We’re approaching that time of year when everything ramps up for holiday season, and many people’s thoughts turn to gifting.
Here’s our short guide to picking thoughtful and useful gifts for the keyboard musicians in your life (or picking up something for yourself you may not have thought of.)
Of course, it’s also great for any birthdays coming up (funnily enough, they seem to come around at all times of the year.)
We’ve focused on accessories and add-ons rather than digital pianos, keyboards and synths. If you’re in the market for those, check out our keyboard instrument buyers guide. If buying for a child, try our guide to buying a child’s keyboard instrument.
Practice & Learning
Making it easier for musicians to play, practice and study is achieved with a good environment and access to training materials.
Notice that your musical friend is playing in sub-optimal lighting conditions? Why not gift them the BenQ PianoLight, a purpose-built lamp that evenly covers keys and music score, with eye-care dimming and a wide spread.
It’s an upgrade from clip-on lights, though it may not be quite as portable. For the home and studio environment, though, it’s a great addition.
A metronome is also a great addition (though much as gifting deodorant to someone may imply that you think the person has hygiene issues, it’s best not to suggest your musician friend has timing problems). Although many keyboard instruments, computers and even tablets and phones have built-in metronomes/apps, a standalone version like the Korg TM-70T is great to have on hand to put right next to the instrument.
It even has a handy tuner, which may not be required by keyboard players but is useful if guitarist friends want help tuning up.
If you have a budding musician who isn’t already having lessons from a human teacher or online — perhaps they’re trawling YouTube for help to play a favourite song — why not gift them a subscription to an online course or community?
Services to consider include Flowkey, Pianote and Skoove.
Hands Free Music Reading
If your pianist friend has already embraced digital scores on a tablet or computer, rather than shuffling papers and books around, they may still value an automated page turner so they can use their foot to control which part of the musical score is displayed, without taking their hands from the keyboard.
Ideas include the AirTurn BT500S-2, which is Bluetooth enabled with a 200ft range, 200 hours of use per battery charge, and a robust pedalboard design.
Alternatively the PageFlip Butterfly uses AA batteries which can be swapped out as required. It’s reliable and has a silent pedal action.
Recording & Content Creation
For your electronic music keyboard users who use DAW software on their computer, they may appreciate an audio interface such as the Focusrite Scarlett 2i2. It can capture audio from microphones as well as directly from instruments.
The Roland GO:MIXER PRO X is a pocket interface and mixer designed for use with phones, and is a simple way to capture audio such as when creating videos for practice or publishing.
Silent Practice & Monitoring
A good pair of headphones is great when musicians want to practice without disturbing others. Although wireless models can suffer with delay, it’s possible to get ones which have minimal latency. These include the Yamaha YH-WL500 low-latency instrument-tuned wireless headphones which are ideal for digital use where timing and feel is important. Alternatively the Audio-Technica ATH-M50xBT2 are a solid choice.
Wireless MIDI
Stripping the wires away further is moving to wireless MIDI. If your musician friends are doing anything with electronic keyboards and digital pianos connected to computers or other instruments, they’re almost certainly using MIDI — and possibly have a mess of wires to go along with it.
The CME WIDI uHOST adds low-latency Bluetooth MIDI to any keyboard which has a USB MIDI port, while the Roland WM-1 can be used with the original style 5-pin DIN MIDI ports.
Comfort & Ergonomics
Pianists may especially appreciate an adjustable piano bench, possibly with built-in storage for music manuscripts or a hydraulic lift. This leads to better posture and improved playing. If they’re currently using a chair or their bench has seen better days, this could be a thoughtful gift.
Other ideas include cushioned footrests — particularly good for younger players at an acoustic piano — and anti-fatigue floor mats for those who stand at their keyboard instrument.
Sheet Music & Books
Musicians who can play music from a manuscript may like new material. Figure out what level of proficiency they are, and the styles of music they prefer to play.
Beautifully printed scores come from publishers such as Henle Urtext or Faber. Modern pop and jazz collections can be found in “coffee table” songbooks.
Alternatively, why not gift them a practice journal or theory workbooks.
Creative & Studio
Although many musicians now use their phone to record audio, a standalone device may still be appreciated as it just gets the job done without fiddling in apps or being interrupted by calls and messages. Portable recorders include the Zoom H4n Pro and the Tascam DR series. These can be invaluable for recording practice sessions or rough arrangements for working on later.
If you know what music software they use, vouchers for sample libraries or virtual instruments can be good.
Care & Maintenance
Keeping keyboard instruments in good condition may require specialist cleaning kits or supplies.
Personal & Fun
Fun and quirky gifts can include personalised musical mugs, T-shirts, socks, or jewellery. Piano puzzles and board games can offer a musically related gift. Musical gadgets such as pocket synths can be fun.
We hope this short guide has given you some ideas for what to buy for your musical friends and family.
