While it's tempting to go out and buy a top-of-the-line keyboard or piano when you or you child signs up for piano, that's not necessarily the wisest move. When I say that, it's because of what I saw when I was furnishing the studio with keyboards several years ago. I, personally, like Craigslist for lightly used keyboards. The titles of the posts, however, were all the same:
"Keyboard for Sale! My Son (Or Daughter) Doesn't Want To Take Piano Lessons, Anymore!"
This poor seller is now stuck with a keyboard that cost $600-$1,500, and all it's doing is collecting dust. Don't let that be you.
When making a keyboard purchase, particularly for a beginning student, I wouldn't even recommend a full-sized keyboard. 61 Keys will suffice in the beginning, and they're easily resold in garage sales (and on Craigslist) when you're ready to upgrade or if your child loses interest. Also, they don't cost as much as their full-sized counterparts. Consider the 61-key a "test drive". It's a keyboard that will serve its purpose for long enough to determine if your child is going to stick with piano lessons. If so, again, a larger investment will be in order, but not until much later.
Contrary to popular belief, particularly for youngsters, the first month of piano is often concept training (how to locate keys on the piano, rhythm values, etc.). Even if a keyboard isn't immediately in the budget, or time doesn't permit us to go shopping immediately, most of us have smart phones and tablets. There's an app that I like called "Tiny Piano". It's exactly that; a tiny piano. However, it has all of the keys on it (you can only view one octave at a time, but that's okay), and is excellent for having your child point to and play C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. They can also do rhythm training on it.
Children who are enjoying piano classes will light up at Christmas-time (or a birthday, or any occasion) to see a keyboard that was procured just for them!
If you're interested in what kinds of keyboards are good for your individual needs, leave a comment. Have a blessed day!
"Keyboard for Sale! My Son (Or Daughter) Doesn't Want To Take Piano Lessons, Anymore!"
This poor seller is now stuck with a keyboard that cost $600-$1,500, and all it's doing is collecting dust. Don't let that be you.
When making a keyboard purchase, particularly for a beginning student, I wouldn't even recommend a full-sized keyboard. 61 Keys will suffice in the beginning, and they're easily resold in garage sales (and on Craigslist) when you're ready to upgrade or if your child loses interest. Also, they don't cost as much as their full-sized counterparts. Consider the 61-key a "test drive". It's a keyboard that will serve its purpose for long enough to determine if your child is going to stick with piano lessons. If so, again, a larger investment will be in order, but not until much later.
Contrary to popular belief, particularly for youngsters, the first month of piano is often concept training (how to locate keys on the piano, rhythm values, etc.). Even if a keyboard isn't immediately in the budget, or time doesn't permit us to go shopping immediately, most of us have smart phones and tablets. There's an app that I like called "Tiny Piano". It's exactly that; a tiny piano. However, it has all of the keys on it (you can only view one octave at a time, but that's okay), and is excellent for having your child point to and play C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. They can also do rhythm training on it.
Children who are enjoying piano classes will light up at Christmas-time (or a birthday, or any occasion) to see a keyboard that was procured just for them!
If you're interested in what kinds of keyboards are good for your individual needs, leave a comment. Have a blessed day!
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