Songs library
The repertoire is the curriculum. Lessons teach you the technique; the music teaches you the rest.
Two hundred and twenty-five pieces, all in the public domain, each with full notation, fingering charts, and a short historical note. The four books below progress from your first three notes through Telemann fantasias.
Each chapter is a progression in itself. If you’re browsing rather than working through the curriculum in order, the easiest entry points are Hot Cross Buns for the absolute beginner, Telemann TWV 40:102 for the intermediate, and Handel HWV 362 for the advanced.
The four books
- Book 1 · Beginning alto recorder
- Sixty pieces, grades 1–2. Twelve chapters from B·A·G through Renaissance dances. Folk songs and classical themes from a dozen traditions.
- Book 2 · Early intermediate
- Sixty pieces, grades 3–4. Fourteen chapters introducing the first Telemann, Handel, Bach, and Vivaldi alongside Playford dances and world folk.
- Book 3 · Late intermediate
- Fifty pieces, grades 5–6. Nine chapters working through complete Telemann sonatas, extended Handel and Vivaldi movements, Loeillet, and Van Eyck.
- Book 4 · Advanced
- Fifty-five pieces, grades 7–8 and beyond. Eight chapters of concert repertoire: Telemann fantasias, complete Handel sonatas, Bach masterworks, Vivaldi concerti, Ortiz recercadas.
The library at a glance
| Book | Pieces | Era | Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|
| Book 1 | 60 | Folk & classical | Grades 1–2 |
| Book 2 | 60 | Baroque & Renaissance | Grades 3–4 |
| Book 3 | 50 | Late Baroque | Grades 5–6 |
| Book 4 | 55 | Virtuoso Baroque | Grades 7–8+ |
| Total | 225+ | All public domain | — |
Cultural traditions
The library draws on twenty-five distinct musical cultures, balanced across the early books to give beginners a sense that the recorder belongs to no single nation.
- Western European
- English, Scottish, Irish, Welsh; French, German, Italian, Spanish; Dutch, Polish, Russian, Bulgarian; Danish, Swedish, Finnish, Norwegian.
- World
- Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Indian; Middle Eastern and Arabic; Latin American (Mexican, Cuban); African (multiple regions); Native American (multiple tribal traditions).
Pedagogical progression
- Book 1
- Three notes (B·A·G), then five, then a full octave.
- Book 2
- High E, F♯, B♭, accidentals. Baroque movements and world folk.
- Book 3
- Two-octave range, fast articulation, ornamentation, keys to three sharps and flats.
- Book 4
- Full chromatic range including altissimo. All keys. Virtuoso concert repertoire.