David Lanz - Collection

"The David Lanz Collection" has been my favorite piano book to teach from since it was first released in 1992. I had heard the recorded versions of most of these songs on Lanz's "Skyline Firedance" CD and expected the printed music to be very difficult. I was both amazed and thrilled that I could play even the fast pieces almost up to speed the very first time I played them. I bought the book at one of Lanz's concerts, and remember sitting up until the wee hours that night playing through it. My enthusiasm for the music in this book was contagious, and I would guess that I have probably sold at least fifty copies to students over the years. Repeated left hand patterns make the pieces much easier to play than they sound, which is very encouraging and satisfying for pianists at any level. It is interesting that some of the slower pieces are actually more difficult than the faster ones, but none of them are beyond a pianist of upper-intermediate skills. The fifteen pieces include five selections from Lanz's "Return to the Heart" album, eight from "Skyline Firedance," and two from "Cristofori's Dream." This collection is one of the most fun-to-play books I've ever encountered and I give it my highest recommendation.

I bought this at the same time we bought our piano, and I've been loving this collection! I've had to re-learn how to play (hadn't played in 15 years!), and these songs have really kept me motivated to practice. My favorite so far is Dark Horse! I would agree that these are moderately difficult. I bought a bunch of sheet music around the same time, but this is the book I keep coming back to. Now I plan to buy  The Ultimate David Lanz Collection: for Easy Piano  for fun pieces that I hope are quicker to learn. My only wish was that this book was spiral bound so it'd lay flat and would be easier to flip through, especially since some songs are 9 pages.

Love David Lanz music. Wings to altair is probably my favorite.

I've been using this book as a teaching tool for my early advanced piano students since the early 90s. The degree of difficulty ranges from moderate to intense. The songs are somewhat repetitive but catchy and fun to play. Some are slow and pretty. Others are fast and intense. It's a nice diversion for those students who can handle the Bach Minuets and are just starting the easier Chopin Waltzes. There's no fingering. You'll have to add that as you go along.It remains a favorite among my students. The other David Lanz books don't stand up to this one.

Book in condition as described and arrived in a timely manner.If you play piano, consider adding this to your collection. The music is beautiful!

This book was in great condition, no wear or tears. I already know the music and it is great.

I really like David Lanz's works for piano, and they really fit well in the New Age genre. This book provided me with a lot of songs that I've always wanted to have to play for my collection. Just not quite all of them (thus the 4 out of 5 stars). Though even for most of the songs I have not heard of before, they are becoming enjoyable to play.

Not quite what I expected - I thought that since the cover specifically mentions Cristofori's Dream that the song by that name would be included in the book. This is not the case - it does include songs from that album, but not that song, and since that is what I especially wanted, it was a huge disappointment. The music is enjoyable and fairly easy to play, but just be aware that the cover is misleading, which is why I am only giving this product three stars.