Choosing the Piano as Your Musical Instrument

If you are bound by cost or space issues, keep in mind that you do not have to have a grand piano in order to have a good quality piano. You never want to skimp on quality in any musical instrument; this is especially true with a piano. One musical instrument that instantly comes to mind when thinking of a solo instrument would be the piano. At least to my mind, however, playing the piano is becoming a lost art with children taking lessons at parents urging rather than a sincere desire to actually play this particular musical instrument.

When I was a little girl, I couldn't wait to learn the piano. If you are fortunate enough to have a child that is sincerely interested in learning to play the piano, you want to make sure you aren't selecting an inferior musical instrument for them to learn to play on. First of all you don't want to provide a beginner with a false sense of how the music should sound. Second you don't want to frustrate a beginner because everything, even when played perfectly, doesn't sound right. Finally, a substandard piano will simply feel wrong. The piano is a musical instrument that relies as heavily on touch as it does to an actual understanding of the music. There are three types of pianos in today's market: the vertical piano, the grand piano, and the digital piano.

One important thing about these musical instruments is that the sound is significantly impacted by size of the piano. There are three basic types of vertical pianos. The spinet, which is the smallest and lowest priced, the console piano, which is a little larger than a spinet, and the upright. An interesting note about the upright is that a good upright can provide a better sound than some small grand pianos. Next there are the grand pianos, which come in three basic sizes, baby grand, medium grand, and the concert grand. Each of these musical instruments produces a nice sound and would be a decent investment as far as pianos go. They typically are not financially or spatially practical as far as musical instruments go.

Finally, if your budget groans at the thought of a major musical instrument purchase, then perhaps you would be interested in a digital piano. These start at around $1000 and take up little space in your home, are easily transported, and allow you to imitate other musical instruments with all their bells and whistles. While they have a vastly different feel from a traditional piano and lack the acoustical qualities, they are still a wise investment for a beginning pianist. Ultimately you should choose whichever piano or any other musical instrument works best for your home and budget. It is important that you choose the piano that is right for your circumstances. You want to buy the best quality that you can afford and you don't want to buy a money pit. Unlike other musical instruments, used pianos aren't a wise investment unless you know pianos well. ...