Book 3 of the Complete Church Piano Course

 36 pages, soft cover 

The Complete Church Piano Course: Book Three
by Pastor Steven L Anderson

The primary goal of Book Three is to teach you to play directly from the hymnal. The first thing you must realize is that the music in the hymnal is not written for piano. It is written for voices singing in four part harmony. Therefore, if you were to play exactly what is written in the hymnal, it usually would not sound right on the piano. For this reason, your right hand will be playing exactly what you see on the page in the hymnal at this point, but your left hand will continue playing the chord and octave patterns that you learned in Book Two.

The first challenge of playing from the hymnal is that you will now be asked to play two notes at a time with your right hand instead of only one. Although technically you could continue playing only one note at a time with your right hand by playing just the top note of the four notes on the page, your playing will sound much better when you play both notes in the treble clef part. If you have mastered Books One and Two, you are ready to take this step.

The second challenge is that the hymnal does not tell you which chords to play with your left hand. Therefore you must learn how to figure out which chords to play based upon the notes written on the page. Eventually, your ear may help you instinctively know which chords to play. Until then, several techniques will be taught in this book that will help you quickly identify the proper chords to play in the left hand.

Your goal is to eventually be able to play hundreds of hymns from the hymnal on demand. You will not be able to memorize that many songs or their chord progressions. In order to become an effective church pianist, you will need to become very good at sight-reading the treble clef part and instantly knowing which chords to play with the left hand. This book will give you the tools to do so.

Songs included in Book Three:

Are You Washed in the Blood?
At the Cross
Blest be the Tie that Binds
Come Thou Fount
Count Your Blessings
Dare to be a Daniel
Dwelling in Beulah Land
Follow On
Glory to His Name
Higher Ground
I Need Thee Every Hour
In the Garden
Jesus Paid it All
Leaning on the Everlasting Arms
Must Jesus Bear the Cross Alone?
Rock of Ages
Sound the Battle Cry
Standing on the Promises
Take the Name of Jesus with You
There is Power in the Blood
There Shall Be Showers of Blessing
This is My Father’s World

This book can only be purchased by US residents who live outside the state of Arizona. Arizona residents can pick up a FREE copy at Faithful Word Baptist Church. No international shipping available.

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