New Year Music and Musicians Thread

Trout agree about the digital piano. We have a Casio one, actually the same as my piano teacher has at home. There is some weighting, it sounds good through headphones and the pedals work, but if I was shopping for one now I would get a Yamaha. I'm sure your DD will love learning piano, good luck to her!
Icouldbe both my DSs like the sound of bassoon but luckily one has too many instruments already and the other has to get through grade 3 piano before I would even consider it! It is a lovely instrument, though - glad to hear your dog was ok with the sound!

This is ours: its good until grade 4

Troutsprout I'd echo what everyone else has said about keyboards/ digital pianos

Icouldbe one of DS2s current clarinet pieces is Swinging Shephed Blues which has Baa Baa Black Sheep worked in. It's a Grade 6 jazz clarinet piece, but has elicited much teasing from older sibs about beginner pieces!

Bassoon is lovely, vetoed here on grounds of no more room for big instruments!

DD has announced she might like to start trumpet in the autumn, which means we could dust down DS1 trumpet from the loft.

We have a P-105 which I think is the old version of the 115. Basically - it's fine. It's not an acoustic piano, or a Clavinova, but DD isn't going to be a concert pianist.

I find taking a musical teenager to a music shop a rather dangerous experience though . Last time we went, it was ostensibly to buy me a new guitar (I wanted DD to try it as she's got a better ear and more experience than me). DD just had to try a bunch of mid to high end acoustics and fell head over heels in love with a €1500 guitar. Could have been worse - I'm just grateful that she didn't take to the €3,000 Martin she tried .

If I took her piano shopping you can be sure that she wouldn't fall for a p series digital ...

Try gumtree and preloved also, you can find some second hand ones in really good condition. It doesn't have to only be Yamaha, Kawaii and Roland are also good makes.

DD had the first lesson since the exam and it felt so refreshing. Started a new piece and two technical exercises, one quite easy but sight reading material. Now she needs to get back into practising routine as she took a rather long break since the exam.

I also got the rather long list of repertoire to take her along to grade 5, I love all her teacher's suggestions.

troutsprout We got by with a very old (late 80s), very basic digital piano until DD got to the start of G3 when it just wasn't good enough and we got a quite posh new digital Yamaha on interest-free tick via some instruments for children scheme. The best analogy I can rustle up is that it is like being constrained to black+white or having a full range of colour available at your fingertips. We obviously can’t comment on your DD’s future commitment, but she’s not bullshitting about what a committed child will need.

I’ve never touched a Yamaha P115, but I’ve glanced at the specs. and on paper it ticks the important boxes. My DD will very likely be post G8 by the time she goes off to university and I’d put that one on a list of a credible contenders to go try out and send with her. I recommend that some of the scrutiny is done with a reasonable pair of headphones because digitals often sound their very best through those and that may be how they do a lot of the practice. It also helps cut out some of the cacophony you often get in those places and it’s much easier to freely mess about with and explore a piano when you know other people can't hear what you’re doing.

So helpful of you both.. Thanks so much
We live near Manchester so I might take her in one of the big music shops to get an feel of the the models and then shop around

If you shop around it doesn't need to cost a lot of money - I reckon it shouldn't be too hard to find a basic P series Yamaha secondhand and probably the pedal and stand too. The problem with the higher end digitals that look like a piano (wooden case etc) is that they take up more space. DD has the digital piano in her room, she would play it much less if it were in a family room. The only serious limitation is no damper pedal, but she can practise at the music school if she needs to.

We might get a more expensive digital when we move, but DD will be leaving school (and presumably home) in just over 2 years so it hardly seems worth it. She won't be taking a full size piano into student accommodation but she probably will take the Yamaha which is reasonably portable.

trout I agree with Misti! As soon as DD started piano lessons I realised why she needed at least a digital: the keys need to be weighted otherwise they'd struggle to build up finger muscle to play a piano.

A P Yamaha digital is good but by the time you buy the stand and pedals you'll end up paying a similar price to a higher end Yamaha digital that includes a stand and pedals. Amazon has a few digital Yamahas if you want to have a look.

Thanks Misti
Lol-She's trying to play grade 3 piano pieces on the keyboard
... Mmmm maybe I need to fork out then

trout short answer is "yes". Beyond the very simplest (pre-grade 1) classical piano, a keyboard is unsuitable. You should be able to pick up a basic Yamaha digital piano secondhand for not too much money. If you are buying a standalone digital piano (the sort that you put on a stand) then you'll need to buy a decent pedal too.

My DD still plays a basic Yamaha digital, she plays around grade 7 standard. It's not ideal, but it's not her first instrument and we are short of space.

This might be a daft question from a musical numbskull so bear with me..
Dd was having keyboard lessons at secondary school with peripatetic teacher as well as clarinet lessons (at music school). She's been playing clarinet for 6 years and keyboard for just over a year. Her clarinet teacher thought it would be a good idea and that it would help with music theory.
We have an old 61 key Yamaha keyboard at home which she plays .. A lot.
Recently the keyboard teacher switched her to piano in the lesson as dd told him she prefers classical music (bit of an odd thing to do? I dont know.. Maybe not!)
Anyway.. We have no piano at home and we can't fit one in and can't afford one.
However I could stretch to a cheaper end digital piano .. just about .
Is this a good idea?
Dd says she could do dynamics ( lol and something else I can't remember the name of) and it would have weighted keys blah blah blah >
She's seen a Yamaha digital piano (p115)
Is there any point / benefit doing this? Or( lol) is dd just wanting something new and shiny

Yesterday's repertoire included "hot cross buns", "when the saints come marching in" and "song of the Volga boatmen". Yes, there's a new instrument in the house and he's up to tune 42 in Abracadabra for Bassoon. His bid for it was that it would improve his bass clef reading. Yeah, right.

It's a lovely thing and the dog doesn't object to the sound so when DS has had enough of it I know where there's a teacher with a spare bassoon.

I'm certain that the largest part of her sight-reading improvements over the last year or two are because she's been increasingly finding bits of favourite pop music etc. to tackle

I'm sure that makes a big difference. My problem is that if DD wants a pop song piano accompaniment she just makes it up as she goes along! She home-recorded a cover version of that recent Adele song a couple of weeks ago - which might have been a good sight reading opportunity - except that she just improvised the piano part. She'd get top marks if ever required to improvise for an exam, or play a tune by ear!

miranda DD looked at the Rockschool guitar syllabus, mainly because it's so accessible (there's a very good app and you can download all the materials and accompaniments). Never gone any further though, because she could comfortably sight read the grade 4 pieces and she didnt really like the pieces from the higher grades (she can play rock guitar but is not primarily a rock guitarist). It is quite classic rock oriented, especially in the higher grades.

I will say though that the syllabus looks well constructed from a "rock" perspective, and there is an expectation that students will improvise and solo right from the early grades. You can check out the pieces on YouTube, and It doesn't cost much to download the app and one or two sample pieces.

Piqueaboo/raspberry: many congrats, your daughter, story is very motivating, I am learning to praise on effort too.

Icould: playing piano could be quite lonely at first when it's not one of an orchestra instruments!! We received the grade 4 book yesterday and I realised how harder sight reading is compare to G3, there isn't an escape

I also think orchestra/bands good for sight reading, although I appreciate this doesnt help with piano!

Congratulations on all those with results.

I knew Goo would get her Distinction Waffle.

Piqueaboo your DD sounds exactly like my 15 year old DD who has just passed Grade 8 sax with Merit. I was just so proud of her for conquering her nerves. For the first time she acknowledged that yes, she could have played better on the day , she plays better than that, but she did the exam and got through without a meltdown! And for those who say exams don't matter, she really, really wanted her Grade 8.

Ds has sightreading as his superpower; he's always done well in that section of the exam and he scored 20/20 in his last exam. His teacher practises it in the lesson by playing duets - DS hasn't seen the music before but there's no possibility of stopping or hesitating because teacher will keep on playing. I think the reason that DS is good at it is down to the volume of new music he sees. He plays in two bands, different music keeps on appearing on the stands and it has to be played NOW rather than being prepared for the following week.

It is easier with just the one stave though.

Does anyone know anything about Electric Guitar grades? DS has been learning the guitar for about 5 years; started with classical and when he was having lessons had got up to about Trinity Grade 4 standard (he was doing pieces and scales just never did any exams). In the past year he has got really into the electric guitar and practises a lot. He is having lessons now where they are mainly working on improvisations I think - I get shown what he's been doing a bit and get to hear lots of guitar playing in general .

Now that DD has done her flute exam I think he's a bit more interested in doing an exam - I know we should ask his guitar teacher but was wondering if anyone here had had experience of electric guitar grades? Have found RGT and Trinity Rock

DS is a very different sort of musician from me - much more instinctive whereas I am the sort to cling to the notated music

"it's a hard skill that takes a long time to become automatic."

Mmm.. I keep telling DD that the essence of sight-reading is recognising all the stuff she alreadys knows how to do without thinking too much. I'm certain that the largest part of her sight-reading improvements over the last year or two are because she's been increasingly finding bits of favourite pop music etc. to tackle. Experience is experience and that makes more of it happen.

"grade 6 must be a great satisfying achievement! "

Well DD looked pleased/satisfied for a little while, but I always struggle to know how deeply because she's such a modest child who doesn't reveal that much. She prefers to quietly blend in with her peers rather than stand out, so rarely makes much noise about achievements. She won't have told anyone at school unless they specifically asked and I bet her reply will have been "Oh I passed". If anyone went on to ask about the nature of that pass then she'll have confessed, but then spent a while explaining how it was simply luck of the day, luck with the sight-reading pieces, aural questions, the examiner etc.

School in terms of the staff e.g. the form-tutor who had to read and sign-off DD's absence to attend the exam, won't have asked how it went. I do wish those daily authority figures would show just a tiny bit of interest because I'm someone else who sorely misses what DD would have got from my mum, but it's yet another state school that can recognise anything unless it's a high academic achievement or one in an extra-curricular activity like this with a strong association with 'middle-class''.

"even just preparing and taking the exam is an achievement by itself."

Definitely. I've never been very religious about 'process praise' but in this scenario I pile everything into that. My praise/reward stuff always happens right after the exam before the result, although this time around she did get an additional little treat (she wanted yet another dystopian novel) for that result.

Mistigri: so it needs time isnt it, and lots of playing new pieces(not repeating it). Its quite hard for a very impatient mom like me, I have to learn it first.

Fleur: she has no shame, she is in real life is very naive, boyish( very active and always smile and most her friends are boys)

Green the comment on your Dd's maths book reminds me of one I have seen in my Dd's one at parents evening: teacher writing "are you sure?" (Probably to trigger explanation of the result as a response, as the result was correct) and she replied "yes I am"

Mistigri I know what you mean, DD can start a piece at any point now from memory. The way forward suggested by her teacher is assigning lesson time to sight reading exercises and easier pieces aside from also moving forward with harder pieces in order to progress technically. Hopefully it will work.

Greenleave : LOL ...but just wondering actually photographic memory should help her in sight reading, may be it is just that she is not trying. Good memory is actually a boon unless they become lazy.