The best instrument for you or your child is a regular acoustic piano. All pianos have 88 keys, and 3 pedals. A piano is touch-sensitive, meaning that you can play loud or soft by the way you touch the keys. If you plan on purchasing a keyboard or digital piano, click here for my recommended list.

All acoustic pianos are played the same way. For piano lessons, it does not matter whether you have a console piano (small upright), a full upright, a baby grand, or a concert grand. A used piano is fine, if it is in good condition (check with me to get in touch with a piano technician before you buy). Depending on care and climactic conditions, a piano will last from 60 to 100 years!

If you decide to buy a Portable Keyboard for the time being, the best brand is Yamaha, followed closely by Casio. Buy a keyboard stand, a sustain pedal (or damper pedal) attachment, and a bench at the same time.

Do not buy 49-key models, or less that full sized keys. Your Portable Keyboard should have at least 61 full-size keys. All but the smallest and cheapest models should accept a sustain pedal.

All Portable Keyboards come with a variety or sound effects. ignore these, and look for a good piano sound (Yamaha has the best). Don’t be too influenced by razzmatazz sound effects; we do not need them for piano lessons. The serious musician may occasionally use an organ sound or a harpsichord sound, but you certainly don’t need “hundreds of sound effects.” Many of them are so esoteric that most people rarely use them, so please don’t pay extra for them.

For a list of recommended keyboard’s and digital piano’s, click here. I have included some higher end keyboards which serve several purposes such as for recording and performing at live shows. These have a wide range of sounds. These are useful if you would like to get into recording and playing live shows that may require different sounds.

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