Real notes from learners of Classics By Ear — Moonlight Sonata: the timeless classic made doable, clear next steps, and a finished piece that sounds sophisticated.
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“Another great course from Robin! I learned this piece very slowly over several months but finally made it to the end of the 69 bars today! Now looking forward to adding expression and playing it for my friends when I finally have them over next month. Thanks!”
“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.”
“Do I recommend this course? YES, highly. I sort of learned to play the piano as a child, if you know what I mean, and there were times when I tried to teach myself to play Moonlight Sonata. I never got past the first 2-3 lines. Decades later, here I am playing Moonlight Sonata in its entirety, all thanks to this wonderful course. I’d like to say it’s a miracle, but in reality, it was a combination of patience and practice on my part AND the use of Robin Hall’s amazing program.
The course is divided into lessons that present this complex (imho) piece of music in manageable sections. Robin offers a very thorough review of each section along with suggestions on how to remember the fingering, which is very helpful. It takes time to learn this piece of music. I practiced every day and only moved on to the next lesson when I felt comfortable with what I had learned so far. I feel that one of the most important things is to allow yourself to enjoy the process of learning each section and to not solely focus on the goal. In this way, you’ll have fun and you’ll keep progressing! Then, before you know it, one day, you too will be playing Moonlight Sonata all on your own.”
“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 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.”
“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.”
“This is great course! I never thought I could play this piece and understand it in such an easy to follow instruction. Excellent instructor!”
“Another excellent course and a piece of music that I have wanted to learn for a very long time. Robin’s skill in breaking each piece into manageable sections and his calm, patient and logical approach to teaching inspires confidence and makes learning an absolute joy.
I loved the Erik Satie and Bach courses and Moonlight Sonata is, in my mind, even better. I had tried learning piano on and off over the years with very limited success but am now building up a repertoire of beautiful pieces that I can play from memory every day. Thanks Robin 🙂”
“Robin Hall is a superb teacher. The programme and its accompanying resources are crystal clear and Robin’s presentation of memorable elements makes difficult passages accessible to the learner.”
“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.”
“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.”
“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.”
“I love the teaching technique, as it’s really easy to follow and each section is perfectly laid out to be able to learn it by ear. Highly recommended!!!
I’ve been playing guitar since I was 12 and performing to audiences since I was 13, so I need a way to learn the piano that will keep me engaged and this is it! I have already learnt Prelude in C and Prelude in Cm and they are the only two tunes I can play on piano. This will be my third!”
“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 :)”
“Excellent course. Especially appreciate the fingering notation and highlighting of the sharp notes. Labeling of the notes in general and videos of the bars being played are also very helpful.”
“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.”
“I’ve always wanted to learn this piece of beautiful music when I first it when I was young. This course is so easy to follow and with a lot of practise and determination I can now play it through memory. The ability to just sit down at a piano and play this give me so much pleasure. I’m so grateful to you for sharing this. Thank you”
“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.”
“Excellent way to learn, especially if you never learned to play the formal way. Breaking the piece down into bite sized chunks and learning one section until you have memorized it before learning the next. You’ll be surprised how quickly you can reach a reasonable standard of playing this piece.”
“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…”
“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.”
“Playing this piece has always been a dream for me; I cant believe I actually made it through this course. I can now play the entire first movement of Moonlight Sonata by memory.
Thank you, Mr. Robin Hall for your wonderful and effective teaching.”
“I just finished my course, Moonlight sonata… I am very happy. Robin Hall is an excellent teacher. I thought I wasn’t going to be able to learn the whole sonata, but I did. My husband and children are very surprised with the results. I feel very happy because playing the piano was my dream since I was a child and even though I am now an adult, I succeeded. I love classical music dearly. THANK YOU VERY MUCH PROFESSOR ROBIN HALL !!!!”
“An exceptional course!. I managed to finish the material in about 2 months and can now confidently play the whole movement without sheet music!”