This volume contains a wide selection of famous musical themes from Bach to Carl Orff. Some of them were originally written for the piano. most have had their scores carefully arranged to make them easy to play on the piano. Each piece is followed with a jazz interpretation, which can either be played alone or alongside the 'original' version. Perhaps this will show that the 'classics' are not all that far removed from jazz, and that music of earlier periods contains many of the essential characteristics of jazz. Doesn't Lully's 'Gavotte', for instance, contain one of the most famous jazz themes ever? The 'Blue Gavotte' may make this clearer. The theme from Mozart's Sonata in A major (K 331) doesn't require many rhythmic changes to give it a blues flavour ('Mozart Goes Blues'). The driving rhythm of the ostinato bass in Carl Orff's 'O Fortuna' would suit modern jazz-rock performers well, with a few small changes ('A Fortune for a Tune'). What do Bizet's 'Habanera', Brahms' 'Hungarian Dance No. 5' and Paganini's 'Caprice No. 24' have in common? Why have they been turned into salsa music ('Habanera con Cigarro', 'Hungarian Salsa No. 5', 'Capriccio Latino')? Much of this is up to the individual: if you want to discover similarities, they are easy to find.

The books in this series present study guides for masterworks, beginning at the early intermediate level, that the editors believe developing pianists should study and perform. Each book contains 20 study guides to pieces selected from the four main style periods. Book 5 contains selections for advanced pianists. Titles: Prelude from English Suite No. 3 in G Minor, BWV 808 (Bach) * Sinfonia from Partita No. 2 in C Minor, BWV 826 (Bach) * Air and Variations (?The Harmonious Blacksmith?) (Handel) * Sonata in E Major, K.380; L.23 (Scarlatti) * Sonata in C Minor (?Pathétique?), Op.13 (Beethoven) * Sonata in C Major, Hob.XVI/50; L.60 (I) (Haydn) * Sonata in C Major, K.330 (I) (Mozart) * Intermezzo in A Major, Op.118, No.2 (Brahms) * Fantaisie-Impromptu, Op.66 (Chopin) * Consolation No. 3 in D-flat Major, S.172 (Liszt) * Prelude in C-sharp Minor, Op.3, No.2 (Rachmaninoff) * Impromptu in A-flat Major, Op.142, No.2, Posth.; D.935 (Schubert) * Aufschwung (Soaring), Op.12, No.2 (Schumann) Sonatina, Sz.55 I. (Bartók) * Ritual Fire Dance (De Falla) * Clair de lune (Debussy) * La fille aux cheveux de lin (The Girl with the Flaxen Hair) (Debussy) * Maple Leaf Rag (Joplin)