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Showing posts from June, 2015

Jargon busting - What are 'weighted' keys?

Hello all, I always do my best to explain things in a clear and straightforward way, but occasionally, as I'm sure is the case in many professions, I catch myself using industry jargon or slang to describe things, this is a habit I am trying to break! So every now and then I will write a short blog to explain things in more detail, the first subject is 'weighted keys'. If you have been researching keyboards or digital pianos then you will have certainly come across the words 'weighted keys'. What it is referring to is the feel of the keys when you press them down. Look at the piano below. Looks like the piano you had at your Granddad's, or at your school right? Do you remember how those keys felt to press down? They were heavy, there was resistance in them. This was because on the inside the keys are attached to a mechanism called the 'action', see below. It's essentially a series of levers that transfers your pressing of the key into

Yamaha CLP525 v CLP535 comparison - What piano should I buy?

I've just finished a video where I compare the first two pianos in Yamaha's CLP Clavinova range. They are both excellent pianos so it was a pleasure to sit with my notebook and get into the finer details of what each one has to offer. The CLP535 definitely has the edge as you'd expect for the extra £250(ish) it costs, but I couldn't say a bad thing about the CLP525, ok it's not as special as the CLP535 but what a brilliant little piano and for under £1000! What it really comes down to is longevity, it's highly likely that if you're a beginner and you go for the CLP535 you are not going to outgrow it as fast as the CLP525. And if you're an experienced player I think if you get the chance to try them side by side you will come to the same conclusion as me; the CLP535 is simply a better piano. Like the old maxim says "you get what you pay for', certainly the case here. Watch the video and see what you think! More videos coming soon, and

What piano should I buy? - Yamaha Clavinova quick guide

The Yamaha Clavinova digital piano is one of the world's most popular digital pianos, why? because they look, sound and feel so close to the real thing and are reasonably affordable. CLP585PE (left) & CLP565GP (right) The first thing you will notice when browsing the Yamaha Clavinova range is there are two distinct categories; the CLP (Classical piano) and CVP (Classical versatile piano). In short CLP gives you all the features you'd expect from a digital piano like volume control, ability to wear headphones etc. And CVP gives you all that and a whole lot more built in too, like the ability to play along with bands, a karaoke machine, and a big computer screen to read music from while learning to play. Clavinova CVP609 There are many features on both pianos that make them great, and you shouldn't be put off simply by the fact the CVP range has more features and buttons, if you or your children are learning to play it can be far more beneficial to have