Alfred Music's international presence by opening offices in Australia, Germany, Singapore, and the United Kingdom. In 2005, the company acquired Warner Bros. Publications, securing rights to the EMI Catalogue Partnership and establishing a lasting relationship with Warner/Chappell Music.
Amanda Vick Lethco
Dr. Amanda Vick Lethco is best known for co-authoring Alfred's Basic Piano Library, one of the world's most respected piano methods, alongside Dr. Willard Palmer and Morton Manus. A Professor Emeritus of Piano Pedagogy at the University of Texas at Austin, she brings decades of expertise in music education and performance to her work.

Her educational credentials include degrees from Northwestern University (Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance, Bachelor of Music Education, and Master of Music in Piano Performance) as well as study with renowned musicians James Friskin at Juilliard, Rudolph Ganz at Chicago Musical College, and Douglas Moore at Columbia University. Whitworth College in Brookhaven, Mississippi honored her with an honorary Doctor of Humanities degree.

Throughout her career, Dr. Lethco has maintained an active presence as a recitalist, clinician, and educator. She conducted masterclasses and workshops across college campuses throughout the United States and internationally in Europe, Canada, Japan, Hong Kong, Korea, New Zealand, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, Thailand, and Indonesia. Beyond her most celebrated collaboration, she co-authored Creating Music at the Piano with Dr. Willard Palmer and maintained a private teaching practice in New York City, San Antonio, Austin, and Houston. Her accomplishments are recognized in the International Who's Who of Musicians and the World Who's Who of Women.

Why we love this

This General MIDI disk brings the Alfred's Basic Piano Library hymn collection to life with authentic keyboard sounds, giving students immediate access to how these hymn arrangements actually sound. The Level 3 hymns balance accessibility with musical substance, making them ideal for students building independence at the keyboard while exploring sacred repertoire.

What to expect

Hymns offer a grounded, meditative quality that rewards careful voicing and expressive control. At Level 3, these arrangements reveal the beauty of traditional harmonies while keeping technical demands reasonable, allowing students to focus on lyrical playing and understanding how voices move together.

Who it's for

This disk serves Level 3 piano students who are ready to apply their developing technique to meaningful repertoire beyond simplified exercises. It works equally well for students learning hymns in a church or school setting and for those exploring sacred keyboard literature as part of their musical education.

How to get the most out of it

  • Use the MIDI disk to isolate individual voices and listen carefully to your own part in context with the harmony, helping you internalize phrasing and balance.
  • Play along with the recording to develop steady tempo control and rhythmic precision without relying on a teacher to conduct.
  • Adjust the playback tempo gradually downward during practice sessions, starting at a comfortable speed and building accuracy before returning to the recorded tempo.
  • Mute different voices on the disk to focus on one hand at a time, especially when learning the harmonic progression.

How to use it

Introduce hymn arrangements into recitals or informal performances to diversify your student's repertoire beyond secular pieces. Many students appreciate the emotional directness of sacred music, and these Level 3 hymns provide accessible options for performances in school assemblies, church services, or community events.

Skills your students will build

  • Reading and performing multi-voiced harmonic progressions
  • Maintaining steady tempo with recorded accompaniment
  • Balancing melody with supporting voices across both hands
  • Developing expressive control through legato pedal technique
  • Understanding voice leading and chord movement in traditional harmonic contexts

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