Choosing the Right Ones!

Choosing the Correct Instruments for Your Child

"I have spent my teaching career managing instrumental music in schools. As you might expect, during that time I had many learners who have become excellent musicians, many more who did a good job, and some who struggled with the instrument they chose from day one.

For those who struggled to learn their chosen instrument, there were a variety of reasons for the struggle. For most it was simply a matter of not practising enough. But for some others the reason was that the child was not matched with an instrument that he or she could be successful on. This is a guide to help you pick the most suitable instrument for your child. Ideally Music teachers would like to have every learner be successful in their musical endeavours, helping to build a lifelong love of music and playing music as they learn. We know that in the real world this is not going to happen, but we can take steps to make each child as successful as possible.

Keys To Success: Matching Learners and Instruments

It is my firm belief that part of my job is to try to place each learner on an instrument where there is a high probability of success. During my career there were times that a learner and/or parent would have his or her heart set on a certain instrument, and I never insisted that a learner play the instrument that I recommended, but if a learner was interested in an instrument that I believed he or she would struggle with, I would tell them so, and wh

While your child's Music teacher should be the final authority on this, here are some things to keep in mind when it comes to matching children and instruments. Following are the instruments that are typically offered to beginning students, with some remarks about the physical characteristics that usually indicate the potential for success on each.

Flute

Reasonably straight teeth, longer and somewhat thinner fingers, thin to medium lips. Flute players do not usually have many problems with playing while wearing braces, which is a consideration for many as their child enters Secondary School. Because of the way the lips are placed on the flute (called the "embouchure") learners are usually more successful if their lips are thinner.

Clarinet:

The main consideration for the clarinet is the length and width of the learner's fingers. Clarinets are an "open holed" instrument, meaning that the learner has to cover and seal the key holes with his or her fingers. Wider fingers are better, and usually fingers that are not overly long are better. Like the flute, this instrument also causes few problems with braces.

Saxophone:

While there are several types of saxophones, most beginners start with the alto saxophone, mainly because the others are too large for younger learners to handle. The saxophone is one of the easiest instruments to play, and one of the hardest to play well. It is naturally out of tune, requiring the player to make constant adjustments in order to make it sound good. Saxophone players need to have enough size to handle the instrument, as it is one of the larger instruments given to beginners. Over the years I did not have too manylearners who were too small for the saxophone, but there were a few. Of course most learners would grow enough that their size is not an issue by the time they are in Year 7, but since most learners start in Year 4 or 5 it could be a problem at the start. The only other consideration with saxophone is to make sure the learner doesn't have exceptionally small hands, as they need to be able to put their hands around a fairly large instrument and at the same time avoid contact with a number of keys on the side of it.

Trumpet

I’ve had a fair number of learners over the years that have looked at the trumpet and said "I want to play that. It only has three keys, so it should be easy." I always had the same answer for them about the trumpet as well as the other brass instruments: only having three keys doesn't make it easier to play; it makes it harder. Notes are produced on brass instruments by a combination of lip tension and key combination (keys on brass instruments are referred to as "valves"). So a learner has to manipulate those valves while tightening and loosening his or her lips to produce the notes.

Despite various remedies to help learners deal with playing brass instruments while wearing braces, none are tremendously effective because brass instruments require the lips to be stretched flat across the teeth, which can cause discomfort. There should be little if any pressure from the mouthpiece on the lips, but many, perhaps even most learners who are early in their playing careers will press the mouthpiece against the lips, causing discomfort. Still, after an adjustment period, most learners with braces will have no trouble playing the trumpet.

French Horn

This instrument can be somewhat awkward to hold, and I have had some learners over the years who were not large enough to hold it correctly. The main issue is braces. The French horn has the smallest mouthpiece with the narrowest rim of all the brass instruments, and, like the trumpet it will be uncomfortable to play if the learner puts too much pressure on the lips while playing. Some band directors prefer to start potential French horn players on the trumpet because they believe it is easier for a beginner to learn on, thenswitch them at a later time. I never did that, for one main reason: the valves on the French horn are manipulated with the left hand, where trumpet valves are manipulated with the right hand. Why take a learner in his/her second or third year of playing and force them to adapt to a different instrument that requires a totally different playing style?

Trombone

A slide takes the place of valves. Trombone players should have longer arms, due to the need to extend the slide to reach sixth and seventh positions. The good news is that most authors of tuition books understand their audience, and do not write any pieces that require seventh position in their first year books. After a year or so of playing, most learners have grown enough that reaching seventh position is no longer an issue. The larger mouthpiece of the trombone makes crooked teeth and braces less of a problem as well, as there is less pressure on the lips.

Percussion

You will notice that I say "percussion" and not "drums." I know that many band directors would disagree with me, but I have always believed that learners who want to play drums should be percussionists, meaning that they know how to play all the instruments in the percussion section. Watch a symphony orchestra. They do not have one player stationed at a snare drum, another at a bass drum, yet another at a xylophone, and so on. The members of the percussion section will move around and play whatever is called for in the piecethe orchestra is playing.

The biggest requirement for percussionists from my point of view is an excellent sense of rhythm. Over the years some of the worst players at counting rhythms in my bands were in the percussion section! This is also the one instrument where I always limited the numbers. Most band pieces do not require more than 1 drum kit player and 1 or 2 axillary percussion players!

Violin, Cello

Both of these instruments are ideal for very young learners as the instruments come in different sizes ranging from 1/16 to ½ size instruments.

Piano

The piano is also an ideal instrument for beginners as it can play the tune and harmony (or chords) at the same time, thus creating a ‘complete sounding’ performance. The problem with the piano is that it is a solitary instrument which does not often play in bands and orchestra and when it does there is only one in the ensemble. The brass, woodwind and string instruments above allow the learner to perform with others which provides a much more satisfaction in the long run and also has the social aspects of playing in a musical ensemble.

There are a few other instruments I did not cover here, mainly because they are not always typical beginning band instruments: The tuba is usually too big for most beginners, and many Music teachers will start potential tuba players on the baritone horn, but have themread tuba music. The oboe can be rather daunting to a beginner, and it is quite expensive. I used to field regular requests about the piccolo. I always had to explain that the piccolo is not a full time instrument, but rather it is played by a flute player when called for in themusic. Some learners seemed to think that it would be easier to play because it is smaller, but in fact it is harder to play than a flute due to its size.

Final Thoughts

One of the biggest headaches to band directors, learners, and parents alike is caused by parents who try to save money by purchasing poor quality instruments. They may be cheaper in the beginning, but not in the long run! Musical instruments are one of those things whereyou truly get what you pay for. I strongly advise buying a good quality instrument like Yamaha, Selmer, Besson or the like. You can occasionally find good instruments on ebay, but you have to know what you are looking for. Your safest bet is to go to a local music shop to get your instrument. You will pay more, but in the long run your child will be happier, the instrument will last longer and need fewer repairs, and it will be easier to play."

By Tim Costello & Bill Bennett (Colleague and good friend in Lewes, Delaware, USA)

Former Head of Music Department, Nexus International School Malaysia