August 15, 2022
Your child’s school instrument will likely stay in the family for a long time. Assuming they start in 5th grade and play through high school, that's a minimum of 8 years that you'll have it. Maybe they even continue into college, start gigging with it, or it’s passed down to a sibling or younger relative. That's why it’s important you choose a quality instrument from the start that will hold up to years of frequent use! Here’s what to look for in a Band & Orchestra instrument.
We only carry great brands we're proud to stand behind. In fact, we have the best instruments in the area and the biggest selection! Choose from Very Good, Good, Excellent, or Brand New condition! Our experts examine each one before it ever hits the show floor so that you can expect a great-playing, perfectly assembled instrument, with tested parts and pads. If there's ever a problem with one of our instruments due to workmanship, we cover the repair for free, whether it's a rental instrument or you buy it outright.
We find the best price online and slash it by 10% for teachers and students! Don't waste time searching or worrying that it arrives in one piece - buy anything from our store and you'll get the best price - guaranteed! Monthly payments are as low as $20/month or buy it outright to save even more. We also stock all of the accessories you could need, from care kits, to reeds, and valve oils.
✔ Look for speedy repairs.
We have two incredible band repair techs, Rick who has been here for decades and Sivan who is a talented gigging musician and tech. These guys can kick out repairs at a speed only a qualified, locally-owned store can offer. While your child's instrument is in the shop, if we can't fix it on the spot, we'll loan you one of our instruments so they won't miss a beat on their practice schedule. Band teachers, you can expect us to be back at your school to check in periodically and make any needed repairs, once again! Please give us a call if you need us to come out earlier!
✘ Avoid plastics and unusual materials.
We also see a lot of repairs on these “bargain” instruments, that can become costly, and we can’t always fix the problem if it’s made of a bad material. In general, if it's an unusual color, and the price is also too good to be true, you can expect it to be cheaply made with subpar materials.
Online instruments in the flashy colors and even flashier price points can be really tempting. Who doesn’t want to save a few bucks? The reality is, though, you get what you pay for and the student is the one who suffers. It’s challenging enough to learn to play music on a quality instrument. What happens when the pads are bad, air is escaping, the design isn’t right, or it’s just assembled badly? It becomes hard to play. The tone is uninspiring. Your child becomes frustrated, they stop wanting to practice, and eventually quit. Not to mention, do those companies do anything to support music in South Dakota? We actually supply the folders to local schools for students to store their music in, we're present at band rental nights at area schools, and we sponsor ads where we can.
Trade your instrument in for another at any time or simply send it back to us if your child loses interest. We're here to make music education easily accessible for students and convenient for parents. You also always have the option to buy the instrument outright and each monthly rental payment goes toward that purchase. Thank you for shopping locally!
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