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Recommended Intermediate Piano Keyboards for Practice and Performance
We are definitely living in a new day where full size piano keyboards are affordable to all. But lower cost keyboards are not the same quality. The new beginner keyboard models have been stripped of many of the standard features that for decades were present in all 88-key digital piano keyboards. They may be full…
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Recommended Full-Size Keyboards for Beginner Piano Practice
We have always said that having a piano or keyboard at home for students to practice is a key to their success with music lessons. For a long time, our first step was to recommend smaller keyboards. But that was when a 61-key piano keyboard cost $40 and the cheapest full 88-key piano keyboard was…
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Lower the Volume and Do More with Full-Size Electronic Drum Kits
When it comes to total cost, electronic drum kits are going to be similar in price to beginner acoustic drum kits. But, for the young musician, there are several key advantages to going the electronic route: 1. Electronic drum kits save space. This is true even when the electronic drum kit is fully set up. But,…
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Recommended Valve Oil for Brass Instruments (Trumpet, French Horn, Tuba, Euphonium, etc)
Oiling the valves on a brass instrument is very important to do regularly. The oil helps to keep the valves in good working condition. It also helps to keep them clean. When the valve is not oiled, it can cause several problems. The most immediate problem is that the valve will stick and make the…
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Electronic Drum Pads (a.k.a. Table-top Drum Kits): The Cheaper, Quieter, Space-Saving Alternative to the Full-Size Drum Kits
When it comes to drum practice, full-size drum kits can be expensive and take up a lot of space. On top of that, acoustic drum kits are loud and electronic drum kits require additional equipment (headphones or an amplifier) just to hear it. A more affordable and space-saving alternative for drum practice is an electronic…
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The Most Affordable Acoustic Drum Kits Worth Considering
Acoustic drum kits are a lot of things including loud, expensive, and big enough to fill a small room. However, if you have the space and the money and you (and the neighbors) don’t mind the noise, an acoustic drum kit is absolutely the best drumming experience both in terms of sound and ease of…
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Buying Used Musical Instruments
New musical instruments are shiny and cool, but most decent instruments can easily equal the cost of a month or two of mortgage. The good news is that there are many places to get quality used musical instruments at a steep discount. For keyboards, guitars, and drums, Guitar Center is a good place to start,…
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Best Glockenspiels for Beginner Home Practice
This year at Open School, Red and Silver Clusters are learning basic keyboard percussion, mostly on glockenspiels. And, Yellow Cluster is learning more advanced percussion on glockenspiels, xylophones, metallophones, bass bars, hand drums, and other percussion instruments. Students are not in any way required to have a mallet percussion instrument for home practice. However, students…
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The Basic Tools for Home Drum Practice
Though a full drum kit can be pricey, getting started practicing drums at home is a relatively inexpensive endeavor. There are really only two essentials: drum sticks and something to drum on. Below are some recommendations for drum sticks and a practice pad. However, if you want to be sure you are playing the correct…
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Recommended Soprano Ukuleles for Beginner Home Practice
As we are now beginning a new ukulele class after-school for the 2026-2027 school year, we have here some recommendations on ukuleles to purchase for home practice. In class, we are using soprano ukuleles, which are both the smallest size of the ukulele and the most commonly used ukuleles in Hawaii. Just as we have…
