Advice on purchasing piano?

[chowy]

Hi

I am in the process of purchasing our first piano for my daughter ( who has started lessons 2 months ago. She is hoping to go through her grade exams soon.

I have contacted several retailers and all have different opinions of what I should buy.

One says buy the best you can afford and another suggests that I purchase a cheap one until (or if) she reaches grade 5 (5 years?) as there will be no benefit!

What concerns me re. the latter is that if she gets better then the piano will restrict her and we will need to change it later.

I must admit that I am no expert on pianos but have partially set a budget of around £3000.

I am thinking about purchasing a new Yamaha U1 (from reading reviews) but have been offered a 1989 Yamaha U3X for £3,100 which I have been told is a much better piano which has now been replaced by the Yamaha SU131S which retails at £9,000.

Any advice would be welcome.

Dave

[Axtremus]

I have seen enough students playing all the way through Grade 8 (assume ABRSM) learning on pianos like a U1 that I don't think you have to worry about a mid-level upright restricting your child's progress. If a new U1 exceeds your budget, a Kawai K-50 can be considered. If that's still too expensive, step down to a K-30 or K-25. There are other options, but I consider these pianos "safe bets" -- nothing fancy, but will get the job done.

A U3 is supposed to be a "bigger and better" piano than U1. But if you have to buy a used piano, consider getting a qualified independent piano technician (or experienced tuner) to examine the piano first before you buy (just like getting an independent mechanic to check out a used car before you buy, we do that over here in the US). You have to pay a small fee for the technician/tuner's service, but at least you will know that you will be buying a structurally and mechanically sound piano.

Good luck.

[bernhard]

You have three choices:

1.      Buy the best piano you can afford (this may mean between £ 5000 - £ 10000).
2.      Buy the best second hand piano you can afford (this may drop the price to around £ 2000 - £ 3000).
3.      Buy a top of the range digital piano (Yamaha, and Roland are two brands that come to mind). This will also get you in the region of £ 2000 - £ 3000.

[A discussion of these three options, plus a comparison of different brands will take volumes, so I will leave it for now. Axtremus advice is very good. Both U1 and U3 are good quality instruments. As he said, if you are new to all of this, make sure to take a knowledgeable person with you when you go to the shops – her teacher, if you cannot find a good piano technician. If you want to become knowledgeable, I suggest you read “The piano book” by Larry Fine – Brookside Press, which is baiscally a guide to buying and maintaining a piano]

Do not buy an inferior piano. I cannot even begin to tell you how misguided the piano retailer who suggested you start with an inferior piano is. I will give him the benefit of the doubt and assume he has good intentions and your interests at heart. On the other hand, if you follow his advice he will be selling two pianos: a piece of junk that no one really wants, and a good piano later on.

A bad piano will interfere with your daughter’s development of touch sensitivity and ear training. It is the beginner who is most in need of a high quality piano. The advanced student (who has been raised on good pianos) will be able to counter (to a certain extent) the shortcomings of a bad piano. But the beginner needs the best. A bad piano will restrict your daughter straight away.

If you are concerned with such a large investment and the possibility that your daughter may give up the piano after a couple of years, then consider the possibility of renting a piano. Some shops will rent you a brand new piano for a period of time (usually one year), giving you the option to buy the piano after the period of time ellapses, and the rental you paid goes towards the cost of the piano. This way you will have time to assess if it is worth to make the final investment.

I hope this helps.

Best wishes,
Bernhard.