Introduction to the Art of Playing the Pianoforte, Op.42: Modern engraved edition

This is a printing of a publicly available, open source version, with cover and new preface. Attractive sharp engraving, on nice cream colored paper. Cover is matte finish coated paper that feel nice in the hand and should be durable. Binding is "perfect bound" (glued), but looks well done. I really like the book itself. Most pieces are on one page, so page turns are limited.Problems: The page numbers are in the upper inside corners, so the pages are switched left/right. Presentation and page turns would be better with this corrected, but overall I don't think it's a huge problem, because some turns were also eliminated. A blank sheet is needed added at the beginning to correct this. Additionally, the center margins are too small. It's all completely readable, but could be done better. These two things are the reason for the 3 star rating.Clementi gets 5 stars:The text itself is not really for "beginners", at least in the modern sense, but highly recommended for intermediate players. The "Lessons" are all golden. They're all short pieces, mostly by Handel, Corelli, Haydn, and Mozart, with a few others thrown in (CPE Bach, Pleyel, Beethoven, Scarlatti, Couperin). Some pieces from operas must be arrangements by Clementi. There are a few little arrangements or pieces, like "Ah, Vous Dirai-Je Maman" ("Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star") that must also be Clementi's. Most of the "easy" ones are about the same level of "Anna Magdalena's Notebook", so it's more what we would consider "intermediate" to "advanced", rather than "beginner".The "Preludes and Lessons" are arranged in the circle of fifths and relative minors - C major, A minor, F major, D minor, etc. Clementi adds a note about which "Lessons" are easiest, and indicates you should start with those. There is a short little "prelude", of about 4 or 8 bars, for each key, which is is a little scale, chord, and arpeggio exercise (good for anyone - musical, not boring).At the beginning there's a lot of valuable information on how to read music notation, both modern and historical (good for anyone, including beginners). There's some basic scale and interval theory, including all major and minor scales, with fingerings. There are several interesting pages of examples of how to finger typical passages, including 3rds and 6ths, with alternates for legato and staccato. Quite extensive and useful, although fingerings may vary a little from modern practice. Fingering is numbered according to modern conventions, with thumb being "1". There are several pages of classical and baroque ornaments which alone are worth the purchase price.

Great pieces for the beginner. Beautifully printed.From 1800 or so.Apparently, it was endorsed by Beethoven.I also endorse it.You will too...