Reasons Not to Buy: In short, the Level Three book of Keith Snell’s Scale Skills contains very little apart from standard exercises that many teachers incorporate into their curriculum independently (see below to see what the book presents).
Reasons to Buy: We’ve all had students who need a book and visual reference. If it’s not sitting in front of them, they forget and don’t do it. For a low cost, this book can keep those students on track with clear instructions and guidelines. Each page is dedicated to a major or minor key, all keys are covered, and students are encouraged to choose two keys (a major and its relative minor) per week to:
- play scales in one, two, and three octaves hands separately and together
- play the three inversions of the tonic chord
- play a basic chord progression of the primary chords for the key
- finish with a two-octave arpeggio
A checklist in the front of the book fills the “sticker/checkmark/date” need that we’ve all used to motivate students. On a side note, there’s material in the back of the book that will peak the curiosity of students who enjoys technical challenges (yes, these students exist). Two exercises based on Hanon might cause the student to inquire, “Can I see the real Hanon exercises? How many are there?” Four brief Aloys Schmitt (1788-1866) Op. 16 passages that are to be transposed into every key can lead into an exploration of IMSLP concerning the other exercises. Filling out the final pages of the book, there are also exercises in broken triads, major/augmented triads, and minor/diminished triads, as well as some other primary chord progressions, all to be transposed into every key. This back matter can be used for variety, or as a sort of “victory lap” after the student has spent enough time using the book as a daily technical regimen.
In Short: All of this material can be done by teacher and public domain alone, but for such a small price, this can be a wonderful tangible way to keep the student on track with rudimentary technique work.