An instrument that sounds good and feels good creates pleasure while practicing, leading to more practice and faster progress! A well-tuned acoustic piano sends vibrations through the fingers, providing valuable feedback for learning; it also has a rich sound with complex overtones. Realistically, though, a beginning player may need to use an electronic keyboard (or digital piano) for a couple of years.
Here's what to look for, in order of importance:
- Piano action or weighted keys, to simulate the feel of an acoustic piano and for more expressive capability. The minimum I've seen these types is $400. If that's too expensive, the next best alternative is a "touch responsive" keyboard with at least 61 keys. "Touch response" means that if you strike the key harder, it plays louder or you touch it softly and it plays quietly. These run around $200 new. Check with Treasuretronics, 3916 North Bend Road, Cheviot for used or refurbished keyboards (513-518-1271); be sure to call for business hours. Treasuretronics
- Yamaha, Roland, Casio, Kawai, and Korg are trustworthy brands and will tend to have better-sounding products. Yamaha is consistently top-rated. If you go with an off-brand to save money there could be quality issues and the sound will probably not be as pleasant. That said, a higher-model Casio may be a better choice than a bottom-line Yamaha; read reviews when available.
- The top of your keys should sit 24" to 26" from the floor, if possible, but if you have to use a table be sure to use a higher seat. An adjustable metal stand is an option; be sure to get a heavy-duty "double-X" type if you buy the piano-action or weighted keyboard. If you can splurge for the stand that looks like a traditional piano case, great! But better to spend more on a quality instrument than a fancy stand.
- Get a sustain pedal that looks like the kind on an acoustic piano. The square, cheap ones are basically useless.
- Some type of user-friendly music stand is necessary, if the keyboard doesn't have one included.