On June 29 2011 23:30 RedJustice wrote: No keyboard. Never had money for one with a good feel and enough keys. Had a really crappy old Yamaha upright my family bought at an auction for $600, but moved out a while ago. Hands down the best piano I ever got a chance to play on was a beautiful old Steinway concert grand (old enough to have real ivory keys) that belonged to a teacher of mine. The timbre was amazing, and it was just one of those instruments that you can feel all the music that's been through it.
Keep up the good work with your lessons though! ^_^ It is good you are learning for yourself. That's the best reason to learn. ^_^
Practice takes time and the progress is small. Still, I am glad I finally began to learn an instrument. So far I never really needed to force myself to practice, I just turn the keyboard on, play the one etude I memorized completely and practice it, or work on the next etude.
Concert pianos, even from Yamaha, still have real ivory keys*; but today there is synthetic ivory available and used for high-but-not-high-end instruments, which should be fine as well. My keyboard has plastic keys only, and the black keys are glossy. I probably safe the money for the next digital piano to buy one with an almost real musical keyboard.
* only old models, see posting below.
A real quality grand of course is probably the best acoustic instrument which can be played by one person with no further help (like an air pump for a church organ.) Providing a maestro pianist playing, it just generates the sound. The music. It does not need a backing band.
i have a grand piano and an old upright at home. while i do like the pedal mechanisms and action more than my upright the keys on my particular damned piano are heavier than any other piano i've touched. i really have to adjust when i switch pianos
On June 29 2011 23:30 RedJustice wrote: No keyboard. Never had money for one with a good feel and enough keys. Had a really crappy old Yamaha upright my family bought at an auction for $600, but moved out a while ago. Hands down the best piano I ever got a chance to play on was a beautiful old Steinway concert grand (old enough to have real ivory keys) that belonged to a teacher of mine. The timbre was amazing, and it was just one of those instruments that you can feel all the music that's been through it.
Keep up the good work with your lessons though! ^_^ It is good you are learning for yourself. That's the best reason to learn. ^_^
Practice takes time and the progress is small. Still, I am glad I finally began to learn an instrument. So far I never really needed to force myself to practice, I just turn the keyboard on, play the one etude I memorized completely and practice it, or work on the next etude.
Concert pianos, even from Yamaha, still have real ivory keys; but today there is synthetic ivory available and used for high-but-not-high-end instruments, which should be fine as well. My keyboard has plastic keys only, and the black keys are glossy. I probably safe the money for the next digital piano to buy one with an almost real musical keyboard.
A real quality grand of course is probably the best acoustic instrument which can be played by one person with no further help (like an air pump for a church organ.) Providing a maestro pianist playing, it just generates the sound. The music. It does not need a backing band.
only old pianos have real ivory, elephants are not allowed to be killed anymore. new concert grands do not have real ivory.
We have a Steinway grand and it's probably the coolest thing we own. When my dad moved out of the house, he took the car and the grand piano. We only had money to replace one, so ofc we replaced the Steinway and live without a car now. :p
What would you guys reccommend for a digital piano if I want 1) best mechanical like feeling and 2) best sound but 3) only piano sound is needed. I have played on a small grand piano for most of my life so i'm kinda spoiled..
On June 30 2011 06:58 Navane wrote: What would you guys reccommend for a digital piano if I want 1) best mechanical like feeling and 2) best sound but 3) only piano sound is needed. I have played on a small grand piano for most of my life so i'm kinda spoiled..
I heard the Kawai CA63 is pretty good, maybe you can try some different digital pianos at your local stores?
I bought a piano a few years back, digital yamaha for $80 to get into playing. I didn't :/ I picked up guitar last year though and have been loving it! Looking back though now, I should probably look for that piano, dust it off, and give it another try.
On June 30 2011 03:52 rabidch wrote: only old pianos have real ivory, elephants are not allowed to be killed anymore. new concert grands do not have real ivory.
Right; I mixed it up, ivory trade is internationally banned now. For some time there was previous stock available.
On June 30 2011 06:58 Navane wrote: What would you guys reccommend for a digital piano if I want 1) best mechanical like feeling and 2) best sound but 3) only piano sound is needed. I have played on a small grand piano for most of my life so i'm kinda spoiled..
Have a look at the Clavinova CLP series like the 465GP. But I recommend to try the instruments in a real music shop when you are going to spend that much money. Internet / Youtube reviews are ok for a keyboard with a 3-digit price tag. If you want to pay serious money, no one can tell you what you like. Personal recommendation can be a first step but should not be overrated.
If you really just want to play piano, have a look at the Yamaha Modus R01. No functions at all, except that you can play piano.
When you are used to an acoustic grand, prepare yourself that you cannot have the full acoustic experience on digital pianos. But some digital pianos come close.
On June 30 2011 02:34 Horuku wrote: While not a standalone "keyboard" per se, I have a M-audio Axiom Pro 61 for controlling stuff in FL Studio. It's the same idea though, just playing the notes passes through the software instruments/synths instead of directly on board.
Is that a master keyboard or a synthesizer which can be used as master keyboard, too?
On June 30 2011 07:20 Kezzer wrote: I bought a piano a few years back, digital yamaha for $80 to get into playing. I didn't :/ I picked up guitar last year though and have been loving it! Looking back though now, I should probably look for that piano, dust it off, and give it another try.
If you don't need to practice to perform within a band, why not go to play two instruments.
I will probably buy myself a guitar sometime, just to try how to play it. Not to actually learn to play it. But I could get a deeper understanding of guitar music when I know how that instrument is played. But for the time being I need to focus on the piano lessons to make any progress at all.
EPT
Never had money for one with a good feel and enough keys. Had a really crappy old Yamaha upright my family bought at an auction for $600, but moved out a while ago. Hands down the best piano I ever got a chance to play on was a beautiful old Steinway concert grand (old enough to have real ivory keys) that belonged to a teacher of mine. The timbre was amazing, and it was just one of those instruments that you can feel all the music that's been through it.
Looking back though now, I should probably look for that piano, dust it off, and give it another try.
