Finding the right instrument for your child

A full-sized symphony orchestra is made up of over ninety musicians that play in four different sections – the strings, woodwind, brass and percussion.  There are over twenty-five different instruments in total, and nowadays almost all of them are available for children to learn from the beginner level.

So if and when a child has the opportunity to pick a musical instrument to learn to play, how do they know which one to choose?     It has been proven that if a child personally selects their instrument, there is a greater chance they will continue learning it in the long term.  Of course, for the parent, there are practical decisions to consider too – the price of the instrument and the child’s physicality, to name a few; however, it is always key to ask when a child hears each of the different musical instruments, which one makes their favourite sound?

The sound qualities of the instruments are very different, and they do vary dramatically in the volume of sound they produce.  Some musical instruments produce a very smooth sound, while others can be more shrill.  Consequently, each instrument has its own unique character even before the children begin to learn or listen to musical repertoire, so it is very important that the child enjoys the sound the instrument makes if they decide to play it!