Beginning Blues Piano

By Eric Kriss

Book Overview

(Music Sales America). Expert blues piano teacher and player Eric Kriss presents clear step-by-step directions to the major styles and techniques essential for mastering the blues. He explains chord structure, bass lines, slides and syncopation, and more.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0825623537
• ISBN13: 9780825623530
• Release Date: January 1992
• Publisher: Music Sales
• Length: 64 Pages
• Weight: 0.76 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.2" x 8.8" x 11.8"

Customer Reviews

A little basic, but without all the basics

Not bad, but lacks explanations. Positives + Relates the history of the Blues and references specific musicians in a way that I find to be respectful. + Sheet music is legible. Issues: Is written from the POV of a longtime pianist who was trained in classical music, but who discovered a love for the blues. This is great, but like with many "beginner" piano books- they are not written for someone who's not a real n00b (ex: you should explain what a chord is), but rather someone who has an intermediate grasp on a topic but is exploring a new avenue. I picked up piano as an adult, so while I understand what's being stated in the book, I can still relate to beginners. This is not a from-the-ground up book. Secondly, the exercises here are patterned around arrangements of real songs, which should be a plus, but I don't find the arrangements to be especially friendly to the ear. Several are also a bit too long. I bought this book along with another one published at the same time (Introduction to the Blues by Matt Dennis, 1976), and I find the exercises and notation in that book to be more intuitive. And the songs & exercises in that book are written to highlight a specific concept being discussed. That book has its own issues, but it is the clear winner in this comparison. There seems to be some more interesting stuff in the second half of the book, but some of those concepts should have been up front.