what keyboard & recorder to buy?

[hollyh]

I have an almost 5 yo dd and want to start her with piano soon. Since I don't have room or $ for a full on piano, what keyboard recommendations do you have??

 

Also, I thought I would get a recorder as well... but have never played and was looking at options- alto, soprano, key of c, key of f - what am I supposed to buy?

 

Thanks!

[nansk]

I have absolutely no training in music, but my dd is taking piano lessons now. For practice at home, we got her a Yamaha PSR-E323 keyboard. It was recommended by a good friend who plays the keyboard.

 

For recorders, you may want to look at Penny Gardner's recorder book and recorders for sale on her web site. She has made some lessons available on youtube.

[jplain]

Recorder for yourself or your daughter? Soprano for a child, though it might be too big for her still, unless she has fairly large hands for her age. As an adult, unless you have very small hands you should be able to play an alto. However, if you're learning alongside your child, the fingering will be different, and you won't be able to play together unless you find music for soprano and alto. I'd suggest getting sopranos with Baroque fingering (not German fingering) for both of you.

 

Lots of people like the Peripole Angel Soprano Halo, which is the one recommended by Penny Gardner. They come in 1- and 2-piece models, and I believe Penny recommends the 2-piece. (I'm sure she'd respond if you emailed and asked.) For a little more money, I like the Yamaha 300 series. The Yamaha 20 series is cheaper, comes in pretty colors, and is easy to find in music stores, but resist it! I think the 300 series sounds *much* better. Amazon carries one of them: link.

 

Obviously both the Yamaha and the Halo are plastic. Plastic has its strengths and weaknesses. They tend to get clogged with moisture as you play them, but they are low maintenance and you can get a nice-sounding instrument for under $20. Wood recorders that sound good tend to be quite expensive, and they have to be played frequently (ideally daily) to keep the wood properly hydrated. If you can't bear to play a plastic instrument, or you decide you really like recorder and want to try a wooden instrument, Hohner Sopranos are decent-ish (far better than a Melissa & Doug) and cheap: pear wood and maple. Some prefer to find a wooden recorder with only single holes, as those are often easier for children to close when their hands are smaller. But they're hard to find, and the ones I've seen are at least double the cost of the Hohners. Oooh, just remembered that there used to be a decent, cheap Gill maple soprano. If cost is the same, I'd give the edge to the Gill over the Hohner.

 

Whatever you chose, you and your daughter should each have your own recorder. Ideally they should be identical, or they may sound discordant when played together.

 

Edited to add, I knew I'd posted to a recorder thread here before, but I didn't realize how long ago it was!

Anyone know about Recorders (the instrument)

You might find that thread helpful.

 

And as far as instruction for you and your child playing together, I'd recommend both Penny Gardner's book and the slim books sold by Oak Meadow. The Beginner (1st grade) book can be found here, and they also have Intermediate (2nd grade), Advanced (3rd grade), and Duet (4th grade) books. If you want materials aimed at the adult beginner, let me know and I'll go check my shelves.

Edited September 29, 2011 by jplain

[bbkaren]

Just got the $3.99 black Angel recorder from Amazon for my son's birthday, and tried it out last night.

 

Surprised at the quality of the thing for the price, and darned if it didn't sound a whole lot better than I remember from elementary school!

 

eta: It didn't occur to me that you might be looking for one for yourself; my suggestion is for your child - and yes, Key of C.

 

As for keyboards, Yamaha puts out a lot of really nice portable units, self-contained (don't need an amp or speakers, etc.). If you're just starting out, I don't really see the need to lay out the cash for weighted keys, but the full 88-key length should probably be a priority. I also don't have all that strong an opinion on synth-format keys vs. full-size piano keys, as I've played both for years and years nad have no problems. Although I would recommend against teeny-tiny miniature keys, yes.

Edited September 29, 2011 by bbkaren

[musicalpoodle]

I just wanted to comment that it is important to have a keyboard with full size keys, not the little dinky, smaller sized ones. Full-sized keys are more like a real piano. The smaller keys make it harder to play correctly.

[MaMa2005]

I just wanted to comment that it is important to have a keyboard with full size keys, not the little dinky, smaller sized ones. Full-sized keys are more like a real piano. The smaller keys make it harder to play correctly.

 

:iagree: Also, if you plan on this being a long term purchase, be sure to get a keyboard with weighted keys.

[Dmmetler]

ITA with the above recommendations. For a child, I would ALWAYS get a plastic/resonite (same thing, but sounds better in a catalog) recorder-wood ones are harder to clean and require more maintenance.

 

In general, Peripole angels are nearly impossible to overblow. This is great, in the lower range,but very, very frustrating in the upper. For Suzuki recorder, I like starting children on peripoles, but with the expectation that they'll need to change to a different recorder by the end of book 1 (which often takes a couple of years-book 1 Suzuki recorder isn't easy). Yamahas and Aulos both are solid throughout the range. I agree that the Yamaha 300 series sounds better than the 20 series, but for a child, the candy-colored Yamaha 20s often are a great place to start, and since they're translucent, it helps train good cleaning habits from the start.

 

Whatever you do, do NOT get a toy shop recorder. A lot of them are so badly out of tune to themselves as to be almost unplayable.

 

My favorite non-Suzuki recorder book is "Do it! Play Recorder". I also like a lot of the supplements from Plank Road Publishing, which are especially nice for co-ops because they're "buy once, use always" type books.

[jplain]

...but for a child, the candy-colored Yamaha 20s often are a great place to start, and since they're translucent, it helps train good cleaning habits from the start.

LOL, this is true.

My kids have candy-colored 300 series recorders.

Seeing them fog up grosses me out. :tongue_smilie: