Important Notes (for all students)
- All relevant materials listed below must be in the student's possession prior to the first lesson / class.
- Please ask if you need help finding an item, choosing between options, or determining the correct size of instrument!
- Be sure to visit our list of recommended shops (below) for rentals, purchases, repairs, and upkeep.
- Lost or damaged items need to be repaired or replaced in a timely fashion to continue study.
- All materials other than those listed below will be provided as needed (such as books, sheet music, CDs, digital recordings, videos, & teaching aids).
- Teaching aids are loaned out temporarily from our materials library; all other items are the students to keep.
- A limited number of instruments are available for free, barter, or reduced cost rental for scholarship students.
Tech Requirements (for all students)
- access to a computer or mobile device
- webcam and microphone (internal or external)
- an internet connection (Ethernet strongly recommended); see Zoom system requirements here
- ability to easily access online portal and Zoom (with assistance from a household member if needed)
Violin & Viola Students Need:
- instrument (properly sized)
- bow (properly sized)
- protective case
- shoulder rest (properly sized; most of our students prefer either AcoustaGrip or Everest. Fom, Kun, Wolf, and Bonmusica are also good brands. Shoulder rest choice is based entirely on student comfort; if possible, try a few options before choosing one! The younger the student, the more likely they are to prefer the soft sponge styles over the "swoosh with feet" styles, but students of any age can prefer one or the other.)
- height adjustable music stand (optional for beginners, required for intermediate and advanced students)
- spare set of strings (properly sized)
Cello Students Need:
- instrument (properly sized)
- bow (properly sized)
- protective case
- endpin anchor
- music stand (optional for beginners, required for intermediate and advanced students)
- spare set of strings (properly sized)
Guitar Students Need:
- instrument (properly sized; classical strings are strongly recommended for all beginners for a gentler callous building experience)
- adjustable footrest
- protective case
- music stand (optional for beginners, required for intermediate and advanced students)
- spare set of strings (properly sized)
Piano Students Need:
- instrument (88 keys required; preferably an acoustic piano or fully-weighted touch sensitive electric piano)
- height adjustable bench, stool, or chair (for all but the tallest adult students)
- height adjustable footstool for (any student under 5 feet tall)
- music holder (most pianos have one attached!)
Recorder Students Need:
- instrument (soprano/descant for beginners age 7+; sopranino for beginners ages 3-6; recorders in other sizes/registers may be an option for teens and adults)
- protective bag or case
- adjustable height music stand (optional for beginners, required for intermediate and advanced students)
- note: instrument must have Baroque fingering (not German fingering)
- note: additional materials are required for care of wooden recorders (decent wooden recorders are more expensive than plastic ones ($300+ vs. $15), more fragile, and require periodic care; not recommended for children under 10)
Local and Online Instrument Shop Recommendations
Violin, viola, & cello: I highly recommend Loveland in Santa Rosa to all Sonoma County local violin, viola, and cello players looking to purchase, rent, or repair an instrument; their quality, level of care, and affordable pricing are unmatched. Good options outside of Sonoma County include Ifshin Violins, Johnson Strings, and Shar Music.
Piano & guitar: Guitar shops usually have a nice array of quality guitars to choose from and some have decent electric pianos as well. Sonoma County local shops I recommend are Stanroy, Bananas at Large, and People's Music (this is a non-exhaustive list). O'Hara Guitars is a well respected local guitar repair shop. Sweetwater stands head and shoulders above all online guitar and electric piano retailers in both quality and expert advice; if you aren't able to buy what you need locally, go there. For local acoustic piano tuning and repair, I highly recommend Beverly Wells at Piano Craft.
Recorder: My favorite brands for high quality beginning level plastic recorders are Aulos and Yamaha, available in many locations local and online. For intermediate or advanced players shopping for a high quality wooden recorder, check out Moeck and Kung.