Faber vs Alfred vs Bastien: Which Beginner Piano Method Fits?

Parents and teachers usually arrive with the same search: Faber vs Alfred vs Bastien. Those three names cover most beginner piano method books, and they do not teach the same way. One path keeps the hand in a five-finger shape and brings in chords early. One moves around the keyboard sooner and leans on duets. One puts the theory beside the notes, and the newer Alfred course tries not to freeze the hand in one spot.

This guide is for piano teachers and for parents choosing a first real method, including homeschool families. It focuses on the level just after a primer. You will see how pace, reading, and early harmony differ, then a closer look at Bastien Piano Basics Piano Level 1. If you mainly want to know how fast each series moves, jump to the pacing chart.

If the student needs obvious pages and early left-hand chords, keep Bastien Piano Basics Piano Level 1 in mind while you read. Later sections show who is happier in Faber or Alfred.

Faber vs Alfred vs Bastien at a glance

Piano Adventures is the Faber series, not a fourth brand. "Alfred" may mean Premier, Basic, or the adult All-in-One.

Pace has its own chart below.

WunderKeys, Piano Safari, and Suzuki sit outside this core choice. WunderKeys and Piano Safari are in the pacing chart, and all three are summarized later.

What to compare before you buy

A method is a route through the first years, not a trophy. Choose it for reading speed, attention, and who sits beside the bench at home.

Pace. Teachers do not rank these books in one speed order. Many who have lined them up say Bastien, from the primer into Level 1, covers more ground than early Faber. A quick child can feel held back in Faber. A child who barely practices usually cannot keep up with Bastien. Faber spends longer on each idea. Premier is not the slow Alfred: some teachers use it to rebuild a rushed start, and others find it faster than Faber and add extra pieces for a young child. Basic stays inside each hand position longest.

Reading. Five-finger positions feel safe, and they can train the eye to memorize a hand shape instead of the staff. Faber generally leaves one position sooner. Bastien Level 1 and Alfred's Basic linger inside positions. That confidence helps unless the hand is asked to step outside the pattern. Teachers also see finger-number reading in Faber studios, not only in the position books. For learner-side tricks that help note names stick, see how to remember piano notes.

Sound. Bastien uses chords plus familiar tunes. Faber uses original writing and a duet. Teachers do not agree which is more fun to practice. Premier explains each idea beside the piece.

Who is teaching. Groups and homeschool parents need the next step printed on the page. A teacher who likes improvisation may prefer Faber. A student with holes from a rushed book may need more review, which can be Faber or a slower pass through Premier, not a rule that Premier is always gentle.

Bastien Piano Basics Level 1, up close

Bastien Piano Basics runs from a primer through Levels 1 to 4. About three keys appear in each level, so students meet all twelve keys by the end of Level 4. Level 1 is the main lesson book after any primer, not the first book.

Piano Level 1, catalog WP201, is for ages 7 to 10 after a primer. It opens in C position, then F and G positions. Students are not sent across the whole keyboard. They read, keep a pulse, and hear harmony inside a familiar hand shape.

WP201 lines up page by page with Level 1 Theory, Performance, and Technic. The lesson book alone works for a few weeks. The week is stronger with the correlated Theory page, a performance piece, and a short technic warm-up.

What is on the page

Illustrations are full color. The music mixes original Bastien pieces with folk, classical, pop, and contemporary styles. Families tend to recognize Floating Clouds, Fiesta, Swingin' Beat, Ode to Joy, and When the Saints Go Marching In. Pedal Study means the damper pedal is taught on purpose.

Teachers often note that the tunes feel like real songs and that the book does not linger the way early Faber does. Use that speed for a child who flew through a primer. Do not use it when home practice is thin. Near the end of Level 1, triads, the damper pedal, and eighth notes arrive close together. Plan an extra lesson there.

A week that studios actually repeat

1. Review last week's position, or the primer skill on the opening pages.
2. Teach the new reading point before you chase speed.
3. Learn a new rhythm hands separately, then together.
4. Add the Performance piece for that page for phrase shape, not for new theory.
5. Assign Technic and Theory for that same idea.

Parents get one list. A group can share a page. A homeschool parent who is not a pianist can still say "this position, this chord, this page."

For the first month, follow the book. Stay in C until the chord is audible. Do not skip to the third key because a child is excited. If the hand never leaves the five-finger shape, add a few measures just outside it before Level 2, and keep WP201 as the spine.

When it is the default, and when to add something

Choose Level 1 for one concept at a time, left-hand chords while pieces are still easy, and an order a group or a non-playing parent can follow. It is a weaker default when practice at home is thin.

Positions are a problem only if they become the only way the student can play. Teachers who have taught both often say Bastien and older Alfred park the hand, while Faber starts the same note on more than one finger. Borrow one duet if you want more improvisation. Do not switch series for a single gap. Some studios use Bastien's newer line, New Traditions, mainly for updated art. Piano Basics is the book to open when you want this chord-forward order. Cartoons are a split opinion: ignore them, or keep them. The sequence does not depend on the drawing. By later levels, some teachers feel I, IV, and V7 crowds out other textures. Supplement after Level 1. Do not skip the early chords.

Ready for the main lesson book? Ask your teacher or music store for Bastien Piano Basics Piano Level 1 (WP201). Add Theory, Performance, and Technic when you want the full correlated week; our store carries Bastien Piano Basics Technic, Level 1.

Faber Piano Adventures

Faber Piano Adventures, by Nancy and Randall Faber, is the series people mean by Piano Adventures. Lesson books use original music, optional teacher duets, and prompts for writing or improvisation. Students usually move around the keyboard earlier than in Bastien Level 1 or Alfred's Basic, including one starting note under different fingers. That is the best case for Faber if reading is stuck in one hand shape.

Studios that have taught both often find Faber lingers longer on each idea than Bastien. Careful readers benefit. Quick learners can stall unless you shorten the review. Many teachers and students like the pieces. Others are lukewarm on Level 1 and warmer later in the series, and a few prefer Premier's accompaniments. Familiar folk titles are thinner here. Faber's own pieces do the motivating, and for many children that is enough.

It shines when a student quit from boredom, when you will play the duets, and when you want creativity on the page. It is a weaker default if you need early left-hand chords, or a week a non-playing parent can run with little extra talk.

Alfred: Premier, Basic, and the adult book

"Alfred" is not one method. The wrong cover wastes a month.

Alfred Premier Piano Course is the newer children's method. It puts the hand in more than one place early, using landmark notes instead of a long stay in C position. Theory is written to line up with the lesson. Pace is disputed. Some teachers say it moves more slowly than Faber and use it after a rushed start. Others find it faster than Faber and add extra music for a young child. The pieces split the same way: some children like the accompaniments, and some teachers find fewer songs worth repeating than in Faber. Premier fits a student who needs the why on the page and who should not live in one hand shape.

Alfred's Basic Piano Library is the older course. It teaches intervals and stays in a hand position until the pattern sticks. Basic ties notes to fingers. Premier was built to undo that habit. The security helps, and it can delay movement, the same risk as a year of Bastien with no extra shifts. Some teachers use Basic for early intervals, then move on. People who call Alfred boring usually mean this older course, not Premier.

Alfred's Basic Adult All-in-One is a separate book for older beginners, in one volume. It is not Premier, and it is not for a child of 7 to 10. Some self-learners find it easier to follow than the Faber adult book and like the familiar tunes, even though the hand sits still early on. Some teachers prefer the Faber adult book because the hand moves sooner. Alfred says its adult course is designed for use with a piano instructor, while Faber suggests Adult Book 1 for independent learners with no prior lessons. Adults wondering whether it is too late to start can read can I learn piano at 50? Adults comparing Alfred's Adult All-in-One with Faber's and Bastien's adult courses can see our guide to piano method books for adult beginners.

Pacing chart: how fast each children's series moves

There's no official speed ranking, but teachers who compare the books often find Bastien Piano Basics covers the most ground per level and Faber Piano Adventures adds the most review per idea, while teachers disagree about Alfred Premier: some find it slower than Faber, others faster. Piano Safari often moves faster in rote playing than in reading, and WunderKeys is built for the youngest starters, from age 3.

Pacing comparison table

Pace depends on the child, the teacher and home practice. This chart reflects how teachers commonly describe the books, not a test. Ages are from each publisher's own website.

A note on fairness: we sell some of the books mentioned (marked "our store carries"), and we aren't affiliated with any of these publishers. That doesn't change how we describe them.

Not sure your child is ready for lessons? See what age to start piano lessons. Starting Bastien with a five- or six-year-old? Our store carries Bastien Piano for the Young Beginner, Primer A.

Roughly equivalent levels across series

Approximate. Based on Faber Piano Adventures' own correlation chart (May 2017); use it when switching series, not as a test. The chart places Piano Safari Level 1 alongside both the Faber Primer and Level 1.

How to tell if the pace is right for your child

• Practice feels doable on most days.
• A new idea is secure before the next one arrives.
• Your child isn't bored by the review.
• Reading keeps up with playing: they read the notes, not only the hand shape.

Each series rewards a different habit. Teachers who stay with Bastien often cite Theory, Performance, and Technic lined up with the lesson page. Faber pays off if you play the duets. Premier pays off if you do the discovery steps. For motivation, Faber often wins "I like this song," Bastien often wins "this sounds finished," and Alfred often wins "I understand the symbol."

Using Bastien? See every Bastien level in order.

Comparing adult courses? See our adult method books guide.

Which method fits your student

Bastien Piano Basics Level 1 fits a finished primer, a student about 7 to 10 (or an older beginner who still needs Level 1), obvious pages, and early chords, including a group or homeschool week. Skip it when practice at home is thin.

Faber fits duets, reading stuck in one position, or a child who found the last book dull. Shorten the review if they learn fast.

Alfred Premier fits landmark reading and theory on the page, not a promise of a slow book. Alfred's Basic fits interval drill in a stable position. Check the cover so you do not buy Adult All-in-One by mistake.

If the teaching parent does not play fluently, Bastien's printed order is easier to run than a week of duets or improvisation prompts. That is a practical fit, not a claim that every homeschool family prefers it. A parent who plays can make Faber duets feel shared. A parent who likes explaining will like Premier. Finish the level you chose. Switching every month hurts reading more than a slightly imperfect book.

If Bastien is the fit, start with Bastien Piano Basics Piano Level 1.

Other beginner paths, briefly

WunderKeys suits younger beginners who need stories and games. It is often too young, and too slow, for a child ready for WP201.

Piano Safari is what teachers describe when they want interval reading, a little rote work, and the whole keyboard, not a five-finger island. It asks more from the teacher than Bastien or Faber, and it is a weak week for a non-playing parent alone.

Suzuki is a different philosophy, not a missing column in this table. Listening and a parent in the room come before fluent reading. Transfer teachers often find reading is the gap when the books were used as rote only. Choose a Suzuki teacher on purpose. It is not a substitute for a note-reading method book.

After Level 1, not during it

Finish Level 1 before you collect extra books. Five-finger patterns are not full scales. When a student is early intermediate and needs all twelve major scales, use a scales book. That later step is covered in best piano scales books for intermediate students. Do not start a Level 1 child there.

Start the book that fits the student

Faber, Alfred, and Bastien can all raise good readers. They fail when the book fights the child: too much review, too many new ideas for the practice that happens, or too vague for the adult teaching the week. Faber when the music, the duet, and keyboard exploration come first. Alfred Premier when landmarks and on-page theory come first. Alfred's Basic when you want the classic position course and you have checked the cover. Bastien Piano Basics Level 1 when you want early chords, a clear order, and pages you can assign without rewriting them, for a student who will practice.

For that last path, order the main lesson book and add Theory, Performance, and Technic around it. Ask your teacher which edition to order.

Want a teacher to choose the series with you? Send a lesson request with your child's age and city. We pass it to independent teachers who may fit. Sending a request costs nothing. Teachers set their own rates, and you pay your teacher directly.