Classics By Ear – Student Reviews

Students are LOVING the Classics By Ear courses!
Now ANYONE can play their favourite classical pieces.

Pianoforall Classics By Ear Reviews

Jump to a course page on Pianoforall Academy

Erik Satie →  |  Bach Preludes →  |  Moonlight Sonata →

Erik Satie

UN TRES GRAND MERCI

“Tous les moyens techniques et artistiques sont donnés par Robin Hall, professeur de piano généreux, pour s’approprier les trois premières Gnossiennes d’Erik Satie. Ce cours est pour moi une incroyable expérience que j’ai hâte de renouveler avec le cours “Bach Preludes”. Un très grand merci.”

Daniel B.
Moonlight Sonata

GREAT LESSON STRUCTURE AND PACING

“This is a very good match for me. I think that I am going to learn a lot. I like the red dots and sheet music. I was never told to learn the C notes and then use them for a guide to other notes.

I am at the midpoint now and I’m enjoying the lessons. I’ve never stayed with a lesson as long as I have with this. I really enjoy it. You have such great lesson structure and pacing.”

Joseph Grant
Bach Preludes

HANDS DOWN THE BEST CLASSICAL PIANO COURSE ONLINE

“Another awesome course from Robin. This is my third course from Robin on Piano. Loved the piano-for-all (still in progress) and the Erik Satie (finished 2 out of 3 pieces) and now this preludes from Bach enriching my musical journey. A very nicely and carefully created course content. To be honest, its little more than I required (as I’ve been consistently playing for over 10 months now) but I can understand a real beginner would need all the details/help which the instructor has covered in this course.

This is hands-down the best classical piano course online. I’m done with prelude-Cmajor for now and can’t wait for improve it before I jump into Cminor. Dear Robin, Thanks you sir… hope you keep on creating such courses covering classics…. and possibly some Chopin pieces (psst: Waltz in A minor).”

Vikas Sharma
Moonlight Sonata

ANOTHER EXCELLENT COURSE

“This was the most challenging piano piece I have learned so far. I have wanted to learn how to play this for a long time, and honestly wondered whether it was beyond my ability. Robin’s course, which broke it down into small manageable, logical chunks, showed me that it was indeed possible for me to learn this – with perseverance and lots and lots of repetition and practice! Thank you so much, Robin, for another excellent course.”

Erik Satie

IT FEELS AMAZING

“Great course. I learned to play the first Gnossienne from start to finish in less than a week by watching this course and I have only been learning classical piano for a couple of months.

It feels amazing to be able to play along with some of the classic Satie recordings and feel that not only do I get the notes right, but I’m also starting to add expression to my playing. Looking forward to future courses applying the same method!”

Jaakko H.
Erik Satie

I ENJOYED EVERY MINUTE OF IT

“I am a 70 year old advanced beginner who has never tried to learn anything on my own without an instructor by my side. This was also my first attempt to play classical music. I had a great time, enjoyed every minute of it and felt like I did have someone to guide me through all of the pieces. I thought the presentations were very well organized and easily understood. I would definitely sign up for more of these. A great way to enjoy sheltering in place. Thanks again.”

Paul B.
Bach Preludes

EXCELLENT BREAKDOWN

“Excellent breakdown technique. This was an excellent match for me. I tend to want to jump ahead before I have mastered a section completely. This kept me on track and I could go back and work on any section I needed too work on.
I am 70 years old and memorization has become difficult but I was able to stay focused and work through each section at my own pace. I realize that this was not a complex piece but I will apply the technique to other songs. Thank you.”

Cynthia P Jones
Erik Satie

SO CONSISTENT AND WELL THOUGHT OUT

I’ve been working on other pieces and just getting back to the Gnossiennes again. The courses are so consistent and well thought out, it’s easy to resume learning.

John M.
Moonlight Sonata

THIS COURSE HAS HELPED ME TO FILL IN THE GAPS

“I love your soothing, calming voice. This course has helped me to fill in the gaps. Thank you for breaking it all down in bite size pieces.”

Jasmin Jinn
Moonlight Sonata

YOUR COURSES ARE JUST WONDERFUL

“Thank you so much Mr. Hall. I am really excited about learning to play a movement from a Beethoven sonata. I have derived hours of pleasure from your Bach’s Prelude in C major, and am continuing to work on the Prelude in C minor. Your courses are just wonderful, especially for older people like me who have always wanted to play classical music on the piano.”

Clyde Fisher
Erik Satie

SO FAR FANTASTIC

“Just starting the course, but so far fantastic. Well organized, pleasing voice and just the right pace. I also have his pianoforall course on Bach’s Preludes which I can highly recommend if you enjoy the piano. Thank you Mr. Hall.”

Clyde F.
Erik Satie

FANTASTICALLY ORGANISED

“Robin is a great instructor. He breaks down these beautiful classical pieces into very digestible bits. His hierarchy of sheet music is also fantastically organized and useful, depending on where you are in your mastery of the song. He even adds good tips on how to take the songs to the next level. If you enjoy Satie, this video will certainly help you play his pieces, even if you’re just a beginner like me.”

Guy T.
Moonlight Sonata

WONDERFUL AND EFFECTIVE TEACHING

“Playing this piece has always been a dream for me; I cant believe I actually made it through this course. I can now play the entire first movement of Moonlight Sonata by memory.
Thank you, Mr. Robin Hall for your wonderful and effective teaching.”

Noellah Jeannica
Erik Satie

I AM NOW 70, I AM MAKING GREAT STRIDES WITH YOUR COURSE

I played Keys as a Young Boy….I am now 70….I was able to read and play music way back then. Now it seems very Foreign to me. I am making Great strides with Your Course and am now starting to get a feel for the piano again..Thank You for Your Knowledge & Presenting it so That I Can Understand and Will Play The Piano Again !!! Again….Thank You.

Denny T.
Moonlight Sonata

THIS TYPE OF TEACHING IS EXACTLY WHAT ADULT BEGINNERS NEED

“Clear & informative. I teach piano improvisation & musicality. I create my own material as Piano books give the student too much information in one go, making them stressed out and confused. This type of teaching is exactly what adult beginners need.”

Benita Laakso
Bach Preludes

THIS CLASS HAS BEEN A BREATH OF FRESH AIR

“For someone who tried to learn piano as a child, this class has been a breath of fresh air, as well as a confidence booster. I already had a basic understanding of reading music and playing but had not tried to play the piano for decades. The step-by-step structure of this class and viewing each step as a pattern of notes/finger movements was brilliant for me.

Then, the addition of a final lesson that brought expression into the piece rounded out my experience perfectly. I so enjoyed this class! I would love to see more piano classes like this from Robin that focus on learning individual compositions. Maybe some Vivaldi or The Beatles? 🙂 Thank you for a great class!”

Tracey D
Moonlight Sonata

EXCELLENT WAY TO LEARN

“Excellent way to learn, especially if you never learned to play the formal way. Breaking the piece down into bite sized chunks and learning one section until you have memorized it before learning the next. You’ll be surprised how quickly you can reach a reasonable standard of playing this piece.”

Lawrence The ghostwriter
Bach Preludes

AFTER A WEEK I COULD PLAY THE PIECE REALLY WELL

“I have struggled with the Prelude for months and so I took advantage of this course. After a week, I could play the piece really well. Robin is an amazing teacher, and I highly recommend this course. Robin – please create more lessons!!”

Monica Weggeman
Moonlight Sonata

INSPIRATIONAL

“I would buy any course by robin hall. This and others i have bought are great and inspirational”

Scarlet Buckle
Bach Preludes

THE COURSE WAS FANTASTIC!

“The course was fantastic! I was amazed at how many different materials provided and approaches provided to learning this piece. Not simply the sheet music, but cheat sheets and other tools to help me learn the piece. I have successfully memorized and completed the piece in around 2 weeks.”

Matt Beech
Bach Preludes

ROBIN HAS A WONDERFUL WAY OF TEACHING

“I absolutely loved both Classics By Ear courses (Satie and Bach). Robin has a wonderful way of teaching, by breaking down the structure of each piece into smaller manageable bits that clarify the patterns and the changes. The way he teaches also makes it easier to memorise pieces, as I always want to be able to play them without needing to rely on my notes. His accent is a treat too. 🙂

Robin, I hope you will create more of these courses – maybe some Chopin? or Beethoven?”

Regine Lord
Bach Preludes

VERY ENGAGING AND MOTIVATING

“Very engaging and motivating, inspirational and encouraging. Robin’s tuition – as with his broader course PIANO FOR ALL (which I also own and have gained much from) – is again superb! Quite simply piano tuition worth its weight in gold, but very modestly priced – a massive “bang for your buck”! Buy it and try it for yourself and you won’t be disappointed, I promise you; indeed you’ll be chomping at the bit to have a go and progress to the next level of your musical journey, discovery, and competence.

Thanks, Robin, keep up the good work – and keep bringing us more superb piano/music lessons in the near future, sir! :-)”

Chris Harvey
Erik Satie

MY ABILITY TO READ MUSIC IMPROVED SIGNIFICANTLY

“I enjoyed this course as much as any course I’ve taken. It is a good length and very focused–it teaches one thing and teaches it really well. It provides a step-by-step walkthrough for playing Erik Satie’s Trois Gnossienes on Piano. These are beautiful pieces and not too difficult to play, and Robin’s method makes learning them really straightforward. I can now play through these pieces consistently, more or less by memory. My ability to read sheet music for piano improved significantly, though that is only a secondary emphasis in the course. Highly recommended for an adult learner with a tiny bit of piano who wants to master one piece. I’m already moving on to Robin’s Bach course and looking forward to it.”

David L.
Moonlight Sonata

I ABSOLUTELY RECOMMEND THIS

“I always wanted to be able to play this exact piece, but got stuck pretty quickly and gave up. Now I can already play it up to the 2nd page! I would never have thought this! Thank you so much for teaching me this! This method of breaking the piece down into individual pieces, combined with the excellent explanations in the video and the perfect printable documents, is for me the best way to learn piano.

I absolutely recommend this as well as all of Robin’s other courses. I sincerely hope that there will be more courses. I will attend all of them without exception. Thank you again Mr. Hall!”

Daniel H.