Peter Deneff - Salsa Hanon (Music Instruction): 50 Essential Exercises for Latin Piano

P eter Deneff grew up in Long Beach, California listening to Greek and classical music and studying classical piano with Leaine Gibson. After starting his professional life playing in a Greek wedding band at age fifteen, he became obsessed with straight-ahead and Latin jazz. He began jazz studies with renowned pianist Mike Garson, where he crafted his art through studying some of the great jazz improvisers such as Charlie Parker, Bud Powell, and Chick Corea. During this time he also studied many ethnic styles that eventually led to the development of his classical and jazz compositional style as well as the formation of his Middle Eastern-Latin jazz group Excursion ( www.excursionjazz.com ). He also pursued undergraduate and graduate studies in classical composition and film scoring at California State University Long Beach under the direction of Dr. Justus Matthews, Dr. Martin Herman and Perry Lamarca. Peter has written several best-selling books for Hal Leonard Corporation including Blues Hanon, Guitar Hanon, Jazz Chord Hanon, Jazz Hanon, Rock Hanon, Salsa Hanon, Samba Hanon, and Stride Hanon. He has also composed and performed music for the Charles Sheen film, Five Aces. Deneff has performed at such varied venues as the Greek Theater, the Carpenter Performing Arts Center, the Playboy Jazz Festival, the Los Angeles Street Scene, the Orange County Street Fair, Universal Studios, the NAMM show, and the Baked Potato. His stylistic versatility has allowed him to play and/or sing with a diverse assortment of groups like Tierra, Ike Willis (singer with Frank Zappa), the Leslie Paula/Universal Studios Salsa Band, and Ebi, a notable Persian singer. Deneff also continues to play and record modern and folk Greek music for numerous events ( www.synthesimusic.com ) as well as an occasional Middle Eastern or jazz gig. Besides performing, Peter has also taught in many institutions such as Musicians Institute, Orange County High School of the Arts, and Cypress College, where he continues to teach classical and jazz piano. He spends most of his time in his studio producing projects for Yamaha Corporation ( Disklavier, Clavinova, Internet Direct Content ) and Hal Leonard Corporation ( PVG Play-Alongs, Instrumental Play-Alongs ).

Listening Guide

LATIN JAZZ

TITO PUENTE
MICHEL CAMILO
GONZALO RUBALCAVA
HILTON RUIZ
GIOVANNI HIDALGO
CARLOS PATATO VALDEZ
IRAKERE
PANCHO SANCHEZ
CHARLIE SEPULVEDA
ARTURO SANDUVAL
EDDIE PALMIERI
CLARE FISCHER
DANILO PEREZ

SALSA

CELIA CRUZ
OSCAR DELEON
RUBEN BLADES
MARK ANTHONY
LA INDIA

Single-Voice Montuno Exercises

Variations of the Single-Voice Montuno Exercises Using Syncopation

Octave Montuno Exercises Grouped in Threes