Kids and Pianos [was Re: Scaling problem]

[Z! Reinhardt]

So why don't more parents bring the kids with them when shopping for a
piano?  Does it occur to them that if they want the kids to enjoy
practicing, they will have to let the kids be a part of the decision
process?  I've lost count of the number of times I've overheard
conversations between salesmen and  sets of parents about "a piano for the
kids" (who were nowhere to be seen) at these "Warehouse Sale" events.

Only once have I come to a used piano where the house pianist (a
then-9-year-old girl) picked out the piano of her choice.  The parents had
wanted her to select something a little cheaper and a little better looking,
or at least something that would fit into the livingroom decor.  But because
she got the piano she wanted, she had "bonded" with it and practiced every
chance she got.  The story goes that she wanted to host the annual recital
so that her teacher and the other students could play her piano.  Alas, the
family has since moved out of state.

OK -- I got off the subject a little by talking about used pianos.  But,
I've seen/heard the same thing happen around new pianos.  The parents select
the piano for the kids in their absence, then expect the kids to practice
without question because it is a new piano.  The parents are concerned with
how it looks (and how cheaply they can have that look) whereas the kids are
more interested in how it sounds and feels.  I've often wondered how many of
these parental piano selections would have been vetoed by the kids, if the
kids were there to voice an opinion.

Just a couple of weeks ago, I urged a family to upgrade to a better piano,
and to bring their daughter to select something she is comfortable with.
"Oh yes yes, that is a good idea.  I think she will like that."  Makes me
wonder how much of an input she had (if any) in selecting the current piano,
which is beneath her playing skills.

Z! Reinhardt  RPT
Ann Arbor  MI
diskladame@provide.net


----- Original Message -----
From: "Ron Nossaman" <RNossaman@KSCABLE.com>
To: <pianotech@ptg.org>
Sent: Sunday, May 20, 2001 5:19 PM
Subject: Re: Scaling problem


>Fortunately most owners cant hear the problems.

I wish they could, so they'd buy something else.

>>>snip<<<

...daughter taking piano lessons is telling
Mom "Tell him to fix that funny sound down there when he tunes it".

The kids always were better and more discerning customers than the parents.


Ron N