Which instrument? What age?

[flossyfloo]

I would like my children to be able to play a musical instrument but not sure which is the best to start with and at what age. My eldest is 6 years old so just starting to think about this, hoping someone can give me some good advice please?

DD1 started piano at 7 and clarinet at 8.5 because she had to wait for her adult teeth to be solidly through.

Piano and violin are good for early starters.

Piano is what we were thinking of, do you think 6 is too young? We were also thinking of recorder

Dd is eight and just about to start piano lessons. She's been begging for over a year now but we were having work done in the house so nowhere for the piano to go.

DS 2 started piano at 6 because he wanted to. He has done very well. He started clarinet at 7.5 when he had his top front teeth.

Other DCs have started violin at 7 and trumpet/trombone at 8

They have to want to do the practice though.

Recorders are great, and the fingering leads on to most of the woodwind instruments later on

I don't necessarily think 6 is too young if your DCs are keen, but it's a big committment, with the practice etc, and lessons aren't cheap.

Thanks for the advice.

I have contacted the music service that runs at my DD's school and they have recommended piano as a good instrument to start on and will give her a short lesson every week for £4.67. I just need to check if the electronic piano we have in the loft from when my DH was a teenager is the right size for her to be able to practice on. Really hoping it is is, otherwise it may work out too expensive to hire/buy a piano so may need to reconsider.

We are going to keep recorder as an option in case she decides she wants to play woodwind at some point before she gets her adult front teeth but she seems keen on piano at the moment so gonna roll with it!

DD started guitar & recorder at 7, treble recorder at 8 and then piano at 9. She says the piano is so much easier that she wished she started that first.

Wow beanbagz, your DD must have a talent for music playing that many instruments already.

Well, it seems my DD can not have piano lessons with the peripatetic music service offered at the school as the school will not allow it until year 2 (my DD is year 1). This is a little frustrating as my DD is really keen and the lessons would have been during school time so need for me to have to take her somewhere after school. It is also quite cheap! I have spoken to the peripatetic piano teacher whose daughter is a 2nd year music student and is teaching piano. She would be happy to teach my DD but it means having to go to her home and will cost over double. I'm now unsure whether to wait until she can have them at school (September) or for her to have lessons with this person for now until Summer and then continue lessons in school???

*no need (really need to preview!)

My girls both started piano aged 6. They did lessons just for fun til 9 and then started their grade1 - one has done her grade 1 and wants to go back to doing it for fun, the other is on the way to grade 2..

We have a piano teacher who comes to our house. Lessons at our school, are 20min long and shared....

She really has suprised me too flossyfloo. I was never very musical, just a school choir singer and DH played flute to Grade 5. DD only took up guitar because the flute teacher told her she'd have to wait for her two adult top front teeth to come through.

She would really like to play the harp next but i've said that she has to wait until she goes to senior school. It will give me a chance to save for one and i'm praying she will get a music scholarship!