Ted Says
Choosing A Keyboard / Digital Piano
So you've decided you want to learn piano keyboard which, in my opinion having gone that route myself, is an excellent start to your musical career.
By learning the piano keyboard you will learn about all the elements which make up music: melody, harmony, rhythm, dynamics, tempo, & texture. Therefore allowing you a much broader understanding of music perhaps more than any other instrument.
It is much easier to start with the piano keyboard and then pick up a different instrument later. For example I started piano lessons when I was 8 but took up the clarinet 10 years later. However I was able to reach grade 4 with the clarinet in just 6 months!
Piano or Keyboard
Learning Keyboard is slightly easier than Piano. Keyboard music consists of your right hand playing the melody and the left hand playing chords which change the harmonic sound of the accompaniment style. At the top of the page of a piece of music it will tell you what voice to use for your right hand, and what accompaniment style for your left hand. A keyboard lends itself to most styles of music, except classical. However, had the rock beat been in existence at the time I'm sure Beethoven would have used it.
Piano music is more versatile but a little harder. You could be playing numerous parts with both the left or the right hand. You will learn about theory and mastering your instrument rather than utilising technology. It is much easier to transfer to keyboard from piano than the other way round.
Touch Sensitive
Touch sensitive means when you hit a key hard it plays louder, and when you press it down gently it play softer. If you are learning piano it is imperitive you buy a keyboard or digital piano with this function. If you are learning Keyboard it depends how seriously you want to play it. You will need this function if you intend to take exams, play with expression, or perform.
Space and Budget
The next consideration is space and budget. Keyboards tend to be up to 61 keys. Even the full size Keyboards with 88 keys are smaller in dimention to digital Pianos. If you are going to be taking exams you will at some point need a full size Keyboard. If you are learning Piano you will definitely need a full size Keyboard. Keyboards are usuallly less expensive than digital Pianos, but before you make your final decision on budget you must remember two things first.
Authentic Piano Sound
How important is this to you? If you want to learn Piano it should be very important. If you are learning Keyboard, less so. It is true the more money you spend the higher the quality and therefore the more authentic the piano sound will be. Yamaha use digitally recorded instruments which they call AVM (advanced wave memory). They record each note at different levels from loud to soft providing subtle diffences in volume and timbre depending on how you play the keys. Keyboards do not have this function. Clavinovas (digital pianos) do but they range in volume and timbre levels or dynamic steps. The bottom of the range Clavinova only has 1 step. Top of the range has 4 steps.
Authentic Piano Feel
Is this important to you? If you are learning Piano this again is extremely improtant and again this effects price and quality. Yamaha uses Graded Hammer action. In this action, the keys in the bass register of the keyboard are weighted progressively heavier than the treble - accurately replicating the feel of an acoustic piano where the thicker, heavier bass strings require a heavier, thicker hammer to produce the note. Key damping is provided by 2 layers of felt sandwiched with 2 layers of heavy duty foam, which provides a firm, even response throughout the 88 - note range. The higher end of the Clavinova range has 4 layer sandwich of felt - which not only means that the action feels even more like a piano, but also that the stress transmitted to the player's fingers is reduced.
Yamaha have recently introduced a fully weighted (not quite as effective as graded hammer action, but still a good replication) to their DGX Keyboard range. The DGX620 boasts to have full 88 note, touch sensitive keyboard and fully weighted piano action as well as the sounds and styles required from a protable keyboard.
Other Features To Consider
At the moment we've been talking about playing a piano keyboard, but there are other things you can do with a keyboard. Do you compose music or write songs? Do you want to create backing tracks for singers. Will you tire of the sounds/styles/songs on the Keyboard? If the answer is yes to one or all of these you will need a piano keyboard that has USB port and/ recording capabilities on it.
