Every book, reviewed, in one place.

I have only been playing piano for a while and as my wife recently passed away, I wanted to learn some relaxing music that a beginner could play without too much difficulty. Piano Hive's Relaxing Music starts off with the easiest pieces first, building up to more complicated pieces, which will take me a fair amount of time to learn to play, but that is not important at the moment. The progression in difficulty is nice and not 'in your face' like some other books, where the first piece is easy but the rest are hard to play. If you enjoy playing relaxing pieces of music, and by the way, the first piece is really simple, and short, and yet, a total joy to play by injecting feeling into the piece, then this book is a true gem.

There are 20 original pieces aimed at beginner to Grade 2. What is good is that these are a gradual progression. The composers notes are a really good way to communicate to the player some of the different techniques used to play these pieces but also give the player some license to change things up. They also introduce different musical concepts as part of the piece eg acciaccaturas in Shooting Stars. Finally the pieces are designed to be relaxing and therefore encourage the user not just to practise but to enjoy the moment as they play. My favourite is ‘Wave of Nostalgia’ You should buy this to give an added dimension to your piano practice and skills.

I would give more stars if I could. I remember I bought one of the earlier books (grade 1) and immediately fell in love with the songs. And this book is amazing too. I love lyrical music, songs that breathe and you can feel a soft beautiful ache as you play. And I literally play the songs and melt away inside. I hope more books will be published because these are my kind of songs!!

Most people I teach are learning the piano for enjoyment and relaxation, not to make the fastest possible progress, and most tutor books miss this target audience. Easy arrangements of pop songs or well-known classics either change the rhythm (which is so annoying, as many people can play difficult, but familiar rhythms, and get confused when what is on the page is not what is in their head), or the arrangements are unnecessarily technical, which is off-putting. There are of course, many lovely teaching pieces available, but they are mainly marketed at pre- to early- teen children, with cartoon pictures, 'fun' titles and too much information on each page. These pieces convey a beautiful musical idea in the simplest way possible, which I think gives maximum enjoyment for mid-level beginners. Thank you for making teaching mid-level beginners easier and more enjoyable.

I have had this book for two Christmases. I am at Grade 1 bordering Grade 2 as an older adult beginner. The first Christmas I found it challenging because I was not used to working out my own fingering patterns. This last Christmas I enjoyed it much more now that I am more competent. It is great to have modern style piano music which is accessible for the Grade 1-3 player. It makes a refreshing change from the traditional practice pieces & with the freedom to interpret they sound as though you know how to play rather than as though you are practising set pieces. I only like Christmas music at Christmas so I am looking forward to trying other Piano Hive music based on this good experience.

Amazing versions of classic Christmas songs, very original and contemporary, yet still beautiful! Some are definitely a challenge to play towards the end of the book and took me a bit of practice 😂 I think once under your fingers though, a lot of these pieces will be your go too arrangements for the festive period! Will be buying more copies for my piano students, Jonathan

This is a beautifully presented book, with 8 wonderful pieces carefully crafted and aimed at all players albeit with a keen eye on those working through from grade 3 to 5. Each piece benefits from a brief playing guide by either Janette or James. What a fantastic composing combination. I have been fortunate to see Janette and James play live and hear their work on BBC sounds and Jazz FM. In summary, a wonderfully appointed set of compositions, sympathetically prepared by two fine and talented musicians that will challenge and inspire.

Very nice compositions which start out very simple and progress to a little more complex through the book of 15 pieces. I was grade 3/4 but practice and lessons had gone by the board during lockdown, etc. I bought this book, and the following one (Relaxing Piano) to get my interest going again and I am very much enjoying getting back in to playing again. Nice pieces which develop your confidence and skills in playing for an audience and in interpreting the music. By the end of the book pieces are imo Grade 2/3.

While there’s ample grade 1 pieces out there, few of them are particularly modern, interesting or even enjoyable to play. Piano Hive changes all that with this book. As an adult learner it’s really helped keep me engaged and excited about learning new pieces, one of which I’ll be using in my grade 1 exam.

If you want some material to help you progress between Grade 1 and Grade 2 Piano, this book will certainly do that. Lovely pieces and covers key signatures from ABRSM 1&2 so ticks the boxes for me