The Music Tree: Keyboard Technic, Part 3: Piano Book

This book treats technique as a servant of music, not its master. Each exercise isolates a specific technical problem encountered in the repertoire, then the etudes apply that skill in genuinely musical contexts. Students grasp why they're practicing arpeggios or scale passages because they encounter those same figures immediately in pieces that sound like real music.

Clear, purposeful, and genuinely musical. The exercises never feel like mindless drill. Even in their condensed form, the etudes contain real harmonic interest and phrasing decisions. Students approach these pages knowing that mastering what's written here opens doors to more sophisticated repertoire.

Students working through the intermediate levels of The Music Tree series who need systematic reinforcement of technical foundations. Teachers who want exercises that connect directly to repertoire rather than existing in isolation. Pianists transitioning from early intermediate to intermediate work, where independent hand coordination and finger facility become essential.

• Use the illustrations as teaching tools. Rather than simply showing correct hand position, pause and let students articulate what they notice about how the hand sits on the keyboard.
• Work through the exercises before assigning the corresponding etude. This removes the frustration of fighting both technique and musicality simultaneously.
• Have students compare etudes that use similar technical skills. This reinforces the transferability of the technique and builds confidence across different musical contexts.
• Pace the material conservatively. These exercises are dense with pedagogical purpose; working through them thoughtfully is more valuable than rushing to completion.

Assign exercises and etudes as complementary work to The Music Tree repertoire selections. When a student encounters a technical hurdle in a piece, the corresponding exercise provides focused preparation. Use the etudes as short performance opportunities within lessons or recitals to celebrate technical progress in a musical context.

• Finger independence and evenness across the hand
• Arpeggio technique with proper hand positioning
• Scale fluency across multiple positions
• Legato and staccato articulation control
• Hand coordination for two-hand technical passages
• Reading extended range on the grand staff
• Understanding harmonic structure through technical application