ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
PIANOMAGIC RESPONDS - Since I haven't seen or investigated
other courses available on the net, you are probably in a better position to
know the differences than I. All I promise is you'll understand how simple music
really is, and as a result, you'll be more likely to succeed and enjoy playing
your instrument! And finally, if you suspect I may be a "crook", you may be
overlooking that I have a web site, teach in 127 colleges and universities across
7 southern states in the USA, have sold thousands of books around the world,
and built this web site page by page - key stroke by key stroke. In my experience
"crooks" don't generally go to so much trouble. If you're not convinced or willing
to take the risk, please feel free to contact me and let me know how I can reassure
you! Otherwise, I wish you all the luck in the world to find what you seek (you'll
need it)! ***** Michael Anderson
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
I've done a couple of other courses and nothing comes as
close to the interaction and help you get with Mike.The first ever time I posted
a question on the Piano Forums, I got a personal A4 sized answer!! The time
he gives each and everyone of us is worth every penny I spent on this course.
I highly recommend it. Hey...he's no crook....if this is what crooks are like
than my front doors always open!!! Andy
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
This man Michael Anderson is DEFINITELY NOT a crook! He is a genuine person , who wants to help. His responses to all of my questions have been fast!!!Some within a few minutes!!!
I have tried a number of courses, with some success. The difference with PianoMagic, is the fact that you UNDERSTAND what you are doing, and can then apply that understanding to different tunes of your choice.I had a problem with adding the melody notes to the chords I was playing with my left hand. Michael made it so simple--INSTANTLY! I now know which notes to look for and which to overlook in any particular chord--all thanks to Michael Anderson. He is a great teacher and I would encourage you to start at the beginning with him. Progress WILL follow! LOGS
Enjoy!
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
in this course i learn something i can use. its easy and mike is like a friend. so helpful and nice.
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
I have been a Piano Magic member since February, 2003. Michael Anderson delivers to his members everything he promises - AND MORE!!! I took six years of piano lessons as a teenager and could never play anything besides written music. Now I'm learning to play by ear and loving every minute of it! I can't speak for other courses found on the net, but I have found this to be a truly unique and inspiring course, and I'm addicted for life!
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
I have been a member for 2 weeks. The cost of an annual membership is a complete joke. I received that much value within the first two days. Since then, I have received personal one - on - one instruction (tailored to me) which I estimate would have cost in the vicinity of $50-60 and we are just getting started!! If anything, the members are the crooks! If I had known how I was going to be treated and the actual value of a membership, I would have paid 10 times the price without batting an eye.
Tim Francis
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
The main difference with this course and all the other courses
is the interactivity. Mike is here (what seems like)24 hours a day to answer
all your questions...and I mean ALL YOUR QUESTIONS...with the patience of a
saint! If you want to play the piano really quick and have fun Fun FUN...this
is "THE PLACE"
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
I had just joined and within a couple of hours I was playing music like I never imagined.
Piano magic is different coz I believe its an honest job from a guy who wants to share this gift of music
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
What makes the difference is the instructor of this course. There are no promises made here that are not kept.
No crooks here also.
don g
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
Hi Mike
I have been away from PMMO for a number of months . I have just read your sustain info. If my analogy helps anyone--great! I think of it like taking a quick breath, just before each chord, so , like swimming, you take a breath, and blow out the bubbles under the water,(or in other words, the newly played chord)for as long as you play the chord. So, BREATH IN , PEDAL DOWN, NEW CHORD. PEDAL UP.... repeat!!!! Hope this helps?? Do let me know
Laurie.
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
You got that right. I took several other online courses before I found this site. Some were better than others but nothing compares with Piano Magic. NOTHING! Mike is here and does exactly what he says and more. I can't say enough good things about this site and the instructor and other members. Its amazing and one of a kind! Jim
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
Don't know what's different, as this is the only course I've ever done. More importantly, I feel it's the only course i'll ever need. It's not boring, you get a lot of fun and satisfaction from the word go, and Mike is endlessly and rapidly helpful with your own individual progress and problems.
Buffy (UK member)
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
Any reputable business has a way for potential customers to contact them. My home telephone number is posted on my sight.
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
I'd like to answer the last question first--Mike gives 110% to both Piano Magic and EACH member. He gives us personal help with the songs we are working on and encourages us to learn and have fun playing piano. In my estimation, Piano Magic is TOPS on the Net, maybe, partially, because I'm finally learning to play piano the way I want to play it. Of course, I also like the fact that WHAT Mike teaches is making me sound really good right from the beginning. I've been a member since Dec. 2003--only 2 months and loving it. To learn to play by ears means, to me, that I can learn to play any song I can hum or sing. That right there is a big savings on buying sheet music or books. Best part---IT IS SO MUCH FUN!!! Rusti Smith-Phoenix, AZ
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
Michael is the Musical Director in our church. He is
highly thought of and I can tell you that there has
never been a more honest and loved man than Michael
Anderson!.....Betty Gottberg...Marietta, Ga.
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
What makes it different? Michael Anderson is right here with us guiding all the way. No other course i've taken claimed the author would work with me and no other course has given me what they promised. Piano Magic is what I wanted all my life to find. The price is ridiculous - too low.
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
What makes it different? Michael Anderson is right here with us guiding all the way. No other course i've taken claimed the author would work with me and no other course has given me what they promised. Piano Magic is what I wanted all my life to find. The price is ridiculous - too low.
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
I have investigated several courses and found no other course that does not give you babblespeak about scales, keys, etc. This course begins with your playing music. I am impressed with the truth that we speak before we read. So why not play before we read?
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
I've not only seen courses on the net, I've paid for them! This course is truly THE COURSE! It is SO simple, so workable, so easy. My only problem was clearing out of my head my prior musical 'knowledge.' Who needs it!
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
Mike, my response doesn't show up on my computer, so I am retyping. If it has already gone through, I am sorry.
I would like to tell others that I have seen my Dad play any instrument he wanted by ear and he sounded so good, especially on the piano. I wanted to play like that, too, but I had never had a good ear for music. I took one of Mike's introduction courses through a local college, went home and played around on the piano for a few minutes, and knew I just had to take his course. It has been a good investment, well worth the time and money. I am now playing at church and at nursing homes and love it! If you want to learn how to play quickly and sound very professional, take Mike's course.
Pam Shedd
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
PMMO is for real. Mike Anderson, through PMMO, actually teaches you how to play 'by ear.' The main idea throughout PMMO is to learn how music 'thinks,' and Mike has has made it VERY simple to understand. Once you understand how music (any music except classical) 'thinks', you can apply the knowledge to whatever genre you enjoy. It's easy and Mike is always available to help.
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
OK, let's just cut to the chase here. Is this a scam? Are you just "lining the pockets" of the website owner when you buy a membership?
After more than a year here, I am now fully qualified to comment on the above. The answers are heck no.... and ha! ha! ha! ha!
Scams are things that don't produce what they appear to promise. This produces for the student, many times over what it promises. As for who's getting the bargain here, I can tell you that if I would have paid a monthly fee equal to the yearly membership, it would still be a bargain!!
You've heard it said that most things that sound "too good to be true" ... are ... well this is the exception. If you doubt it, just email Michael Anderson - he will answer you - and not with a form letter!
I am not being prompted or paid to say these things. The truth is the still the truth whether you believe it or not.
Tim Francis
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
If you want to play by ear, belive me, this IS the internet course to take. Don't go looking elsewhere or else you will regret it. In fact, for the last 3 years, I have taken 4 other internet courses that promise me I will be able to 'play by ear' but after finishing their courses, I still could not 'play by ear'. I finally came to this site. Piano Magic is definitely different (in nature and in approach) from the other courses. I joined in May 2005 and within these short months, I can ACTUALLY play many many songs by ear (can you guess how many? At least 50+ with no exaggeration) just sitting at the piano spontaneously playing the songs with beautiful melodic sounds using the Right Hand and professional harmonic sounds produced by the Left Hand accompaniment. Mike the instructor DOES keep to his promises. So how can he be a crook??!! He doesn't run away with your money as he is here online to make sure ALL his students to "get it", and true to his words, I am 'getting it' (Whew.... I almost thought I was a hopeless case). I am experiencing a LOT OF MIRACLES here in playing by ear. All the other courses did not make this miracle to happen. Do you know why? It's NOT just the course itself, but the INSTRUCTOR behind the course. Don't let this golden opportunity to pass you by. When you come in, you will see it for REAL. Rosa
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
Piano Magic is different because the beginner and advance course is written in simple to understand language, and there are audio/video samplings which show you step by step what to do. There is also much information to read from the forums. PMMO is a real site, with real people, who are not crooks. Sharon O. NYC
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
Try it and see for yourself. I'll bet if, after a week, you feel you were robbed, Mike will give you your money back and disconnect you.
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
Piano Magic comes with Michael Anderson, who not only founded this method of teaching piano, but who also is here with us, interacting with us, and showing and teaching us how "piano tricks" are done. Crooks? No crooks here. This course delivers the goods.
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
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ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
I'd tried four other online methods. The one thing that they fail to do that Mike Anderson and his Piano Magic does from the very first is to teach you how music "thinks." I'd been teaching myself for nearly three years (using those other methods) and, no kidding and no exaggeration, within four-hours of Piano Magic, I truly understood more of "why" I was doing what I was doing than ever before.
As for Mike Anderson being a crook? A man who spends two-hours talking to you on the phone (his expense) BEFORE you sign-up and then another two or three (also at his expense) helping you set up a midi-program is not the stuff of being a "crook." Piano Magic is a reflection of his passion for teaching, not making money. (I'm betting he does rather well playing the piano professionally.)
Randy V.
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
Just sign last week, I was not to sure if where the right thing to do spend $ 189.00 But now I now was the right decision I learn more in few hours here than in 2 months I went to a Music Institute and I pay more than $500.00 in 2 months... go for it is good come in!!! welcome!!!!
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
Well,
This is Popeye and I've been a member since Feb. 07. This is the only piano lessons I've had in better than 50 years. It will be the only course I'll have in the next fifty too. Mike's turned me into a piano player, just like he said he was gonna do if I could follow directions. I'll be extending my membership right on schedule and would do it if he doubled the fee.
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
Just a note to those of you who are 'considering' a PM membership. The primary reason you do not see a large number of "current" posts in this area is that most of us are totally busy having fun with PM and what it offers us as active members! Yeah, Mike is a cook, OK - he leads you to spend more time at the piano having fun and less time doing what you probably 'should' be doing!
PM does present to you the simplest and most direct 'connection' to understanding and playing piano music that I have seen anywhere. I have not actively enrolled in any other courses - but I have checked them all out and as far as I can tell, PM is in a league of its own.
So if you have a lot of chores and projects that fill your life - run fast and do NOT join!!
Balladeer
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
In ten months I`ve improved a lot and now can easily pick out melodies and creatively add chords to make "my"own music instead of playing another`s composition. In PM Mike says that we need not worry if the wrong note is played as we would quickly go on the the correct note.
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
I've tried a few net courses and they've all taken a somewhat different approach to teaching chord style piano. But there was no feedback... I never knew when I should move on or why things didn't sound as good as I wanted or even worse, when I was way off base and didn't really know it. I'm fairly new to Piano Magic but the difference is really clear. First, where before I was completely tied to sheet music (a few weeks without playing a song, I would be lost), I can now play a whole list of songs "by ear" -- and correct myself fluidly if I hit a glitch. Second, PM students regularly post recordings that the instructor and other students comment on in a friendly and constructive way. I've received advice on things I didn't even know I needed advice on! You learn a lot by listening to your fellow students and the responses to their postings. The PM group is very tolerant of the same questions being asked over and over. Third, the supportive community is a great resource. It is incredibly encouraging to listen to an experienced student play and also hear what he was like (and seeing the questions and frustrations that he was posting) just a year or so ago -- it provides a clear incentive to follow the plan.
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
As a newbie to this course (3rd week now) I had the same reservations. This course is real and Michael is not a crook. The intent is to teach us how to play by ear more than how to play piano, although that is covered too. If you want to learn how to discover the melody notes of songs you know but can't play then go for it. You won't be sorry, I'm not.
The course starts you out with songs that have a simple chord progression and you learn how to pick out the melody notes while playing that progression. The intent is to train your ears to hear how the music flows so that you can then allow your ears to guide you through the music. Once you can do that fairly easily with a repertoir of 25 or so songs. You can then begin to use more complex accompaniment styles to both the chords and the melodies. I am not at that level yet so some of the other students might descibe it. When you can do that then you can start learning more songs that have more complex chord progressions. Again I am not at that level. What I can say though is that in 2 and a half short weeks I can relatively easily pick out the melodies of 12 songs (without any written music.....ever) and I am adding to my list more easily all the time..songs I couldn't figure out before are coming more easily now. It works, its not complicated and it is fun.
ANSWER (by a Piano Magic Student):
As a newbie to this course (3rd week now) I had the same reservations. This course is real and Michael is not a crook. The intent is to teach us how to play by ear more than how to play piano, although that is covered too. If you want to learn how to discover the melody notes of songs you know but can't play then go for it. You won't be sorry, I'm not.
The course starts you out with songs that have a simple chord progression and you learn how to pick out the melody notes while playing that progression. The intent is to train your ears to hear how the music flows so that you can then allow your ears to guide you through the music. Once you can do that fairly easily with a repertoir of 25 or so songs. You can then begin to use more complex accompaniment styles to both the chords and the melodies. I am not at that level yet so some of the other students might descibe it. When you can do that then you can start learning more songs that have more complex chord progressions. Again I am not at that level. What I can say though is that in 2 and a half short weeks I can relatively easily pick out the melodies of 12 songs (without any written music.....ever) and I am adding to my list more easily all the time..songs I couldn't figure out before are coming more easily now. It works, its not complicated and it is fun.
Delerna