Home (2022) version 2 Forums Technique Questions What’s the best methods book for a late beginner? Reply To: What’s the best methods book for a late beginner?

  • JS Moir

    Member
    3 June, 2021 at 2:08 pm

    Hey, Marilyn. Yeah. Well, I’ve tried a LOT of books: Bruner (good, but nothing beats a real teacher- even with her DVD’s- and yeah, there are some ‘holes’ in the technique that plagued me, and kept me ‘stuck’ for months, it seemed); Grossi (good, but necessary/tedious/boring- but, if you can find a used copy, worth it); and Deb Friou’s book (which is more like a manual to keep your chops in order, AFTER you get them- lol. FWIW, I am working through the Dilling “Old Tunes for New Harpists” right now as my ‘go to book’- primarily because I did the online “Harp Course I & II” with the wonderful Alice Giles (best money I ever spent, apart from getting my Salvi Diana, used!) – and Alice starts out with that Dilling book. What I like about it (oh, did I say I’m a college Music [voice] instructor?) is that all the pieces a) build on one another, very simply, and b) by going back and ‘warming’ up on the earlier pieces, you reinforce the technical points. They also are c) very short excerpts- combining both folk and ‘classical’ pieces, that are PRETTY. That sense of repetition/reinforcement means you feel a sense of ‘accomplishment’ when you ‘get’ one piece, and go on to the next. I could go on for a lot longer, but…. well, hope this helps.