IMPORTANT INFORMATION REGARDING BAND
INSTRUMENT QUALITY!
Few things are as important to the band program
as good quality instruments. Recently, we have seen an influx of low quality, imported
band instruments moving into the market. The Internet is also full of very
undesirable, inferior instruments that may not be useable in the band
program. Many of these instruments are of poor quality, have little to no
quality control, and are not serviceable. These instruments can quickly lead to
loss of interest.
Many of the
inferior instruments look just fine on the outside. The inside is another
matter! They are often advertised as “director approved” or other positive
sounding terms to mislead the buyer.
For the sake of your child and the school band
program, the low quality
instruments should be avoided.
Please see your band director or a qualified band
instrument dealer for help before purchasing!
A good quality
instrument does come with a higher price tag, but can last a
lifetime. These instruments are more durable, and will hold up to the demands
of the student through concert and marching band. I hope you appreciate the
benefit of a high quality instrument. It will be a huge advantage to your
child.
If budget
restraints make it difficult for you, we highly recommend a name-brand used
instrument, as opposed to a new one of poor quality.
WHAT TO WATCH OUT FOR
We check eBay often to see what is available in used
instruments. When shopping on the
Internet and eBay, we find that over 90% of the instruments for sale are low
quality, without a know brand name, and a horrible choice. Even brand name instruments are somewhat
risky if you aren’t experienced at knowing what to look for. Do not buy any without a return policy. I can almost bet that your band director will
want you to return it.
For starters, always avoid
instruments that do not list a brand name (I have a list of some of the more
dependable name brands at the end of this article). Also, beware of all of the instruments that
come in a variety of colors. I haven’t
yet seen one that I didn’t want to flatten (see end of article). Some of these folks making the bad
instruments actually do put names on them.
For legal reasons, I can’t list names or countries of origin to
avoid. However, I can say that “Made in
Other enticing titles to avoid are: “Band Certified” “Educator Approved” “80% Off”
“90% Off” “Professional Silver
Trumpet” (but no recognizable brand listed) “Concert Quality” “Bankruptcy Sale” “New 2006 model” “College Pro”
If a band instrument claiming to be new has a buy-it-now price of
$79.95…... I don’t need to say more!.
If you get one of these thinking “I will see how it goes for a
while before purchasing a better one if my child sticks with it”…… I can about
guarantee they won’t play it long enough to need a better one. If they do, they are to be commended and
taken to dinner.
REMEMBER, a brand name instrument made 30 years ago (even 50 years
ago) is almost always a better choice than a new of poor quality.
THE GOOD STUFF
Although I warned against instruments coming in a variety of
colors, you may find a few good ones, but they will be few and far between, and
likely expensive! Certain custom colors
of Selmer Paris saxes are out there, as well as some Benge trumpets.
These will all go for four figures!
There are a few Vito student clarinets and King student trumpets that
are also good and may be green or red or white (you get the idea).
Now, for some of the common brand names in band instruments that I
look for and feel good about selling:
Armstrong, Artley, Bach, Benge,
Blessing, Bundy, Conn, King, Holton, Omega, LeBlanc,
Vito, Selmer, Yamaha, Besson, Emerson, Getzen, and Gemeinhardt. There are sure to be some more that I’ve
missed.
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