Recommended Supplies/Instruments

Your student may already have an instrument at home, and that’s great! However, if you do not have an instrument and are looking for recommendations on what to purchase, here are some links and ideas.

Guitar

I always recommend a classical, or nylon string guitar for beginners, as opposed to steel strings. Why? The strings are softer and easier to play. Some small discomfort is normal when playing guitar, and calluses will eventually form on the fingers with enough practice. Nylon strings make this discomfort more manageable. This set ADM Beginner Acoustic Classical Guitar is great because it comes with everything you will need: a bag, clip on tuner, picks, extra strings, a strap, and even a cleaning cloth. It is highly reviewed and comes in multiple sizes, 30 inches being the smallest and best for kids under six, 34 inches (1/2 size) is best for kids under eight, and 36 inches being a good size for kids eight to twelve. Some other accessories you might want to get are a guitar stand and a humidifier to keep the guitar conditioned in our dry Colorado weather! Simply wet the sponge that you’ll find inside, squeeze it out, put it back in it’s casing, and pop it between the middle strings of the instrument, humidify when it’s in its case, that way the humidity stays in. The sponge may need re-wetting about every week.

Keyboard

Often, you can find real pianos on Craigslist for free, or $100-$200. The downside is, you’d have to pay a mover or really struggle, even the lightest pianos are HEAVY, and then pay about $150 to get it tuned. If you don’t want to go through all of that, an 88 key (full sized) keyboard with weighted keys is the best option to get your kiddo learning what it feels like to play a real piano, as there are mechanisms within the keyboard that give the keys the same weight to push down as a real piano. Here is a higher quality option, and here is a more affordable option. If you’re looking for something even cheaper, you might look at a 61 key model, it is smaller but still has a pretty wide range.

Ukulele

Ukuleles tend to be pretty cheap! You can usually find some for as cheap as $20-$30 at a music store. I like this kit because it has everything you need, including a bag, strap, picks, clip on tuner, extra strings, a cleaning cloth, and the strings already on there are color coded, making them easier to learn! If your kiddo tends to be a bit clumsy, this plastic one is a great option and comes in lots of fun colors, though it doesn’t have the other accessories from the kit. You might also want to get a ukulele stand and a humidifier to keep the ukulele conditioned in our dry Colorado weather! Simply wet the sponge that you’ll find inside, squeeze it out, put it back in it’s casing, and pop it between the middle strings of the instrument, humidify when it’s in its case, that way the humidity stays in. The sponge may need re-wetting about every week.

Books

It’s a good idea to have a three ring binder with some notebook paper in it for lessons, that way I can write notes and reminders and add in hand outs. I also give out fake money as a reward for practicing that your child can use to buy prizes and the binder is a great way to keep that together. Here are the book series that I use for the varying instruments. I also add in supplementary songs that are their favorites, but usually we’ll try and work out of the books a bit each week. I prefer you get the paperback as opposed to the ebook so I can write notes and reminders in the book itself. Please bring books and binder to each lesson. At your free first lesson we’ll chat about what books would be the right fit for your learner so no need to order ahead of time!