73349 Posted December 12, 2013 Share Posted December 12, 2013 Okay, DS is probably going to try piano sometime in the next couple of years. The costs of local lessons are fairly easy to find, but I'm wondering... How much should we expect to spend on a new upright piano? How often do we need to get it tuned? What does that cost? Is once a week enough for lessons? How much do you spend on books each year? Are there any other costs? Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rachel Posted December 12, 2013 Share Posted December 12, 2013 I'm curious too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VeteranMom Posted December 12, 2013 Share Posted December 12, 2013 •How much should we expect to spend on a new upright piano?- When my kids started, we bought a used full sized keyboard. We didn't want to buy a piano if the kids weren't going to stick with it. After 3 years, we purchased a used piano from a well known dealer- it was formerly used in a school and was $350. •How often do we need to get it tuned? What does that cost?- Never had ours tuned, so I'm not sure. We're probably due to get ours tuned, •Is once a week enough for lessons?- Yes. Once a week half hour lesson. My kids practice an hour a day. •How much do you spend on books each year? I spend about $40-$50/yr/kid on books. •Are there any other costs? Extra costs have been piano competitions and guest teachers the regular teacher has brought in. Also, you might ask if there are any fees for recitals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanchy Posted December 12, 2013 Share Posted December 12, 2013 I do not know answer on your first question. We've got our piano for free. Tuning costs are about $125.00 (in our area). Because of the age of our piano (70 years) we have to do it twice a year. My son has piano lesson once a week (45 minutes). Daily practice is between 45 minutes and one hour. We pay $75.00 per month. Books are paid at the beginning of the school year. Price is usually about $.35.00 for all books he will need. We spend around $70.00 extra for different judging tuitions (Federation and National). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThatHomeschoolDad Posted December 12, 2013 Share Posted December 12, 2013 I would suspect tuning costs vary greatly be region. In NYC Metro NJ, I think we pay $150ish. We scored a great upright from a university sale - they were rotating out practice room uprights after not a whole lotta use. Maybe it's unique to that one school here, but maybe not, so worth checking around. Our full sized Young Chang Pramberger professional upright ran us about $4k from Seton Hall eight or so years ago, and it's an awesome instrument. Weekly lessons are plenty. DD switched to French Horn in 4th, but the piano still gets almost daily use. It's definitely a long term investment either way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ladydusk Posted December 12, 2013 Share Posted December 12, 2013 We bought our digital piano (weighted keys and sounds good) from Craigslist for about half its original price. There's no tuning. We have weekly lessons which is plenty. Books depend on your teacher's preference/style and how many "repetoire" pieces you work with (we like hymns and Christmas music) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
La Condessa Posted December 13, 2013 Share Posted December 13, 2013 Depending on where you live, it's not uncommon to find a piano on Craigslist free-for-the-moving. Probably not great pianos, but better than a less expensive keyboard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jennynd Posted December 13, 2013 Share Posted December 13, 2013 I have a digital, I think it was about 6k. My neighbor just start taking piano lesson from our violin teacher any the teacher helped her find a used Baldwin for 400. So, if you know someone teaching, you might find a deal easier Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted December 13, 2013 Share Posted December 13, 2013 We got ours from the church. It became unplayable because the felting was bad. (Many "free" pianos are really useless because you are training the ear and the hand--so if it can't be tuned correctly or played correctly anymore, then you are not going to be learning what you should.) Fortunately, the choir got too large for the choir room, so they ditched their baby grand and got an upright--and we got the baby grand. They will come get the other piano next week sometime. I thought they'd give it away, but because of the above, they are just going to destroy it. It seems wasteful to me, but that's the way it goes. The church pays for tuning. We pay $45 a lesson for a 45 min lesson. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcadia Posted December 13, 2013 Share Posted December 13, 2013 How much should we expect to spend on a new upright piano? about $4k upwards. I'll get a used piano for less than $1k as long as you have someone to help you assess. How often do we need to get it tuned? What does that cost? once after you have the piano moved to your home and once a year after that. It cost about $100 here Is once a week enough for lessons? yes. 30mins for practical and 15 to 30mins for theory How much do you spend on books each year? never calculated since we have plenty of music books Are there any other costs? recitals, competitions and exam fees if your child takes them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meriwether Posted December 13, 2013 Share Posted December 13, 2013 We bought our piano used, so I didn't price new ones. Books have been about $90. The set Dd10 is on now should take her at least to the 1 year mark. The boys are using the same books, so I only need additional theory books for them. It costs a gallon of gas each week, so that would be $150.00/year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G5052 Posted December 13, 2013 Share Posted December 13, 2013 Yes, I'd be wary of "free" pianos unless you can have it evaluated by someone who knows what they're doing. Our piano teacher will do this if it works with her schedule, and she says that only about 20% of the "free" pianos are worth it. Ideally you should have your piano tuned when you get it, and at least annually unless the tuner says otherwise. Ours gets very heavy use, and we have him come twice a year. He charges $100-200 depending on what he has to do. Our current teacher charges $20-40/lesson, and her cost for books (around $30). More advanced students beyond the primers borrow from her extensive library or print off what they want to work on online. One of mine is working through the Batman themes, and the kid before them is into Bill Joel. There are also festival and competition fees. The festivals are fun because you get evaluated and earn points towards awards, but you are competing against a standard at your level, not other students. There are various categories too. No regrets on piano. I'm glad we've kept at it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss Tick Posted December 13, 2013 Share Posted December 13, 2013 The local piano dealers here do a lot of piano RENTAL business. We went with that because quite a bit of the first two or three years'rental costs can be used toward purchasing. That way we can get a few years of study under our belts before making the purchase. It made sense for us in part because they are taking lessons because I think it is important, not sure to some independent interest on their part. I don't know if this is available elsewhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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