Do you love music? Have you ever thought about making music of your own for yourself, or the enjoyment of other people?
This is the more detailed version of the article I submitted to Ezine Articles not too long ago;
What kind of keyboard should a starting or a novice piano player choose?
This is a common question among people who have become interested in music, and are looking for an instrument. Over the years, as technology has kept developing and evolving, the musical instruments have followed the evolution with fast pace. The electronic keyboards in specific have evolved into a lot more transportable instruments and the modern digital keyboards display the ability of self-sufficiency in terms of entertainment methods, due to the built-in rhythms, sounds and other features that have rendered the importance of full band far lesser.
Another question falls into the lap of the new-borne pianists; should I invest a great deal in my first digital keyboard? Inexperienced musicians could easily just purchase the best state-of-the-art keyboards in the market, but would this be a wise move? Would it not be worth researching just a bit more? Going down this path often leaves the new musicians with bad experiences, and they do not benefit from doing so any more than they would by purchasing the ideal musical keyboard. This article is something you should definitely read before going and buying one.
So just which would be the keyboard to best fit your requirements? What is the ideal keyboard for YOU to start with? In reality, that question can only be answered by you. What are your wishes? What do you expect from the instrument? In this article, I want to help you find out what would be the best choice for you to start out with. We will find the best keyboard to fit your personal wishes, needs and requirements.
"Help! I don't know what I want from a keyboard? What should I expect?"
What I personally did when I bought my Yamaha, was go online and look for artists that use Yamaha themselves. This proved to be a great decision as I found out several great artists that also like the make of piano. Some of these are James Blunt with Yamaha MP100, Elton John and Paul McCartney who play Yamaha Grand Pianos, and Alicia Keys who loves C6S and C7S. It's always nice to know you've made a good choice!
Well, coming to the actual question, it is actually a process which will require just a little bit of planning. Do not worry, it's nothing too overwhelming! There are many qualities about electric keyboards and they display these qualities in a versatile way. For example, is the sound clear? Does it sound like a television on one of those static channels? Is it portable enough for me to take it to a gig? (Assuming you would have gigs.)
These questions can be scribbled down on a piece of paper. What you should do after, is write down the features you would like the digital keyboard to have, such as a metronome, a drum machine, different sounds like strings, etc. The attributes vary greatly, but usually most keyboards share the same general attributes. The possibilities are numerous. Making a mind-map of all these qualities and features, the next thing on the to-do list is starting to think about your budget. How much can you afford to pay? A little hint: Do not expect to find anything near a good quality for under $150. The professional ones cost thousands, but we are not focusing on that now. Browse online for different makes and compare their prices. Do not forget your wish-list for the features and quality.
Let's summarise a little: Important things when choosing a digital keyboard -
- Features and attributes, e.g. strings, drum machine, etc.
- Quality of sound and the portability of the keyboard itself.
- Price and your budget.
Surely, if you have done any browsing on digital keyboards and electric pianos, you know that there are some highly renowned makes that control the market. Some of these are Yamaha, Roland and Korg. Like I mentioned above about my own experience, Yamaha, as well as the rest these makes are distinguishable brands and are favored by many popular artists.
To give a few more examples for you; Tuomas Holopainen, the keyboardist and songwriter of Nightwish uses Korg Karma, Oasys, Trinity and Triton. Yanni, the world-renowned Greek artist uses models of both Korg and Yamaha. Jervy Hou, a successful YouTube Pianist has used Yamaha and currently used Roland. A common practice for artists is to usually have several models, sometimes even several makes of pianos and keyboards for studio recording, Live concerts and as music workstations.
Like I mentioned earlier, you may feel like just going and buying the most expensive, professional keyboard there is, however it would be a rushed decision as a cheap, normal quality one works great for any novice or beginner. The difference will surface when you reach the point of expertise when you really know what a keyboard has to be like for your level. Music will talk to you via the keyboard. You will know when this happens.
Until then...
Greetings of a pianist,
Kiwi Falls
