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Songbook Review: Where Giants Roam the Earth
Milana Zilnik
Cover image of the songbook Where Giants Roam the Earth by Milana Zilnik
Where Giants Roam the Earth
Milana Zilnik
2018 / Milana Zilnik and Artyom Tchebotaryov
103 pages / 14 songs
Review by Kathy Parsons
Where Giants Roam the Earth is the companion sheet music book for Milana Zilnik’s 2018 solo piano album by the same name. All fourteen pieces from the album are included, transcribed to match the recordings as closely as possible. The music is varied in style, mood, and genre and since much of the recording was improvised, the rhythms can be quite complicated. In other words, this is not an “easy piano” collection. I would recommend this book to pianists at an early-advanced playing level and higher.

The books are printed on a bright white paper stock and are available with spiral or “perfect” binding. Spacing is good and there are lots of dynamics and playing suggestions/instructions to help the pianist understand how to express the music in a way similar to how it was recorded. The front cover is an expanded version of the dramatic CD album cover, and the back cover has a lovely photo of Ms. Zilnik.

To quote my review of the recorded album: “Milana Zilnik’s Where Giants Roam the Earth tells the imaginary story of a year-long journey to The Land of the Giants. Milana’s versatility as a composer/pianist really shines in this collection of fourteen original piano solos that range from jazz to new age to rock and neo-classical. The colorful emotional expression that runs through the music goes from very dark to bright and spritely and everything in between as it tells the story of anticipating the journey, meeting the Giants, finding “The Piano A Big As a Tree,” seasonal changes, missing home, and more.”

The limited-edition books are available from Bandcamp and Amazon, and Milana will sign any copies purchased from Bandcamp. Some of the pieces are available individually from Sheet Music Plus.

The titles of the pieces, the keys they are in, and the number pages are:

Invitation to the Dream - Key of Eb (3 flats) - 4 pages
Where Giants Roam the Earth - Key of C minor (3 flats) - 8 pages
Summer Tale - Key of G (1 sharp) - 6 pages
The Piano As Big As a Tree - Key of A minor (0 sharps or flats)/ Bb (2 flats) - 10 pages
Hidden Inside - Key of F ( flat) - 9 pages
Autumn Tale - Key of G minor (2 flats) - 5 pages
Burning - Key of G minor - 7 pages
Haunted Waltz - Key of A minor (0 sharps or flats) - 8 pages
Winter Tale - Key of C (0 sharps or flats) - 8 pages
Walking Away - Key of D minor (1 flat) - 5 pages
Solitude - Key of C minor (3 flats) - 4 pages
Spring Tale - Key of F (1 flat) - 8 1/2 pages
Catching Up - Key of A minor - 8 pages
Coming Home - Key of D minor (1 flat) - 9 pages
October 6, 2018
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