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KEYBOARD RECOMMENDATIONS
Keyboard recommendations for Beginners through advanced students of various ages (click on links to view item)
Alesis Recital – 88 Key Digital Piano Keyboard $236 (younger beginners age 6 to 8 )
Yamaha P45 Weighted Digital Piano $449 (age 10 thru adults: beginners thru advanced)
Donner DEP-10 Beginner Digital Piano 88 Key $299. (beginner age 8 thru adult)
Donner DEP-10 Beginner Digital Piano 88 key with furniture like stand: $399 ( beginner age 8 thru adult)
Roland Stage Piano RD-08 ages middle school and up. This is a quality durable stage piano for a more serious student who is limited on home space and wants the flexibility to easily move/transport the unit. Versus purchasing an upright conventional piano which is not portable, takes up space, and must be tuned yearly. Pricing starts around $1,000.
U Shaped Keyboard Stand (recommended) Amazon
Stand 1 $40
Stand 2 $ 89 collapsable
Z shaped Keyboard Stand Heavy Duty $50 by Amazon
These 5 features are desirable for a keyboard to have:
- Touch Sensitivity
- Weighted keys
- 76+ keys (including white and black)
- Full Size Keys
- Internal Speakers or an amplifier
Additional items you will need:
- Pedal traditional shaped (not square shaped)
- Keyboard Stand (medium/heavy duty) U pr Z Shaped (not "x" shaped)
- Adjustable bench or wooden cushioned bench
BRANDS:
- Alesis (younger beginners age 6 to 8 )
- Donner (younger to older beginners all ages) Donner used to be considered a cheap low quality brand, but over the years they have improved their quality. So, they are a good option for a less known brand name keyboard with competitive pricing.
- Yamaha (age 10 & up beginners thru advanced)
- Roland (age 13 & up beginners thru advanced)
- Kurzweil (teenage to adults: intermediate thru advanced)
- Casio Privia (middle school and older, beginners thru advanced)
TYPES:
- Keyboard (portable and lightweight) usually has internal speakers.
- Stage Piano (heavier weight, feels and responds more like a piano, usually do not have internal speakers so it may need an amplifier).
- Digital Piano (has a piano like wooden shell stand, feel, and response, 2 or 3 built in pedals, internal speakers, and comes with a matching bench)
- Clavinova Piano (similar to the Digital Piano but heavier. Furniture like.
PEDAL (Most Keyboards do not include a pedal)
Yamaha FC-5 Sustain Pedal for Portable Electronic Keyboards
Roland dp-10 Damper (sustain) Pedal
PIANO BENCH:
We recommend an adjustable piano bench to go with either a piano or keyboard. Adjustable benches are important because they "adjust" to the height of the student and piano/keyboard, provide stable even surface which provides for proper posture and position.
KEYBOARD STAND: Z shaped or U shaped. A heavy duty stand tends to keep the keyboard still while practicing and the U or Z shaped provide leg room.
WEBSITES TO SEARCH:
AREA MUSIC STORES:
PLAYGROUND MUSIC, Mary Esther, FL
LEITZ MUSIC, Panama City, and Fort Walton, Beach
GUITARS AND UKULELE
Yamaha JR1 FG Junior 3/4 Size Acoustic Guitar
If you are seeking a beginner's guitar for your child age 9 to around 12, we recommend the Yamaha FG JR-1 3/4 Size Acoustic Guitar. It is a smaller sized guitar with quality. This guitar will last longer, and have a good resale value when the student grows out of the instrument or you may pass it onto younger siblings. The cost is around $200. You can view this guitar on Amazon. We have one at the studio for you to look at and try.
This is a full size guitar for adults. You can view it on Amazon.
KALA MK-B MAKALA BARITONE UKULELE
This larger ukulele is great to begin learning on and enables the student to easily transition to guitar.
