Renting an instrument for orchestra???

[StephMK]

When DD played the viola, the cost was about $42 a month. Now she plays the baritone & we rent through the school for $90 a year. DS plays the cello - it was $47 a month but I found a really nice used one on CL and paid $100 for it. He's in his second year and I know I can resell it for the same price if he decides to stop.

I love that our kids are musical too! I did have some sticker shock at first though. Our oldest DD is a singer so we've never paid any fees for that.

 

[Pigeon]

My 14yo is a pretty serious violinist. I would definitely do rent to own, and your school should be able to recommend a few places. They get to know who runs a good business. We paid about $35/month. Last year, we had about $1500 accumulated, we kicked in a little more and were able to buy her a high quality instrument that should last her through high school.

In addition to the size issue, student violins need frequent minor repairs or adjustments. The place we rented from was great about fixing the instruments and giving us a loaner if we needed to have it sent out.

Her private tutor really was hoping we'd spring for an $8,000 instrument, but that won't happen unless she's interested in a career in music.

 

[gr8leg8]

Violin rental $20 per month and the first 12 months can be applied to buying.
We are in Northern California.

 

[las3888]

I am a private violin instructor, and one place I would recommend you check out is sharmusic.com. You can 'purchase' a violin and their student violins in the $200-$400 price range are quite nice - I have had most of them on trial. If you want to trade-in, you can do so and receive a credit towards a larger size. You would want to find out from your child's teacher what size they recommend.

Keep in mind, if your student becomes somewhat advanced, you would want to move them beyond the student violin range which is a whole different ballgame.

I personally find renting somewhat of a racket. I am quite familiar with the instruments commonly (not always but I say COMMONLY--ESPECIALLY in schools) used for rental and find they can often be purchased resale for approx. $300 (if that). I came into a violin recently that the family diligently kept all their rental receipts for. They paid well over $600 for a violin that I personally could not re-sell to another family for more than $250.

Be careful.

 

[Sadie22]

One DS started out with a rental violin. He did not play exceptionally well right away and it was all I could do to convince him to stick with the program through the first concert. Another DS played clarinet. At first we did the rent to own agreement for a student (plastic) clarinet through a local store. In middle school we learned how talented he really was and we finally followed the instructors' advice to get private lessons for him. His instructor kept an ear out for a good buy and went with me to a major music store in the next county to purchase a used professional clarinet which took DS through high school competitions. The plastic clarinet was used for high school marching band.

Your child may or may not stick with band, so renting is good to start. If you do decide to buy at a later date, get all the professional advice you can. In-school band programs vary in how much individual attention a child receives. I wish I had tried private lessons for the would-be violinist early on as that may have made a difference for him.

 

[tasha99]

We pay $50 per month for DS's cello rental. We could buy one used for about $600, but we're a bit cash poor right now and I don't think he'll play past this year.

 

[Janet Hill]

Try the online site sharmusic.com. They have great customer service. Though you do need to know the size instrument your child will need. My daughter needed a full size violin from the beginning so I didn't really want to spend money on a rental.

The prices are good and they sell instruments in a very wide price range.

The site was recommended to me by a friend's daughter who is now a graduate student on full scholarship (violin performance) at either Juliard or Manhatten Conservatory so I figured she would know.

 

[lukenick1]

My DS is in 5th grade and we rented a clarinet from our local music store for $47 for 3months, then $47 for the next 3 months, etc. He chose clarinet because he ultimately wants to play the saxaphone. He was great on the recorder too.

 

[chiefmickeymouse]

We just started renting a cello for dd(11). It is $49 a month and because it's a new cello they required the insurance ($9 a month). We also had to do a credit check. This is a full sized cello because our daughter is very tall. I had to call around and out of the four recommended stores only two even had one in stock to rent. We also pay $40 a year to the school so she can use their cello during class and not have to haul hers back and forth. We are in South Carolina.

When we lived in Alaska, the school gave ds a cello to borrow for free. When he switched to full-sized violin we rented for $29 a month.

 

[pannm]

I checked out shar and they look pretty good. They have rentals on sale right now too!!! That's quite nice! I will have to wait and see what they offer through the school. The company that rents for our school is based out of a town 40 miles from us and they have had a wonderful reputation here.

I worry about getting something from that distance and not having it for a little while when she has to get a repair or has to 'size up'

 

[wishesuponastar]

I haven't read through the replies but I wanted you to know what our orchestra teacher recommended for DD's viola. She said to rent for the first 9 months (the music store has a deal for $120 for 9 months) then buy a used viola if my DD is still interested in playing it will be cheaper to buy used then to keep renting.

 

[CarlisleMom]

This is DD9'd first year of cello. Her's is a 1/2 size. Our rental is $39 a month. this includes all maintenance/damage repair. If she is still playing when she needs a full size then we'll buy. Half of all rental fees will be applied to when we buy. We are not committed to renting for any length of time. So if she really hates it (unlikely) we just return and stop paying.

Our local music shop (who we have used for years for DH's guitar repairs) strongly recommended renting until we need full size.... but DH was leaning towards this anyway.

 

[KristiKelly]

I wouldn't advice buying with a child. Many places offer a rent to own program. With string instruments, they come in different sizes and kids will need to move up as they grow. My daughter is in 6th grade and plays violin, she moved up to a 3/4 size in January. We pay $180 for a year to rent, it's a little cheaper to pay a year upfront than pay monthly.

My son played Cello in elem. school but then decided to play stand up bass in middle school. He has decided not to play now that he's in high school. He was playing with a 1/2 size bass and we payed $56 per month, it was also a rent to own. I have to return next week to avoid being charged another month.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

Ds wanted to play the sax in 4th grade. I wasn't sure he would stick with it so we opted to rent from a local store, coordinated through the school at $37/month. We had to the option to rent for 3 mos, or 10 mos the 1st year. We opted to rent for 10 mos and gave it back in June. The next Sept we could sign on again with rent to own and all money paid in past apply toward purchase cost.
Now he's starting 6th grade and though he wants to play in the middle school band, he never practices and doesn't exactly love to play. The rental is a Yamaha which I've never seen for less than $1300 to buy. This is way too much to spend, imho, for kids who are unsure if they want to play or are not very passionate about learning it & practicing, as is the case with ds11.

 

[dimimi]

Ask around your school. At your first orchestra meeting you will be giving information on where they would "prefer" you rent. With the rentals you get insurance for accidents and repairs. When my son played he tripped and fell with the violin...an adult witnessed it and there was no horse play involved. The store gave us another one. We didn't even need to explain the accident. (Whew) Also, check how long a repair takes. If a string breaks, you will want it fixed quickly. That's why I would suggest asking parents who already rent fromt he stores in your town.

 

[Magic Mom]

Just to clarify my earlier comment...

DON'T BUY A VIOLIN. You'll see lots of cheap instruments on Ebay - DO NOT BUY. Nearly all of those are so cheaply made that they are virtually unplayable.

I've seen instruments that a "thrifty" parent (read: cheap) bought and insisted that their child play. It would take hundreds of dollars just to FIX the instrument so that it was playable (usually, 2-3x the actual purchase price)!!

RENT. RENT. RENT.

My friend bought her daughter a flute on ebay, and swears up and down it was the best way to go and I am foolish for renting. But that flute is a piece of junk. The pads are shot, the springs are shot and it sounds like crap. But my friends thinks it's awesome because it only cost $35.

 

[KristiKelly]

I agree with furb & dez,
I have always heard the cheap violins, cello, etc. will not stay in tune.

 

[DrMomof3]

My 7 year old plays violin and we pay about $120 for the year, including insurance. We rent from a small music store which was recommended by his music school. When he started 2 years ago he had a 1/10th sized violin and now has a 1/8th size. One nice thing about the rental is that we could up-size him mid-year for no additional cost.

Amanda

 

[MinnieGi]

My 11 you also plays violin. She started about a year and a half ago. We have rented so far as she started with a 1/2 size violin and then moved up to 3/4 and just recently moved into the full size violin. Our rent is $21.00 per month.

However her attention is waning now on violin as she also dances on a competition team and is thinking about trying out the clarinet in school band this year. So renting has been good for us....we just may be changing from violin to clarinet.

 

[furb & dez]

My friend bought her daughter a flute on ebay, and swears up and down it was the best way to go and I am foolish for renting. But that flute is a piece of junk. The pads are shot, the springs are shot and it sounds like crap. But my friends thinks it's awesome because it only cost $35.

It will probably cost at least $200 to fix up that flute to be playable. Not such a "bargain"...

Plus, if it was sold for $35, it probably just a piece of junk to begin with. Remember the old saying about polishing a turd?