Whoever pursues piano playing as a hobby mostly focusses on two things: playing from music, with as wide a range of works from classical, pop and jazz music as possible, and playing without the book, i. e. the ability to accompany melodies with chords, play songs by ear and improvise freely. In this volume, both topics are dealt with thoroughly and systematically. Whereas most piano methods prefer either classical or popular music, both kinds of music are well -balanced herein. Clearly structured chapters cover a variety of interesting topics: the Baroque, Classical and Romantic eras, popular piano styles (e. g. ragtime, boogie, rock 'n ' roll, pop ballad) , the blues and the genres ofopera, operetta and ballet.