Electronic or trad piano?

[dulwichgirl2]

My husband is more musically talented than I and he assures me that the modern electronic ones are fine. He prefers one so he can get back to his previous standard while wearing headphones and no one else hearing his trials! I gave up at grade six so I can play but have next to no real talent I am afraid.

Can anyone advise on (a) the best electronic one if we went that route and (b) a teacher for whom I could give my husband "vouchers" for christmas?

Many thanks

[Jah Lush]

The piano is really up to your other half but I can certainly advise you on lessons. Look now further than here: - SE22 Piano School

[Carrie]

When our "trad" piano could be tuned no more we bought a Roland digital piano which I can recommend - and would also second Jah's recommendation of Lorraine Liyanage - SE22 Piano school

[dulwichgirl2]

Thanks, Carrie and jan.

[Jeremy]

Yamaha and Roland are considered to be very good. The individual model depends on your budget, what features you need, and whether you have any aesthetic requirements.

You could get a basic ?500 job and it would probably be absolutely fine. A higher end one would give you nicer key action, more accurate samples, better speakers, wider selection of sounds (e.g. strings and orchestral as well as the basic piano1/piano2/harpsichord/etc), multi-track recording, and will probably look a bit more piano-like.

[Sue]

When my sister bought an electronic piano, she told me on no account to tell our old piano teacher, who would be horrified :))

[Otta]

I think electronic pianos have come on enough now that the action and sound will be pretty good even with a midrange model. You can pay a lot for aesthetics so it depends if you care whether it looks like a keyboard on a stand, or more like a wood piano.

[Jeremy]

In the real world, where we have fluctuating temperatures and humidity, and we don't have a professional piano tuner on hand whenever you want to play, a good digital piano can actually sound better than a conventional piano. Certainly if your budget is modest, the digital piano will be a better buy.

But practical purposes aside, an electronic keyboard will never have the soul (for want of a better word) of a real instrument. And a real piano looks a lot nicer in your lounge.

[dulwichgirl2]

Many thanks everyone. Jeremy I agree totally. The issue is my husband getting back up to speed...

[Salsaboy]

How about one of these:

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/31axyE4OycL._SL500_AA300_.jpg

[dulwichgirl2]

Now this is exactly what we need!

[Sue]

OMG is that a Barbie piano?

[Lozellen]

If money isn't a big problem Yamaha Silent pianos are great. They are fully functioning traditional pianos but when you put down a pedal, the hammers are stopped from striking the piano strings and sensors convert what you are playing into an electric sound so you can plug in headphones and hammer away. Thus best of both worlds - proper weight and action but ability to play without disturbing the neighbours at antisocial times.

[Sue]

Blimey, that's impressive!

[MusicoSouth]

Hi Dulwich Girl

I'd completely agree with Jeremy. In terms of practicality and functionality, a good quality (and Yamaha are pretty much the best) digital piano is hard to beat, esp with the headphones option. But if you have the budget, I'd always go for an acoustic for tone and feeling, and aesthetics (and many acoustics have the mute pedal for practice). If you do decide to buy acoustic, there's a great little shop on Kirkdale, Sydenham, called The Piano Store, which specialises in refurbishing old pianos and always has a good range with some lovely instruments from around ?500, and expert advice. Might be worth popping in for a browse before you decide. If you have the budget, another fantastic option would be a second-hand refurbished Yamaha acoustic U1, which have the most beautiful tone and action. J Reid in St Ann's Rd, Tottenham specialises in importing and refurbishing old Yamahas from Japan and they are wonderful instruments. Reid's is a massive piano warehouse with a room full of grand pianos, and friendly staff, so a fun trip out.

With regards the lessons, I run a Peckham-based music teaching service with some excellent local piano teachers who'd love to teach your husband. They're professionally qualified, experienced, and CRB checked. Most importantly, they're passionate about piano, and really love teaching, so I'd definitely have a teacher your husband would enjoy lessons with.

Lesson fees are ?25 for 45mins, ?30 for an hour and so on. We do vouchers for any number of lessons, and I can prepare an attractive voucher with a personal message from you. After the student receives the voucher, I'd have a detailed chat with him about his musical aspirations, interests, experience, and then recommend a teacher to match, who can do lessons at a time to suit him.

If this sounds good, do give me a call or an email - I'd love to hear from you.

Emma

musico south

0207 277 2759

[email protected]

[dulwichgirl2]

Lozellen, yes so I now gather. Amazing what technology can do, isn't it? Thank you for the info.

Emma, Thank you for all the ideas. I will look up your website.

Many thanks all.