Good-bye present for pianoteachers

[josef]

My teacher is leaving me  , she is moving in another country, so the chances are very high for me to never see her again . It was a very nice teacher/student relationship, she even played at my weddingceremony some goldbergvariations. So we have one last lesson , and I need a good-bye-present, but I have no idea . What could be a nice present for a female mid-twenty pianoteacher? Any suggestions?
Greetings, Josef

[ludwig]

Hi josef,

thats really sad, how long did you learn with her? I would say maybe something connected to music or piano...You could either get her something really practical or something that will remind her of you whenever she sees it. I personally love those little display pianos, or something crafty/artistic to do with music, busts, statues, to put next to/on the piano. Or you could get her some music (I know boring) but it could be something special and of sentimental value..Do you know if she has any special interests in a particular composer/piece/performer? Maybe a great CD boxset?

[shasta]

Get her a gift certificate to the best restaurant in town.  Dinner for 2.

My piano friends say they get so many piano/music knick-knacks from their students that they don't know what to do with them.

[RealPianist]

How about if you give dinner for both of you, and also give anything like ludwig said.
So you can do what shasta and ludwig suggest it.
I know it is very hard for you not to have lesson with her.
DOn't forget to ask her mail address, address in new country.
Don't forget to say sorry if you have made mistake before.
Dont forget to say thanks of everything she have give you up to this time.
n keep in touch...

[shasta]

How about if you give dinner for both of you, and also give anything like ludwig said.
So you can do what shasta and ludwig suggest it.

LMAO!  I didn't mean "dinner for 2" to include the student - - - I meant dinner for 2 for her and her significant other!!  Too funny!

[RealPianist]

sorry Shasta, misunderstanding...
lol....
but having dinner with the teacher is also a good idea, and we can talk about

ask her mail address, address in new country.
say sorry if you have made mistake before.
say thanks of everything she have give you up to this time.

[bernhard]

As a parting away gift for your teacher, an Imperial Bosendorfer would be difficult to top. 

Personally, of all the gifts that have been showered on me (apart from the Bose) the one I always liked the most was gift vouchers from our local music shop (or here in the UK they have book vouchers of a general nature that can be redeemed in any book/music shop in the country).

Busts of composers, and other pianobilia are best avoided, although she might appreciate a framed copy (or even original depending of how much you plan to spend – the Bose may turn to be cheaper) of an autograph manuscript of her favourite piece.

Best wishes,
Bernhard.

[thalberg]

You got a  Bose??  They must LOVE you!! 

Yes, I'm with  Bernhard.  No music knick-knacks.  Oh, I hate those.

Everyone's ideas about gift certificates are nice, but this is a GOODBYE gift, so that makes it different than Christmas or whatever else.  You want your teacher to remember you--to have something that will last.

So I say get her a non-music item--some nice formal candle holders or other tasteful home decorating thing.  Or something fun like a nice cookie jar.   With non-annoying items like these, she'll think of you positively whenever she looks at it. 
 

[ludwig]

awww, I would have liked something to have decorated by piano with =) I really like piano things. I love those swarowski music boxes in the shape of a piano, or little violins and clarinets made out of wood or metal :p Maybe you guys are just thinking to blokey presents?  ok, maybe not busts or the obvious music knickknacks

Yeah I think gift vouchers probably not such a good idea for a leaving gift. I would also say maybe jewellery or something for HER so she can remember you whenever she uses it...Or maybe add something to what she collects. Like something to add to her collection of 20th century telegraph poles? jk

Its just hard to say what to give her without knowing her, I guess its a very personal thing so I'm sure you'll find it, and it is the thought that counts

[m1469]

Well, I am on board with the non-musical items.  However, as Bernhard suggested, "a framed copy (or even original depending of how much you plan to spend)" of a favorite piece would be pretty great.

I personally like the idea of giving something that is not only non-musical, but personal.  Something you wouldn't get just anybody, but fits very specifically this person.  I thought about a gift for two years after I left one of my former teachers and delivered it when I knew it was the right thing.   

Of course, it is dependent on the nature of your relationship with your teacher, but the fact that she played in your wedding means to me that you have somewhat of a personal bond.

With that having been said  , I am actually always touched by things as simple as cards and flowers from them.  I am still at the stage where I am just thrilled that they thought of me at all.  One of the most unique, is a painting somebody is doing of me with their kids (at the piano).  Things that are hand made really strike me and have a very unique and warm feeling to them.

Of course, an Imperial Bose would do just fine as well 


m1469

[javier1234]

You may know some of her preferences so you must have an idea of the things she likes. In any case, have you considered a fountain pen? Montblanc has some beautiful ones (apart from those black models) and it's a present for a life!

Hope this helps!
Javier

[Astyron]

Excellent call on the fountain pen!  Rollar balls are nice as well, though the fountain pen really says something.  That would make a wonderful gift.  Make sure you give them some ink cartridges if you do that, or see that it has a convertor and a bottle of ink.  Check out levenger.com then click on the link "pen and ink" to see lots of neat fountain pens.  The Acme brand has lots of neat fountain pens priced below $100 US.  Levenger "True Writer" fountain pens are affordable,  and nice, though the ring-trim on the cap keeps coming off on mine.  Namiki fountain pens are really neat!!  The nib disappears inside the pen.  Waterman, as mentioned, has a nice range of fountain/roller ball pens to choose from at all price levels. I personally love the simple and elegant Visconti pens, but they are more costly.

In college, I gave a teacher a good-bye gift of a certificate to the opera house in Milwaukee to see a production of their choice (because I knew they liked operas).  It was well received though they've nothing to remind them of me, which is okay.  I was happy they had fun at the opera.

When I was in third grade and changed from my first piano teacher to work with a college professor who taught out of her house, I got the first teacher a (yes..I know...ick, yuck) knick-knack though it was artistic and not just stupid.  It was a 14" high sand castle I found at a Hallmark shop -- sand mixed with resin -- which had a verse on the bottom about dreams being possible, and a little hand written card from me that told her she helped my dreams come true.  Knick-knack, yes, but personal.   

Music teachers always have to watch the time so a nice watch engraved on the back would be something very memorable.  Watches don't have to be super expensive, and engraving doesn't cost much at all.  A famous quote about "time well spent" would be appropriate and fun. 

Some of my students who have moved to other states have given me a little photo album (4"x5" things you can find at any card shop) with a few pictures of them in it.  Inevitably, parents take pictures of their kids standing next to the music teacher at recitals or holidays and I almost always get those back with a personal note on the back.  I keep all of these in the various little photo albums I've gotten, and they all reside within my piano bench.   This is a very inexpensive thing to do but touched me.  I can go back and look at the photos.  I don't ever keep those photos in frames however.  I don't want one student to see a framed picture of another student and feel slighted in any way.

Hope this gives you a few ideas.

[josef]

Thanks to everybody for your numerous suggestions. I hope (for you) a lot of (maybe your) students read this thread……
Greetings, Josef

[thalberg]

Speaking of gifts....help me!!!  My great aunt just last night got me an ALARM CLOCK in the shape of a PIANO. How would any of you feel about this? What am I  supposed to do?  Use it, and wake up to a blaring piano every morning?

[jeremyjchilds]

Get her one of those fish that wiggles and sings elvis songs...

[Astyron]

One word:  Ebay

[Barbosa-piano]

 I saw last week a very nice present on the internet: A paper with the signatures of Josef Hofmann and Serge Rachmaninoff. The story said that a dad wanted to get signatures of famous people to save and give to her daughter as a great gift when she was older. Rachmaninoff wrote: To the baby with big blue eyes...! And Hofmann wrote down an excerpt of music. It was 300 Dollars... A great gift! And yes, fountain pens are great!

[prokomozart man]

Knick-knacks are out! Have you heard of those money cards you can purchase from your bank? They're like visa cards, and you can choose how much you put on it to give away, like $25, $50 etc., and this way your teacher can spend it on anything! There's a small fee for each card, I think.

[Tash]

a painting of something musicish by me!! haha well that's what i'm planning on giving my teacher when i leave her soon. should probably start painting it sometime soon...