Dan Coates Popular Piano Library: Treasured Broadway Hits: Piano Book

These arrangements strike an ideal balance between authenticity and playability. Intermediate pianists encounter the musical signatures of each show tune without wrestling with concert grand complexity, which means your students actually get to experience the joy of playing Broadway rather than struggling through reductions that strip away what makes these songs memorable. The collection spans decades and styles, so you're not locked into a narrow aesthetic.

Opening this book is like stepping into the best moments of American musical theater. The arrangements capture the sweep and sentiment of Broadway without demanding virtuosic technique, so you get to experience the emotional depth of 'People' or the infectious optimism of 'The Winner Takes It All' within your technical reach. Each song carries the theatrical heart of its original production.

Intermediate to late intermediate pianists looking to expand beyond classical solos and method book repertoire. Student pianists who love musical theater and want to play recognizable, rewarding music. Pianists preparing recital programs that blend traditional training with contemporary and theater music.

• Listen to at least one recorded version of each song before you begin learning it. Coates's arrangements rely on pianists understanding the melody and emotional shape of the original, so familiarity with the source material will inform your phrasing choices.
• Pay attention to the balance between melody and accompaniment. Many of these songs have full orchestral textures in their original versions, but the arrangement concentrates the melody in the right hand. Let that melodic line sing without drowning it in the left hand.
• Use the dynamic markings and articulation as your roadmap to character. A song like 'Suddenly, Seymour' needs a very different energy than 'Try to Remember,' and the notation guides you toward those distinctions.
• Work through the harmonic progressions slowly before adding tempo. These songs rely on strong harmonic language to evoke their settings, and understanding the chord changes will help you play with confidence and intention.

Build a recital around a Broadway theme, mixing selections from this collection with solo classical works to show your students' versatility. Use individual songs as rewards or special repertoire during the year, programming one or two in winter and spring recitals to sustain engagement with piano study. This collection is also excellent for students who need encouragement; the familiarity of these songs often reignites enthusiasm for practice.

• Playing lyrical melodies with singing tone and sustained phrasing
• Balancing melody and accompaniment textures in the same hand
• Interpreting dynamic and articulation markings to shape musical character
• Reading and executing theatrical expression markings and tempo indications
• Recognizing and executing jazz and contemporary harmonic progressions common to Broadway idiom