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The Perfect Piano for Beginners
Taking up the Piano? Start Here.
Playing the piano can be a very enjoyable experience, depending on your level of interest. However, it is crucial to choose the correct instrument based on your skill level. If you have an interest in beginning to play the piano, I would like to review and provide a recommendation for a great beginner- intermediate level piano- the Yamaha CLP-545.
This piano has much more positives than negatives to it. Firstly, this is a digital piano that requires minimal maintenance and attention, meaning that you will not have to devote any money to tuning and dusting the piano. This also allows for significantly reduced mass and size, making it very easy to move the instrument on your own and place it in small living spaces. This model of piano is also cheaper compared to Yamaha’s newer models, yet simultaneously retains the majority of the new series’ functions. This means that losing your interest will not result in immense regret of buying a very expensive, care- dependent acoustic piano. Another minor advantage is that a digital piano allows for late- night practice due to the added ability of using headphones.
However, this piano is not without negatives- almost all of which consist of it not being highly resemblant of playing an acoustic piano. The first major problem is the absence of modeling of the damper pedal effect- that is, when one presses the rightmost pedal on an acoustic piano, the keys become much softer to depress, which significantly increases demand for precision. The absence of this feature makes it difficult to transition to playing on an acoustic piano. I also think that the keyboard of the CLP-545 is too stiff, which can simultaneously be a negative and positive, since it allows for better endurance and muscle strength development, but is not resemblant of a genuine keyboard feel.
The piano has a few neutral aspects. For instance, it features a decent speaker system that is neither good nor bad, but can at times feel a bit too fuzzy, especially when playing bass. It also looks quite strange, since it is almost like a sawed in half upright, which I personally find slightly detrimental to the immersion aspect.
In conclusion, I would definitely say that the Yamaha CLP-545 is an ideal beginner piano due to its combination of quality/price, functionality, adaptability and absence of maintenance necessity. I think that this piano deserves a 9/10 rating as a beginner piano and a 6/10 rating as a full- time practice and development instrument.
By Michael Anisimov
Which Piano is Best for You?
When buying a new piano to enhance your playing or practicing experience or replace another piano, it is quite easy to get lost and confused from the sheer variety of available products. However, every type of piano, from electrics to hybrids and acoustic uprights and grands, have their advantages and disadvantages. This will help you easily determine what is best for you.
I would like to kick things off with electric pianos- the type of piano that I have had the most experience with. There is a wide range of electric pianos to pick from, beginning with simple, portable keyboards and ending with advanced pianos that attempt to fully recreate the feel and sound of a grand piano. This type of instrument presents numerous advantages when compared to its acoustic counterparts. Namely, as a result of not having strings, an action or a soundboard, even top notch electric pianos tend to have significantly reduced purchase costs when compared to quality uprights and baby grands (the smallest type of grand piano). This also results in much simpler maintenance, increased ease of assembly/ disassembly and better portability due to the reduced weight. Electric pianos also present the ability to use headphones when playing the piano in an apartment or any living space with other people. However, these pianos cannot fully recreate the powerful and volumetric sound created by a concert grand and possibly more importantly, the effect of the damper pedal on the keyboard’s resistance. Some electric pianos are also susceptible to electric surges and can easily be destroyed when not using a protector.
When choosing an electric piano, we can immediately omit simple keyboards from our choice list since they do not allow for any sort of advanced play and do not aim to recreate the feel of an acoustic piano. The only option which provides realism and is functionally resemblant of acoustic pianos is the digital upright. These include Yamaha’s CLP series, Kawai’ s CA series and Casio’s Privia series. These pianos possess advanced sound systems, wooden keyboards and authentic electronic actions which allow for precise replication of the feedback provided by a mechanical keyboard and simulate sound as if it were resonated from a grand piano’s soundboard. They can be priced anywhere from $2000 to $10000.
Moving on to acoustic pianos, there are three types to choose from- the upright, grand and the hybrid. These instruments require regular maintenance and correct storage, but provide the user with genuine sound and the beauty of a handcrafted masterpiece that has been meticulously worked upon in a factory for a year. Depending on the condition and type, an acoustic piano can cost from a measly $500 for any hundred-year-old upright to a mind-blowing figure of $560,000 for a Bösendorfer Imperial concert grand.
When choosing an acoustic piano, size, price, type and manufacturer are the primary variables that you must consider. If you are interested in taking a massive leap forward from an upright or electric piano, you should be looking at the grand piano market. Grands are manufactured in multiple dimensions from baby to concert grands, which strongly affects sound quality, overall loudness and bass depth. You must also keep in mind the manufacturer since sound tone heavily depends on production technique and materials used. For instance, Bösendorfer grands tend to have a much calmer and mellower tone when compared to Yamaha grands.
However, when space and money are limited, yet you crave an acoustic piano- the upright is certainly the way to go. On a side note, consider that even a baby grand will have superior sound quality and provide you with more precise controls than any upright imaginable.
Finally, there is the hybrid piano, which is a grand or upright piano equipped with a system of solenoid electromagnets and recording sensors capable of playing itself and interfacing with devices via Bluetooth. Examples include the Yamaha Disklavier and Steinway Spirio. This mechanism adds a lot of expense to a piano, which makes them a rare occurrence at homes, but a quite common one at VIP lounges and hotels.
In the end, if you live in a tight space, are trying to conserve money or do not have time for maintaining a piano yet want the best possible bang- consider an electric upright. If you want a genuine piano, are willing to pay more and do not have too much space- the upright is the way to go. If you are interested in an item of artisanal instrumental art, are seriously considering investing a load of money and have an appropriate amount of space, then look no further than a grand piano.
By Michael Anisimov