Classics By Ear – Moonlight Sonata Reviews

“This is an incredible course for a self taught hobby and though it’s difficult to begin with and has to be learnt in piece meal chunks first before putting together when you get to end of sheet one which you don’t think you will ever accomplish at first it really is a gratifying feeling. Just to be able to learn to play a tune you like for yourself in your own time by following along to the guidance this course musician provides aligned with the detailed sheet music has, imo made this a worthwhile hobby I enjoy returning to, so from me it’s a thumbs up.

I have a ways to go yet as I took this up alongside my academic studies which are also a completely new field and this course helps give me that much needed break and escapism all in the comfort of my own home and, not having to worry about being frowned upon by a tutor for hitting those wrong chords or missing that note when practising to string a row of bars together lol. Well worth purchasing in my opinion and presented by someone who has put such effort into their online course to help others interested in and wanting to learn and study at the own pace and, who is worthy of much more praise than I could ever offer up.”

“Robin is just a fantastic teacher! He takes the time to teach. The videos are easy to follow, and the method Robin uses is constructed to take beginners to achieve satisfying results. I have taken four of his classes (now beginning Moonlight Sonata) and I’m stoked for Robin to reveal his next course. Thank you, Robin!”

“This is the second course I have studied with this tutor. I find his method of instruction is excellent for my limitations. Having left and right hand coordination problems.”

“The best-ever method to learn a song. it took me a while to finish this course but it absolutely worth it. I learned 3 more pieces of Classics By Ear – Erik Satie from Robin too and I’m happy that I chose Robin to be my teacher. I’m really looking forward to learning more from him. Wish you the best.”

“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!”

“It’s the best piano course I’ve taken. I’m currently working on pianoforall as well. Would recommend to anyone that wants to play a classic and inadvertently learn some music theory along the way.”

“Overall really good and enjoyable course, and I learned to play the 1st movement of the Moonlight Sonata never having played piano and not been able to read notes. Love it.”

“This course was amazing – as was the Bach preludes course. It delivered as promised! I now know how to play the Moonlight Sonata! Put in the time, follow his instructions and you will learn how to play it. I’m amazed. I’m 53 and I’ve tried to learn piano over the years. I came across this and figured why not?! I plan on continuing to learn how to read sheet music and improve but in the meantime – I now have a few beautiful songs under my belt that I play often – very relaxing and fulfilling.”

“When the email came through, alerting me to this brand new “Classics By Ear” course by Robin Hall, I didn’t need to think twice about purchasing – indeed I was excited and delighted. Having purchased all of Robin’s previous courses, I was fully aware of just how excellent they are (not to mention very INexpensive) so there was no chance of my hesitating, and I purchased immediately. And from the increasing numbers of students who have also signed up within just the first few days, I am clearly not alone in my opinion.

Robin’s method is superbly in-depth and meticulous, taking things slow but steady, and breaking things down into bite-sized and easy to consume morsels – really zooming in on every note and nuance of every bar, little by little, utilizing sheet music, cheat sheets and also “Memorable Elements”, so that with each and every small step you know exactly what you should be doing, where you are heading, and how you should be playing – the fingering, expression, etc etc. Basically, you know that Robin really cares about teaching you how to play great music on the piano!

I have already made a start and am truly loving playing this haunting yet beautiful piece – a “timeless classic” indeed! After a couple of days I am already practicing the full page 1 (both with and without the splendid alternate mini-ending variation for bar 15 – a nice little touch which gives you the satisfaction of completing, if you will, a “Mini Moonlight Sonata” Prologue (“Op. 27, No. 2A”???) quite early in your endeavors; but which only whets your appetite even more to keep on moving forward – encouraging you to progress on and on to discover the rich beauty of this piece, and the amazing satisfaction that comes with getting it “under the fingers”… and “tantalising the ears”…

And so I am well and truly “juggling” 😉 … as Robin advises in his courses… although perhaps in a different way than he intends; but I hope that’s still okay, as I have several pieces on the go now – including the Bach Preludes (I’m saving the Satie course for now (although I have sampled several videos) so as not to take too much on, but will certainly be working on those pieces too when I’ve made significant progress with the Beethoven and Bach pieces).

The bottom line : I am truly addicted to learning this beautiful piece (quite possibly my favourite of Robin’s “CLASSICS BY EAR” so far); so many many thanks again, Robin, for a wonderful and meticulously planned course. And for those considering it – and especially if you have always wanted to play this timeless piece – do not hesitate. Just buy this course, press play on the first lesson – dive in (and print off the sheet music/cheat sheets etc) … take it slow and steady… and simply enjoy playing beautiful music. The fingering/octave+ stretches can perhaps be a challenge at times, but do persevere, and I promise you that you will be glad that you did, and will have no regrets whatsoever…

A wonderful piece, especially relaxing and therapeutic, and indeed something very worthwhile upon which to focus one’s mind, body and soul in particular as a most welcome respite and distraction during these challenging Covid lockdown times…”

“I love this course. Robin makes it so easy to understand and so calm in teaching. Just love all his course so far and want to learn more from him.”

“This is the second piano course I’ve taken with Robin Hall, and I have been very pleased with the content of the courses. Robin clearly understands how to convey his knowledge of the piano to his students. Whether someone is a beginner or intermediate student, Robin addresses the course content for all. I am impressed with the level of information, which includes video content and pdf music sheets, that Robin includes with the courses. Clearly a lot of work for him! Thanks for offering these piano courses, great value for the money and time spent. Thanks to Robin, I am back to playing piano and staying with it, and very pleased with my progress.”

“Really enjoying the logical instructions and methods together with the clarity of the diagrams with keys and finger positions- it makes learning a pleasure”

“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.”

“I’ve been wanting to play this for years but thinking it was too difficult, not with this way of teaching. its just great. I could play bars 1 to 5 but within days of having this course I am working on bar 10 top marks.”

“I bought this on july 16, never played piano before and I managed to finish this course and learn the whole piece by the time I’m writing this review, which is approximately 3 months. I have to admit there where a few weeks a didn’t practice at all x) but the course is great and now I’m gonna continue with his next course =)”

“Although this is challenging for me I am in awe regarding Robin’s awesome method of teaching.”

“I never thought I would be able to play this piece, or anything as complex as this. But the way Robin Hall takes you literally by the hand and guides you step by step, it’s just amazing, I mean it works, all it takes is persistence and the results will come.
Of course, this is a complex and fairly difficult piece, it is not for novices but with Robin Halls’ guidance, someone with a few years experience, (let’s say, someone like me who has competed most of Robin Halls “Piano For All” course) can give it a go and with practice, the results will come.
Also, a suggestion: if you try this score/course and you find it difficult, do Robin Halls’ Bach Preludes course first or even his Satie course, both courses follow the same method with well written scores, keyboard diagrams and step by step guidance, and Bach’s Prelude No. 1 in C major (BWV 846) and Satie’s Gnossienne No 1 are much simpler than the Moonlight Sonata Mov 1, this is what I did and as I said, the results have been above my expectations…”

“It is a truly inspirational course for me. I am making progress !!! Just in time I have found the words of encouragement and support. So important to have those. Great teacher. I am really grateful for the clear and easy to follow visual instructions that I needed most as I am studying without a tutor by my side.”

“This is my second course from this amazing teacher. I’m a 62 year old novice, but these courses have made me a better player than I ever expected to be. Thank you.”

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

“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.”

“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.”

“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.”

“Just up to bar 9 so far but it is amazing and I know already that I’ll be through with the whole song soon, but with the required practice on each bar. Feels like ONLY 60 bars to go :)”