Choosing an Adult Piano Method Book: Alfred or Faber?

An adult piano method book gives you an ordered way into the instrument: a few notes, a rhythm, a short piece, then something new to hear and play. The difficult part is choosing among books whose covers all promise a clear beginning.

Alfred’s Basic Adult All-in-One Course and Faber’s Adult Piano Adventures are both useful starting points. The better choice depends on how you respond to the explanations, how you want to use demonstrations, and what happens when you sit at the keyboard. A book that suits your reading can still need a different pace for your hands.

A little playing reveals more about an adult beginner’s starting point than a discussion of books alone. Someone may understand notation quickly but lose the pulse when the hands combine. Another person may play a tune readily by ear while finding the bass clef unfamiliar. Those two students can use the same book and need quite different lessons.

Alfred and Faber: the starting books

Compare the complete titles. Alfred’s Basic Adult All-in-One Course, Book 1 is the volume discussed here. Faber’s is Adult Piano Adventures All-in-One Course Book 1. Other lesson books and companion collections within these publishers’ catalogues have different purposes.

Alfred describes its adult all-in-one course as intended for use with an instructor. The first volume combines playing, written theory and technical work, with chord study and a mixture of musical styles. That integrated format can suit someone who likes to understand a musical idea on paper and then put it under the fingers.

Faber’s Book 1 also brings repertoire, theory and technique into one volume. Its dedicated support page is especially useful to inspect before choosing: resources are organised by page and unit, beginning with an introduction to playing and continuing through reading, intervals, scales and chords. There are video resources and accompaniment tracks, including slower practice versions.

Both books cover more than one kind of musicianship. I would be cautious about choosing through a slogan such as “Alfred for chords, Faber for reading.” Your teacher still needs to hear how you read, coordinate and shape a phrase, whichever title is on the music stand.

Reading notes and seeing patterns

Look at the first explanation you do not already understand. Can you follow what it asks you to do? Then look a little farther ahead. The useful question is whether the book gives you repeated chances to recognise the idea in music.

At the piano, reading develops through several connections: a note’s place on the staff, its location on the keyboard, the interval to the next note, and the sound you expect. Finger numbers help organise the movement, but a finger number alone does not identify a note. Your right thumb can play many different keys.

For example, after finding C, a beginner might read a short tune by noticing that it goes up one step, up another step, then comes down. That is different from calling every note “1, 2, 3” and remembering a fixed hand position. Moving to another starting note or opening an unfamiliar line reveals that distinction.

Faber’s public Book 1 resource index gives a useful picture of its sequence: early keyboard and interval work, orientation to the staff, reading reinforcement, and further bass-clef work. You can examine that sequence alongside the pages themselves. With any method, check whether you are reading a new tune or reproducing a tune you have already memorised.

If you mostly learned by watching hands on a screen, our guide to moving from piano tutorials to reading music explores that change in more detail. A method book can supply a steady stream of short reading material while you continue enjoying pieces you know by ear.

Chords and two-hand playing

Chord work is valuable even when your main ambition is classical music. Recognising C, E and G as a C-major chord gives three notes a relationship. Later, you may meet those notes spread out as an accompaniment or arranged with a melody above them.

The first challenge is often changing between shapes while keeping time. You can understand two chords immediately and still pause before every change. That calls for a small amount of practical work: find the notes the chords share, notice which fingers move, and practise the arrival without rushing the preceding beat.

Listen to the balance between the hands, too. A chord can be correct and still cover the tune. From the beginning, a short melody deserves a clear direction, and its accompaniment deserves an appropriate sound. Those musical questions belong in an adult beginner lesson alongside note names and rhythm.

Alfred makes chord study an explicit part of its course description. Faber’s Book 1 support index includes C-chord work, G7, and primary chords in C and G. The decision is therefore about the way the material develops and the help you receive with it, rather than the presence or absence of chords.

Videos and audio support

A demonstration can clarify a written instruction or let you hear a piece as a whole. Before buying, open the publisher’s resources on the device you will actually use beside the piano. Check that the relevant edition and page numbers match the book you are considering.

Here is the introductory video linked from Faber’s own Book 1 resource page. Use it to sample the publisher’s teaching presentation and decide whether you would return to this kind of support between lessons.

The most useful way to work with a demonstration is to alternate listening and playing. Read a short passage, try it, then listen for the point that was unclear. If you watch repeatedly before attempting the page, the tune may become familiar while the notation remains unexplored.

Accompaniment tracks have another purpose. They give you a musical setting and a pulse to join. First work out the passage at a manageable speed; then try the suitable practice track. When you lose your place, find the beat and phrase where it happened. Simply replaying the entire track can leave the same difficulty untouched.

Support varies between titles and editions. For an Alfred purchase, check the exact product’s included media rather than assuming that every Book 1 listing contains the same audio package. The particular print volume linked below is the course book; use the publisher’s product details to identify any additional resources you want.

Repertoire that interests you

An appealing tune gives an exercise a reason to exist. It also matters how the tune is arranged. A beginner arrangement may preserve the melody while simplifying the accompaniment, changing the key or shortening the form. That can be a useful first encounter with music you love.

Ask what draws you to a piece: the melody, the flowing left hand, the changing harmony, or the sound of a particular recording. If the feature you love has disappeared from an arrangement, another piece may be more satisfying at this stage.

Faber offers companion collections for Book 1, including classical and popular material. I would choose extra repertoire around what you are ready to play, rather than buy a whole shelf at the outset. A short piece can reinforce a new rhythm or introduce a different character while the method continues to provide an organised sequence.

A favourite piece can also sit beside the book as a longer project. Its melody or a suitable version can provide useful material while the reading and coordination needed for the rest develop. Our guide to piano lessons built around one piece explains how that can work without making every practice session revolve around the hardest passage.

Pace and the first few weeks

Adults often grasp an explanation before their playing feels dependable. Reading about a dotted rhythm takes moments; hearing and placing it accurately may take several encounters in different pieces. The number of pages completed tells only part of that story.

I would look for three signs that a section has taken root: you can begin from a sensible place within the piece, keep a steady pulse at a comfortable speed, and explain or demonstrate the new idea in another short example. Musical expression matters too. A phrase should begin to have shape, even when the notes are simple.

A teacher can linger over one page, skip a redundant written exercise, add a duet, or bring back an earlier tune for a new purpose. For instance, a familiar melody may become the place to explore a quieter accompaniment. That revisiting has a musical point; it is more useful than repeating a whole chapter because of one unsettled skill.

If you are returning after childhood lessons, bring your previous book as well. An early volume may serve as a short review of reading and coordination, while other pieces show what you have retained. Choose the starting point from your present playing. Our adult beginner foundations guide covers the wider first-lesson questions.

Choosing a book in Tokyo

For English-speaking adults in Tokyo, language and edition deserve a little attention. A familiar cover can appear in different editions or languages. Check the complete title, volume, language and included resources before ordering or buying in a shop. If you prefer explanations in English, choose that deliberately.

Also consider the physical book. Does it stay open on your music stand? Is the notation comfortable to read at the distance where you sit? Will you carry it to a studio after work? These ordinary details affect how often you use it. A digital edition can be convenient, provided the notation remains readable and page changes do not interrupt a short piece.

Already finished an adult method book? The next question is different: what to study after Alfred or Faber looks at continuing the course and moving into further repertoire.