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Digital pianos really have come a long way from where they were 15 years ago, when I started playing.
I started on an unweighted 61-key touch-sensitive keyboard (touch-sensitivity is, by the way, essential, but implied on the weighted keyboards. You cannot play classical piano music even remotely musically without touch sensitivity. Organ music is a ...
19
The advice to get a digital piano that transposes easily given in other answers is excellent; when I played keys in a cover band once upon a time that's what I did. Learn the pieces in whatever key is convenient for you, and then change the setting on the keyboard before the song. Practice changing the keyboard settings. That's part of your instrument, and ...
16
The exact height of the keyboard off the floor is less important than the distance between the keyboard and your seat. (Most chairs are too low to the ground to be good as a piano stool) I'd agree with @Jeffrey that forearms-parallel-to-the-floor is a good starting point, also that your knees don't get wedged out of the way by the bottom of the keyboard.
...
16
What I've found is that the acoustic piano is the most expressive when played softly. We all like loud, but anything can be loud and the ear will tune loud OUT after a while. But it pays attention when things get quiet. And that's where weighted keys really help - on a digital too. If you don't have that weight, you'll get a more frequent oops-BANG ...
15
XLR connectors should be your preferred route, as balanced cables have a much lower noise level by their design - they are constructed such that noise induced by electromagnetic interference cancels itself out, whereas signal doesn't.
If you want stereo, you need to use two cables. As you can see 1/4" has a Left and a Right, and XLR has a Left and a Right.
...
14
Modern digital pianos have a number of features that expand the number of notes that might be simultaneously present in the output:
Some polyphonic voices last a long time after the key is released, so if you play a lot of notes quickly using these voices, you may end up having dozens, and even a hundred notes still sounding while you're adding new notes.
...
13
I don't consider the "classical music" criteria to be a determining factor. A piano is a piano is a piano, and though digital pianos generally do have some feature overlap with things like electronic keyboards and synthesizers and midi controllers, the reason for buying a digital piano should only be because an acoustic piano is impractical for whatever ...
13
In terms of standard height:
A Steinway large grand piano I believe is 28 1/8" (71,5 cm) high from the floor to the top of the white keys. You could call that a standard.
The hight varies for different makers, and pianos, with over an inch higher and lower than that.
(My Yamaha upright piano is 28 3/8" [72 cm].)
13
The biggest mistake that many starting-out (and professional) keyboardists, including pianists, make is sitting at the piano incorrectly which results in playing with tension. Make sure you learn everything you can about correct bench height (generally, your forearms should be parallel with the keybed), sitting in a relaxed manner and relieving all muscle ...
13
Roland FP-80 Connectors section at Specifications tab contains the following:
PEDAL (DAMPER/R, SOFT/L *, SOSTENUTO/C *)
So I'll presume, that those are the pedals required for the answer.
As stated at Piano pedals article on Wikipedia:
Modern pianos usually have three pedals, from left to right, the soft
pedal (or una corda), the sostenuto pedal (...
13
Why would you need more than that?
Five semitones up and six down can make every possible key:
Let's say the original MIDI file was in C major. Up 5 semitones and you can get C C# D D# E and F. Down 6 semitones and you can get C B Bb A Ab G Gb. I am aware that you cannot transpose to a different octave using that but for practical purpose that is easily ...
13
Both Kawai and Roland are reputable brands. But Kawai CN37 is a brilliant digital piano. From my experience with some digital pianos, I wasn't able to use a great range of dynamics, but with Kawai CN37, I can somehow control how my dynamics are expressed on the piano, and it's quite comparable to the likes of an upright acoustic piano. I haven't tried Kawai ...
13
The keys of e-pianos today are weighted.
My son is professional pianist. He plays on different grand pianos and keyboards and he never complained about losing skills. I wouldn’t worry about yours especially as you say you play fun stuff.
Mind that also the keys of different pianos haven’t always the same weight and the distance of the hammers to the ...
13
You are overthinking this.
You are free to use whichever fingers you like when playing a piece but obviously some fingerings will work better than others.
What you need to do is to find a fingering that works for you and then try to always do that. Your "muscle memory" will simply work when you have practiced enough.
If you find a passage where there are ...
11
Considerations
Touch sensitivity (this is a must)
Number of keys you usually use
Polyphony - the higher, the better if you play anything remotely complex
Whether you need lots of sounds or really only piano sounds
Size and weight if you plan on traveling with it.
Built in drums/accompaniment or not (good for practice, more fun than a metronome)
Built in ...
11
some voices on your digital piano contains more than 1 tone, for example an organ single note may consist of 3 or 4 voice samples (polyphony) so , when you press 10 claviers it will produce about 40 sound samples... 128 voices of polyphony will let you hear your sound fully and without note cancellation.
11
I would differ from Wheat Williams’ answer.
The sustain pedal is essential. A variable-resistance sustain pedal, often marketed as “half-damper”, will also make a world of difference: non-variable-resistance have an entirely different feel, and your son starts on those, then he will have to largely re-learn his sustain pedal usage when he gets to a real ...
10
Weighted keys offer a different kind of response to the touch of a finger since they have more stationary momentum. This helps connect your physical action to the sound itself, which results in what seems like more expressive piano playing.
The other thing you are experiencing is the difference between velocity control for either instrument. If both the ...
10
The term 'clavier' (as used in the original question ) encompasses all keyboard related instruments, from harpsichords through foot pedals to modern pianos and organs.
I'm guessing you mean a piano/keyboard of the electronic type.If so, I suggest 61 notes - 5 octaves - will be enough to keep you going for two or three years or more. You will find that the ...
10
If you are playing an organ sound, you might want a keyboard that can feel and respond like an organ, rather than a piano
It's possible to make a very shallow non-weighted action, which is helpful for some techniques (I like it better for triggering percussive sounds, for example)
It's cheaper to make, so instruments are cheaper.
The instrument is lighter ...
9
We try to find a good fingering - that might mean 'good for YOU' considering your hand size - and stick to it. Not because it's a 'rule', but because it's effecient! You don't want to be hunting for each note every time you play the piece! Let your hands learn where to go, then your playing can become fluent.
8
Which piano you should buy is going to be up to your own preferences and price range. However, these are some criteria you can use to make that decision critically:
Sound: Entry level digital pianos use what are called samples to generate a sound from a keypress. Each company has spent lots of money recording every individual key of a high-quality piano at ...
8
I have to say that a household and environment that fosters a love of music will have a large impact on your daughters interest. Likely only piano lessons with an instructor will assess her interest in that particular instrument, but that's really just the tip of the iceberg. There are lots of other instruments, most just as fulfilling, as well as singing (...
8
If you use a short length cable (for Home Studio use), it won't really change much.
Using balanced cables is good for long cables (10 meters long, on stage), but just for a 2-meters-cable connection :
piano <--> audio interface
the difference will not be important.
I such situations, I go for 1/4 JACK because it's simpler for home studio use.
...
8
I'm only a guitarist, but I play once a week on a real piano at my teacher's studio, and I have a Yamaha P-115 digital piano at home (weighted keys, $600 retail most places -- I got lucky and paid $400 at a salvage store). The feel is a bit different between the two, but it's in the ballpark (for a tyro like me). No trouble adjusting. I originally started ...
7
Tim Praskins reviews ALL major models on his Piano News Blog, with a ton of information on "digital pianos and what to know when shopping for one".
From a recent (2011/08/17) entry:
Yamaha has descriptive words such
as Intelligent Acoustic Control (IAC), GRE, Smooth Release, Linear
Graded Hammers, and Soundboard Speaker. Roland has SuperNATURAL ...
7
Classic grand and baby grand is 28-29 inches. Period. Answer made!
I measured 30 pianos from eight manufacturers and nearly all were inside this range. This is without wheel stands or any other such things. This is floor to top of white keys when on the standard legs.
I would build your desk for the lower dimension as it is much more comfortable for a ...
7
For best ergonomics, I was always taught that my forearms should be parallel with the floor, with the fingers resting comfortably on top of the piano keys - so, the arms should be a little above the level of the keys, not reaching up or reaching down. I'd adjust the piano so that the correct piano-playing posture (seated on edge of seat, heel on floor to ...
7
For use with a piano I don't think it's particularly necessary to have good headphones. You want ones that can handle a good range of volume without the clarity being greatly affected, so you'd best avoid tinny little earbuds, but other than that you should be OK. One possible exception is if you're playing pieces that go extremely low on the keyboard; A0 ...
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