piano program for beginners

[gerryjay]

hi there!

i need your help. 

i work as a music teacher in a local music school, and beyond other things iīm in charge now of the beginning piano students. well, thatīs a real challenge for myself, and i donīt want to make i mess. notice that iīm not already an accomplished pianist, but be sure that i can properly do my job (my pupils actually play  ), and i teach people only until early intermediate (bach inventions are the reference). after that, they move to other teachers for intermediate and advanced level.

the school examination system have some requirements, that i canīt change by now. so, each year the students are asked to play:
- ten studies;
- two works by bach;
- a complete sonata or sonatina (normally classical);
- two 18th century works (scarlatti is a must. in general, everything is possible but bach);
- two 19th century works (in the first years, schumann is the most played composer; then chopin leads);
- two 20th century works (brazilian composers are highly welcomed, but choices are varied);

basically, we work on a piece and a study every month, ten months a year (march to december). of course, there are pupils that do much more than this, and others who take two or even three years to complete each level. however, that is very flexible. exams are taken each semester, but the pupil have absolute freedom to choose the best moment to go to the next step, given the teacherīs OK of course.

my concern now is to create a reference repertory, thatīs it, a selection of works that could serve as a guide to other alternatives. in other words, the ideal program  . as i wrote above, my final goal is to deliver the pupil ready to play bachīs inventions, mozart/beethoven easy sonatas, and the like. from scratch, i have three levels (years) to do so.

do you have any suggestions that could help me in this task, please? any idea about specific works will be very welcome, as well as any other critic (considering the fact that some procedures i canīt discuss or change by now).

thanks in advance! 

[amanfang]

Check out Jane Magrath's reference book - "The Pianist's Guide to Standard Teaching and Performance Literature."  She levels things 1-10, with level 1 being early Bartok Microkosmos, and level 10 being the Pathetique Sonata.  The inventions range mostly in the 7 and 8 levels in her book.  It covers Baroque to modern and gives a general description of the piece.  It may help you find some other easier pieces and give a sort of level guide to bring your students to that invention level.

[gerryjay]

hey amanfang!

thank you very much! i was not aware of this book, but it sounds rather interesting. i think something in that way could help a lot, really.

best regards, and thanks again!