 Most parents have already heard that their kids benefit from learning how to play a musical instrument for sharpening their mind. It also gives them a fun activity that is much better for their growth than video games, but it's often hard to choose which one makes the most sense for their child. In this article, we discuss the various instruments and what makes them the most popular and what makes them physically easy to play.
Our first consideration that we recommend for an instrument is the piano. The piano is not only physically one of the easiest instruments to play but it can also be very inexpensive to get started with a small electric keyboard to see if your child shows an interest in playing it. It's been suggested that the piano should be the first instrument taught. When a key is pressed on especially an electric piano, it produces an instant sound. This is unlike the guitar, which requires a bit of time to get the fingers to be able to push down the strings enough to get a full resonant sound. The voice or any wind instrument also requires a few lessons to be able to develop a sound which is good enough to be able to then focus on making melodies. Drums can also be a good starting instrument in this same way, but drums require a lot of coordination with the hands and feet to be able to make anything that would be considered a musical sound, whereas a piano student can sound good learning little melodies in the very first lesson. There are other reasons why the piano is a great beginning instrument. First, it's the only instrument that can play such a wide range of the musical scale. The piano is a great foundation for all other musical instruments. Also, the piano is considered to be a percussion instrument like it's relatives the vibraphone, xylophone, celeste and bells. Very young children can learn to play just the right hand or left hand only, until they are able to put their two hands together. With just a few months of piano lessons, all other instruments will be easier to learn. Pianos also allow the person to play multiple notes at a time (chords like the guitar), which means that a pianist can play chords with his left hand and melodies with his right hand and doesn't take a long time for a student to reach this level. If your child shows an interest in guitar lessons, if they have really tiny hands we recommend starting them on Ukulele. It's the relative of the guitar but is a little simpler to learn and can be bought for under 100.00 for a beginning Ukulele. Violin is very similar to the guitar in that it has strings on a fretboard and takes a bit of time to build up the coordination and strength in the hands as well as the coordination of the bow in the other hand. Voice in combination with a bit of piano can also be a great way to get a child started learning about making music. If your child is singing songs and can sing in tune then they can learn to be a vocalist. Voice training begins with developing the ear so that the student can hear a note and be able to sing in that specific pitch. If your child shows an interest in singing, it can be very fun for them to have a few voice lessons to help them to develop their voice and ability to hear songs and sing in tune. Here at Los Angeles Music Teachers, we have some amazing teachers who our students adore. Our motto is, if you don't absolutely LOVE your first music lesson, whatever the instrument you choose, you don't have to pay for it. We are very confident that you will love our teachers! They will help your child to appreciate the joy of making music. If you're interested in taking piano, guitar or singing lessons on Zoom or In Person in Burbank, Glendale or North Hollywood, we have some of the best piano, guitar and singing lessons in Los Angeles. Our instructors are picked by interviewing hundreds of drum instructors and we have really high standards on both their teaching ability as well as their personality. If you'd like to talk to one of our instructors or set up a first lesson we have a guarantee that if you don't absolutely love your first lesson you don't have to pay for it. Please contact us at (818)902-1233 or on our website at https://www.losangelesmusicteachers.com/contact-us-for-info.html  If you're just learning to hold a Cello, then you're probably wondering, "what is the proper way of holding a cello?" Well it is very simple and we are gonna tell you with 6 simple steps.
First: Sit in a chair with a firm base. Some cellists prefer sitting towards the front of the chair, with the left foot slightly forward. Second: Adjust the cello endpin so the body of the cello gently rests against your chest, and the cello is balanced between your knees. Third:Use the knees to firmly steady the cello, not to grip the instrument. Fourth: The neck and scroll of the cello should be to the left of your head, with the lowest tuning peg approximately the same height as your ear (this may vary depending on the instrument and cellist). Fifth: Slightly angle the cello to the right so you are able to bow on all of the strings without having to readjust the position of the cello between your knees. Sixth: Many cellists use endpin rests to help stop their endpin from sliding. Some of the devices used by cellists to secure their endpin include: round, rubber endpin holders (the round shape has earned the nickname "donut"), endpin straps, peg board sheets and carpet remnants If you're interested in taking Cello lessons on Zoom or In Person in Burbank, Glendale or North Hollywood, we have some of the best cello lessons in Los Angeles. Our cello instructors are picked by interviewing hundreds of music instructors and we have really high standards on both their teaching ability as well as their personality. If you'd like to talk to one of our instructors or set up a first lesson we have a guarantee that if you don't absolutely love your first lesson you don't have to pay for it. Please contact us at (818)902-1233 or on our website at https://www.losangelesmusicteachers.com/online-guitar-lessons-in-burbank-ca.html 5 Tips to Conquer Stage Fright
6/28/2022
 5 Tips to Conquer Stage Fright on Any Instrument
With proper training the added adrenaline and energy that accompanies stage fright can become an asset. The following tips will teach you how to overcome your stage fright on any instrument 1: Prepare For Your Lesson Many people have performance anxiety while working with their teachers; this can lead to underperforming in lessons. Most of us students can relate to saying or thinking, “I could play it right by myself! Why can’t I play it for you?” Here are some ways to prepare better for your lessons. Warm-up before your lesson. So this is obvious, but it took me until my senior year of college before I did it consistently. If it helps, think of your lesson as officially starting 30 minutes before you meet with your teacher. Then you can drive, or walk to the studio. Develop clear objectives with your teacher each week. It was always intimidating going to a lesson not knowing if my teacher would ask me to play a piece I hadn’t prepared. Instead, ask your teacher to brainstorm objectives with you for the next week of lessons, so that you know exactly what to expect. Perform your practice objective the day before lesson. At the very least perform the piece/objective for yourself, better yet perform in front of a camera or friend to increase the stakes. 2: Improve Memory If you are comfortable with your memory of the piece, you will feel less likely to fail, and that will decrease performance anxiety. One way to improve your memory, is to “chunk” your music into meaningful groups. Chunking in psychology is the process of organizing individual pieces of information into larger more meaningful groupings. For example, if I asked you to memorize the following items: Cat, dog, ferret, lemon, apple, cherry You would naturally chunk the information into the categories of “pets” and “fruit.” You would think: (Pets) – cat, dog, ferret (Fruits) – lemon, apple, cherry In music, you can chunk the scales and chords that you see. For example if you are learning the first movement of the Moonlight Sonata by Beethoven (below), you could chunk the whole first measure into the grouping of “C# minor chord.” 3: Creating Mental Checkpoints Another memorization practice that I follow is creating mental checkpoints in a piece. This keeps me from relying too heavily on muscle memory. To create checkpoints, place post-it notes at the beginning of the most important sections (example below). These are your checkpoints. I shoot for a check point every 10-30 seconds – more in the challenging sections. Now see if you can start right on each checkpoint without looking at the music. To take it a step further, start at one checkpoint, play for a bit, and then intentionally mess up. Then see if you can start at the next checkpoint without consulting your music. If you can, you will be much more likely to recover during a higher stakes performance. 4: Building Confidence with Practice Performances Avoidance may be subtle. Sometimes we avoid performances by procrastinating and not practicing my piece. Other times we avoid by becoming overly perfectionistic and detail-oriented (by becoming hyper detail-oriented, I can avoid performing the whole piece for myself). To get out of the negative loop, you can follow a plan to put yourself in increasingly challenging performance situations. For example:
You can also put yourself in performance situations by routinely practicing/jamming with musicians at a similar level to you, playing at churches, or playing at retirement communities and nursing homes. 5: A Pre-Performance Ritual Even if you are feeling crummy, anxious, or unmotivated at the beginning of the day, a pre-performance ritual can help you snap into the right mindset. Exercise – perhaps a short jog, to get blood flowing to my arm muscles and to my brain. And burn off some of the excess adrenaline. Piano Warm-Up – Scales, arpeggios, etc so that I am re-acquainted with the instrument. (I rarely play my pieces immediately before a performance, because I think it psyches me out). Meditation – This calms my nerves and refocusses the extra energy on the task at hand. I visualize/audiate the sounds and emotions I want to create. By the end of this routine, You will feel alert but relaxed. You're ready to perform! If you're interested in taking Music lessons on Zoom or In Person in Burbank, Glendale or North Hollywood, we have some of the best music lessons in Los Angeles. Our music instructors are picked by interviewing hundreds of music instructors and we have really high standards on both their teaching ability as well as their personality. If you'd like to talk to one of our instructors or set up a first lesson we have a guarantee that if you don't absolutely love your first lesson you don't have to pay for it. Please contact us at (818)902-1233 or on our website at https://www.losangelesmusicteachers.com/online-guitar-lessons-in-burbank-ca.html What Is An Octave 0n A Piano?
6/27/2022
 An Octave is one of the most fundamental principles that relates to how music is written, composed, and perceived. All music you hear on the radio or on TV uses octave relationships in the melodies and harmonies that it is composed of, and the concept of dividing the octave into 5ths, 4ths, 3rds and finally whole and half steps has been around for centuries. It's the basic of what we call the tonal system of western music. In this lesson, we will cover the basics of what you should know about how the Octave is used in music. However, to best talk about octaves, we should cover what pitches and intervals are first. What is Pitch? When we play a note on an instrument or sing a note, that produces a sound. We can define that sound by a few different criteria, like how loud it is, how long it is, and what the pitch is. Pitch is just another word for the frequency of a note, or how “low” or “high” the note is. All frequencies, have "overtones". The very first overtone above the fundamental (which is the basic note) is an Octave. The piano keyboard is also laid out in Octaves, i.e. if you look at the basic piano you will see a pattern of two black keys and 3 black keys. That pattern continues up and down the keyboard. That pattern is what is easily visual on the piano and divides up the various 8 octaves of the piano. If we hear a note that sounds like a baby’s cry, that would be a high-pitched note. On the other hand, a rumbling sound like thunder or train wheels would have a low pitch. A note sounds higher or lower than another if it has a higher pitch, or frequency, than the other note. What is an Interval? Now that we know what pitch is, we can discuss intervals. An interval occurs when two notes – notes with different pitches – are played at the same time, and the interval is the distance in pitch between the two notes. If two notes produce a really big interval when played together, then their pitches are really far apart, and if the interval between the notes is small, then they’re close together. There are many different names for all of the intervals. The smallest interval (shown on the right side of the picture above) is called a “semitone”, or “half step”. If you put two semitones together, you get a “tone”, or “whole step”. Other intervals are given numbers as names, such as a “third”, “sixth”, “eleventh”, and so on. This brings us to the octave. What is an Octave? An Octave is a very unique interval. It is the interval between two notes, in which one of the notes has a pitch that is exactly double the pitch of the other note. Pitch, as we said before, is another word for frequency, and we can define a note by giving its frequency as a number. So, say for example that we have a note with a frequency of 220 Hz. We can call it A (in fact, the note with that frequency is an A). If we want to produce another note that will create an octave interval with the A, we have to either double that number – 440 Hz – or cut that number in half – 110 Hz. Therefore, if we have two notes, one with a pitch of 220 Hz and the other with a pitch of 440 Hz, then those two notes create an octave: You can also have notes that are two or three octaves away from each other. For example, the note with a 110 Hz pitch and the note with a 440 Hz pitch are two octaves away, because you have to double 110 twice to get 440. We can then determine the octaves above 440 by doubling (880, 1720, etc.), and the octave below 110 by cutting it in half (55). Octaves are sometimes heard as basically the “same” note – like if a man and a woman are told to sing a “C”, they will most likely sing C’s an octave apart. However, it still sounds like they’re singing the same note, because they sound so similar. Summing Up To sum up, the octave is one of the most common and easily-identified intervals in music. Each instance of the same note (but different pitch) on a piano or guitar occurs as an octave, and each octave doubles the frequency of the one before it. If you're interested in taking Piano lessons on Zoom or In Person in Burbank, Glendale or North Hollywood, we have some of the best piano lessons in Los Angeles. Our piano instructors are picked by interviewing hundreds of drum instructors and we have really high standards on both their teaching ability as well as their personality. If you'd like to talk to one of our instructors or set up a first lesson we have a guarantee that if you don't absolutely love your first lesson you don't have to pay for it. Please contact us at (818)902-1233 or on our website at https://www.losangelesmusicteachers.com/online-piano-lessons-in-burbank-ca.html
Warmups keep your hands from Hurting
6/23/2022
 Guitar learners are curious about how to prevent their hands from hurting while playing on the guitar. Truth be told, the simplest and easiest way to achieve this feat is by warming up. As with most exercises, it is always important for people to warm up first before engaging in any strenuous activity which can go a long way in helping to prevent them from hurting themselves.
Warm-ups are essential for both novice and professional guitarists. Before doing anything on the guitar it is highly recommendable for players to perform a series of warmup exercises such as rehearsing, playing a gig or doing some recordings. Just so you know, many muscles, tendons, and bones are responsible for finger movements. This is why it is essential for guitarists to perform some warmup exercises before they even start flailing them around recklessly. Here are two important things you need to know about these preparatory exercises. They help to prevent injuries Ultimately, warming up can be every efficient in helping to improve your playing skills and technique. However, it is also important to note that these little exercises can go a long way in helping to prevent injuries from occurring. Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and tendonitis are some common problems that can occur as a result of not warming up before play. Just so you know, that are many guitarists that have been forced to retire from playing the guitar due to problems of this sort. This is why warming up before playing is important as it goes a very long way to help to prevent body injuries. Parting shot Warming up should be regarded more like a precautionary exercise than an optional thing. There is no better way to avoid those nightmare experiences associated with hurting hands than this. Now that you know how warmups can keep your hands from hurting on guitar, it is imperative to ensure that you make these activities a norm. Don’t just grab your guitar and let rip without taking the time to do some warming up exercises. Medically speaking, it is advisable to observe some finger stretching routines before setting out to play the guitar. There is no need to cut your guitar playing dreams short due to your inability to perform proper warm up routines before playing which has finally messed up your hands. In fact, doing so doesn’t even make any sense. The main aim of engaging in warmup routines is to awaken all the necessary ligaments, tendons, and muscles needed for playing the guitar. This can go a long way in preparing the hand and even the mind for the vigorous playing demands you are about to engage in. If you're interested in taking lessons on Zoom or In Person in Burbank, Glendale or North Hollywood, please contact us at (818)902-1233 or on our website at https://www.losangelesmusicteachers.com/online-guitar-lessons-in-burbank-ca.html How Do You Tune A Violin?
6/21/2022
 How Do You Tune A Violin? Tuning your violin with precision is not necessarily an easy task, especially for beginners. This is however essential to play, alone, in rehearsal, or within an orchestra to be in harmony with the other instruments, or simply to take advantage of the unique sound aesthetic offered by these instruments. Although it seems difficult to tune a violin, it is a task that is acquired over the course of learning with practice. Here are some tips and suggestions for tuning your violin or viola. Chromatic tuners The chromatic tuner is usually equipped with a clip that allows it to be firmly attached to the violin neck so that they can correctly pick up the vibrations of the instrument. It works thanks to a battery which allows feeding the screen where appears the frequency of the rope to be regulated. It is, therefore, possible with this type of tool, to tune its instrument very precisely in relation to the frequency of the desired note (we will detail the frequencies of each note a little further). The tuning fork The tuning fork is a small metal tool with two U-shaped branches. By striking it, it emits a vibration that can be amplified if it is placed on a sound box (on the violin table for example). It gives a virtually pure note, usually a La whose frequency is 440 Hz, used as a reference to tune its instrument. Unlike the chromatic tuner that does not require much effort, the tuning fork requires a minimum of training and a good ear. This is the method most used by violinists. Smartphone applications Many smartphones applications to tune guitar, violin or viola are available for download, some paid and some free. They work on the same principle as a conventional electronic tuner thanks to the microphone of the phone. They are very practical because we usually always have a smartphone in the pocket or in our bag. However, an electronic tuner like those mentioned above will still be more accurate and efficient than an application for smartphones. The tuning notes of a violin The Names of, the Violin Strings On the violin, there are four strings. Starting with the thickest string, they are called G, D, A, and E. An easy way to remember this is to use the mnemonic device below: • G = Good; D = Dogs; A = Always; E = Eat. Good dogs always eat! Finally, a tip that will be especially useful for you not to break your strings: turn the ankles gently and never stretch the strings more than a tone above the desired note. Otherwise, your set of strings may not hold you for a long time and you may also damage your instrument by putting too much strain on it. In this regard, it is best to change the strings one after the other to avoid too large differences on the handle. f you're interested in taking Violin lessons on Zoom or In Person in Burbank, Glendale or North Hollywood, we have some of the best Violin lessons in Los Angeles. Our violin instructors are picked by interviewing hundreds of violin instructors and we have really high standards on both their teaching ability as well as their personality. If you'd like to talk to one of our instructors or set up a first lesson we have a guarantee that if you don't absolutely love your first lesson you don't have to pay for it. Please contact us at (818)902-1233 or on our website at https://www.losangelesmusicteachers.com/online-violin-lessons-in-burbank-ca.html
  Drumming With Eighth Note Rock Beats and How to Read It is easy to argue that the most important skill a rock drummer must have is to play grooves. There is also no argument that the most common grooves in rock are eighth note based. Therefore, if you want to be a rock drummer, and you’re just getting started, learn this lesson sheet. Here’s what the notation means. The top line, with the “X” noteheads represents the hi hat or ride cymbal, played with your right hand (we’re assuming you are right handed). The second space from the top represents the snare drum, played with your left hand. Finally, the bottom space on the staff represents the bass drum, played with your right foot on the bass drum pedal. Any of the examples on the sheet can be counted correctly by saying “one and two and three and four and” sequentially while you play each of the eight notes in each example. In other words, when you play the first note in example #1, say “one,” and then say “and” when you play the second note and then say “two” when you play the third note and so on and so forth. “Muscle through” these patterns very slowly at first by just literally doing what the notation says to do. For example, with beat #1, which is the beat in the upper most left hand corner of the sheet as pictured, if you simply do the following, you will be playing the beat: 1) play the hi hat with your right hand and the bass drum with your right foot simultaneously. (say “one” out loud while you do this) 2) play the hi hat with your right hand. (say “and”) 3) play the hi hat with your right hand and the snare drum with your left hand simultaneously. (say “two”) 4) play the hi hat with your right hand. (say “and”) 5) repeat the previous steps but substitute the words “three” “and” “four” “and” for each step in sequence. (“one” becomes “three”; “and” remains “and”; “two” becomes “four”; and “and” remains “and”) 6) repeat the above over and over, and space the notes evenly, and you’ll be playing the beat. start very slowly and practice the pattern until it becomes easy to play. then you can gradually speed up. 7) use this same process for all the beats on the page the music sheet You will need to go deeper than this, but for a complete beginner, this is a really good way to get started. Try this and if you have any questions about how to work through it, feel free to to ask us with the links below. Or if you're ready to take drum lessons contact us about finding a drum instructor near you! If you're interested in taking Drum lessons on Zoom or In Person in Burbank, Glendale or North Hollywood, we have some of the best drum lessons in Los Angeles. Our drum instructors are picked by interviewing hundreds of drum teachers and we have really high standards on both their teaching ability as well as their personality. If you'd like to talk to one of our instructors or set up a first lesson we have a guarantee that if you don't absolutely love your first lesson you don't have to pay for it. Please contact us at (818)902-1233 or on our website at https://www.losangelesmusicteachers.com/online-drum-lessons-in-burbank-ca.html
 There are lots of fun to enjoy in music and learning to play the guitar is no exception. Unarguably, practicing this stringed instrument can be quite interesting but it can also be tough. To some degree, there are some guitar issues to be encountered of which pain is one of them. Nevertheless, it is good to know that there is a way out of this. Here is how to prevent your fingers from hurting while playing the guitar. Practice with a decent guitar When practicing to play the guitar, it is important for learners to know how to properly set up the instrument with low action. If you don’t know how to do this, go along with the instrument to a real music store to ask for assistance. A decent guitar is one that is properly set up to produce the right sounds with little efforts. Strung up your guitar with the right strings Using the right set of strings is obviously one of the easiest ways to get started. While the electric guitar requires .08 set of strings, acoustic guitars work best with .010 strings. As a learner, you may not know which set of strings is appropriate for use on your instrument. However, you can get the right settings done by visiting a real music store to get the professional assistance you need to string up your guitar. To achieve the best, learners should ensure to make it easy on themselves. However, there is no need to shy away from pain – besides, no pain… no gain. Engage in music lessons with a professional guide Having someone (preferably an expert) guide you through music lessons can be highly profitable when it comes to learning the guitar. Learning to play well will require you to adopt certain techniques recommended by experts to ensure an effective play session. Interestingly, you can get all the fundamentals covered at this time. You can effectively learn how to prevent your fingers from hurting while playing the guitar when you adopt an organized and focused practice session with a professional guitarist. Simply put, you need someone who can guide you and guide you well. Practice softly For the safety of your fingertips, soft practices are recommended. To do this, you don’t need to squeeze down when fingering a chord. All you need to do is to lay your fingers on the strings then do some back and forth movements but don’t press down. This can basically help to improve your solo, riff, and scale practices. Play for shorter periods You can improve your fingering skills by avoiding long-term practices and playing less long stretches within your time allotment. Learn with fun To avoid hurting your fingers while playing, there is no need to practice as if you are in a competition. Take some time to relax and ensure to have some fun while you practice. If you're interested in taking Guitar lessons on Zoom or In Person in Burbank, Glendale or North Hollywood, we have some of the best Guitar lessons in Los Angeles. Our guitar instructors are picked by interviewing hundreds of guitar instructors and we have really high standards on both their teaching ability as well as their personality. If you'd like to talk to one of our instructors or set up a first lesson we have a guarantee that if you don't absolutely love your first lesson you don't have to pay for it. Please contact us at (818)902-1233 or on our website at https://www.losangelesmusicteachers.com/online-guitar-lessons-in-burbank-ca.html
 Choosing A Private Music Teacher For Yourself Or Your Children Of course, music has been food for the soul since day one. No one can contest that. Music inspires people. You must have observed that successful musicians are often objects of hero worship. Musical artistes are nothing but idols. It is because of the power in music. Although many artists have natural talents in music, they still have to develop it through music lessons. Right now, there are musical institutes and music is studied in several colleges and universities. One good benefit of musical schools is learning how to play musical instruments. While you can acquire musical knowledge from YouTube or other similar platforms, you can’t compare any of them to hiring a highly experienced music teacher. One reason for this is that a teacher will tailor your lessons towards your unique deficiencies but what you’ll learn on the internet is general knowledge. Apart from going to a music school, you could also enroll for private lessons. If hiring a private music teacher seems like the best option for you or your children, remember that music teachers have different levels of experience and expertise. Besides, having a particular skill is different from being able to transfer the skill to another person. So, don’t just hire any music teacher that you come across first. Here are some important factors to consider. Interview several prospects before hiring one Scrutinize several prospective teachers before choosing one. Find out about their qualifications, experience, and areas of expertise. Teaching children requires different skills from teaching adults. So, if you’re hiring a teacher for your children, you should hire the one that has experience in teaching children. Let your child select the teacher that he or she is comfortable with. Also, you may also try to find out about the music teacher’s teaching techniques too. The learner should take trial lessons A good way to assess a musical teacher is to take his trial lesson. This will help you determine if the teaching technique is suitable for you. A technique that worked for your friend may not work for you. This is why you need to take trial lessons. If the lesson is for your kid, let him/her take the lesson, but you need to be there too. Evaluate each trial lesson Since you may have to take trial lessons from several teachers before you select one. You need to evaluate the lessons from both the learner’s perspective and the teacher’s angle. If your kid is the learner, ask him if he enjoyed the lesson. If not, find out why he didn’t enjoy it. Also ask him for the teacher whose trial lesson is the best. You also need to seek the teacher’s assessment of the learner. Was (s)he attentive? Was (s)he eager to learn? This will help you to make a balanced judgment. Conclusively, you can start your search on Google. A simple Google search will bring up the contacts of several music teachers within your location. The benefit is worth the search. If you're interested in taking lessons on Zoom or In Person in Burbank, Glendale or North Hollywood, please contact us at (818)902-1233 or on our website at https://www.losangelesmusicteachers.com/online-music-lessons-burbank-ca.html
What Piano Is Right For Me?
6/15/2022
 If you're reading this article, that means you are thinking about piano lessons and looking to make a big purchase and buy a Piano. It's no easy decision because you have to be mindful of costs and the amount of space it will take up in your house. so you would have to take your time when researching which piano is perfect for you. I have done some research to help you on your journey. Below you will find a list of pianos with some detail to help you start looking for the right piano for you! Grand Pianos: The reasons for the preference which most people show for a Grand to an Upright piano are probably aesthetic and psychological. A Grand looks better in a room, and the pianist is more favorably impressed by the “view” when he sits down to play a Grand, compared with an Upright, which usually stands with its back to a wall. Another advantage is that the top, when raised, deflects the sound to player and room. Unfortunately, this preference brought about the production of miniature Grand pianos which are inferior in tone and touch to a good Upright and are described in the trade as “Baby Grand Pianos”. The action in such models was cut down in size and price, and the strings are too short; in fact, the minimum size for a Grand seems to be 4 ft.10 in. if the instrument is to be considered as a serious rival to a good Upright. Sizes and Types: The standard width of a grand piano is also about 5'. The length varies from 4½' to 9½'. The total floor space allowance for the smallest grand should be at least 5' wide by 6½' long, including bench space. Grand pianos are measure by the length from the very front of the keyboard to the farthest end of the piano along the spine, with the lid closed. The smallest Steinway is 5 ft. 1 in. (The size stated is always the over-all length of an instrument.) There are several types of grand pianos, based on piano length. Click on image for example of size and specifications: Tonal Quality The soundboard and strings of a grand piano are positioned horizontally inside the piano case. When you press down a key, the hammer of the key hits the strings from below to produce the sound. The movement of the hammer falls back with the help of gravity, which makes the sound of repetitive notes crisp and allows the pianist better control of the keys. The size of the soundboard and the length of strings influence the tonal quality of a piano. Larger soundboard and longer strings produce greater volume and resonance of tone. Since the tonal quality and the volume of the piano depend mainly on the size of the soundboard and the length of the strings, you want to start from the largest vertical or grand piano you can afford. You also need to consider the space you have. The sound of a Small Grand can get lost in a large open room where a Medium Grand in a small room can be too loud. Types & Sizes of Vertical Pianos A craze for very small size also afflicted Upright pianos. With the result that miniature models appeared which could only be classed as toys. The height was reduced by lowering the position of the action in relation to the keyboard, so that the lever was pulled up by the key instead of being lifted in the normal way. This type of piano sold as a “Spinet”. When compared with the small Grand pianos condemned in the previous paragraph, these miniature Uprights sink to about the same depth of tonal and acoustic banality. I can appreciate the demand for small pianos for small rooms, and in small orchestras where space is limited and the player must be able to see the leader, but I cannot see the sense of mutilating the tone and touch of a piano merely to reduce the height by a further three or four inches. Sizes and Types The standard width of an upright piano is about 5' and the depth is between 2 - 2½'. The total floor space allowance should be about 5' wide by 5' deep, including bench space. The height of the piano makes no difference in the floor space needed but it makes a major difference in the quality of sound the piano produces. The height of a vertical piano is measured from the floor to the top of the piano. There are four types of vertical pianos, based on piano height: Spinet, Console, Studio, and Upright. The size is measured from the floor to the top of the lid. The spinet piano measures less than 36" tall. The console measures 40 to 44" tall. The studio or "professional upright" measures 45 to 50" tall. The largest of the vertical pianos is the upright, which measures over 50" tall. Spinet Pianos The spinet piano is the smallest of the vertical pianos. The spinet piano has what is called a dropped action. The piano action is the part of the piano that transfers the force of striking the key to the hammer striking the string. In appearance the spinet and console pianos are very similar. Some technicians charge more to work on spinet pianos because they feel they are more difficult to repair. There are more working parts in a spinet piano than a console but a qualified piano technician should be able to service the spinet piano at no additional charge. Console Pianos The console is the most popular of the vertical pianos. The action of a console piano sits directly on top of the keys and as with all vertical pianos the hammers sit in an upright position. Once the hammer strikes the string and the key is released a spring pulls the hammer back to its original position, ready to strike the string again. The action of a vertical piano is usually not as "quick" as the action of a grand piano. Studio Pianos The additional height of the studio piano gives it a richness and tonal quality comparable to those of many grand pianos. The location and feel of the action is also different in a studio piano. Many of the newer studio pianos mimic the feel of a grand piano. Upright Pianos The tallest of the vertical pianos is the upright. Today this term is usually used to refer to the older, tall pianos - Grandma's piano. There were many wonderful upright pianos made in America in the 1920 - 1940's. If properly preserved these old pianos are some of the most esthetically beautiful and durable instruments ever made. The key is "properly preserved". If not properly maintained an old upright's only value is as a large piece of furniture, beautiful to look at but nerve racking to listen to. We Hope that this is a starter point for you to find the right piano for you. Click here to edIf you're interested in taking lessons on Zoom or In Person in Burbank, Glendale or North Hollywood, please contact us at (818)902-1233 or on our website at https://www.losangelesmusicteachers.com/online-music-lessons-burbank-ca.html
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