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Rating: 
Summary: Beautiful compositions
Review: Dan Coates offers the nicest piano compositions of all the composers' music I've played. His music flows across your fingertips. It does require much practice for me to get these advanced songs down, but well worth it. (Mrs. Zink, you would be proud!) I'm used to sight-reading easier songs, as he writes with many flats and sharps, but with some extra effort, his compositions sound quite beautiful on your keyboard. Once mastered, you'll love the feel and sound of Dan Coate's arrangements. You might even try some of his easier arrangements to start.
Rating:
Summary: A Must-have Book for Piano Libraries
Review: For any pianist who plays for weddings, receptions, formal dinners, or other secular functions, this book will be an invaluable asset. Dan Coates' signature easy listening-style piano arrangements will enhance the mood and atmosphere of any social gathering. Perfect for background music in a crowd, or to play for your own pleasure and satisfaction, these medium-to-difficult arrangements will make anyone sound like a professional.
Rating:
Summary: Nice collection
Review: Nice, broad collection of popular music. I play them in a
restaurant. My customers keep telling me how much they
appreciate the music.
Rating:
Summary: Beautiful But Challenging
Review: This book contains some of the most beautiful arrangements of popular music I have ever heard. Many of the pieces were unfamiliar to me when I bought the book, and others were songs I didn't particularly like. But Coates's arrangements are so beautiful that I love almost all of these songs now. This book is honestly titled: it is for advanced players. This does not mean that it is Rachmaninoff, but most pianists will find it challenging. Determined intermediate pianists can reasonably expect to memorize, play, and enjoy many of these pieces...but it will take some serious practice. Many of the arrangements make extensive use of the keyboard's higher registers -- where many pianists have limited experience. And some songs contain multi-measure passages where 3 are played against 2. Large leaps are common (including in some arpeggiated chords), as are chords with 6 or more notes. The book is well bound (so that it lays fairly flat), and the printing is generally clear and well formatted. Most of the pieces are 3 to 5 pages long. These pieces are worth the extra effort they require, and once the skills are learned, they'll be available forever.
Rating:
Summary: Professional Arrangements!
Review: This book contains the most satisfying piano arrangements of popular music that I am aware of. This is a gem in a vast sea of mediocre sheet music. Much if not most of the sheet music available has lifeless harmonization. When performing the typical arrangement, the performer strains to imagine the beauty of the original recording but realizes the voices, instruments and percussion are all missing. With all this missing the song has no soul and hence no reason to be performed. The solos of this Dan Coates edition tower above all of the other popular edition books I own. Coates' arrangements allow the pianist to perform as a soloist. Rather than following the harmony of the original recordings like a drone, Coates' skillfully harmonizes and tailors these songs to beauty of the piano. These songs are a joy to perform. Anyone who buys this book will have opportunity to sound like a professional.
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