Violin for 6th Grader--Keep Renting or Buy

[Sleepy425]

I stopped taking violin lessons in 6th grade, but am so glad we owned my violin. I still play it 20 years later! So even though she may not continue lessons, having it to fool around with and teach herself new stuff (I bought Disney music to learn when I was a teenager) will be worth it.
But, I also started at age 4 so violin was a big part of my childhood. So I can't imagine not always having a violin. My son is 4 and we are renting until I can find violins I like and then will start buying (with 4 kids it will make more sense to own each size rather than rent).

 

[stsomewhere]

You child will grow. She needs a violin that is bases on her arm length. My son played viola and we went through 3 violas before he stopped growing.

 

[havaneselover]

You child will grow. She needs a violin that is bases on her arm length. My son played viola and we went through 3 violas before he stopped growing.

She started with a full size violin when she was 10 (almost 11). Maybe she has long arms??? I wouldn't consider buying if she weren't already in a full size instrument.

 

[mykidslovesdisney]

we used to rent from Music and Arts but found them too expensive. I was able to find a rental for $150 for the year including the insurance. The violin is soo much better than Music And Arts violin. We recently purchased one of our rentals - our 6th grader - will play for 3 years in Middle school. It was cheaper to purchase the violin then rent it. the only draw back to owning it was if it broke we had to pay for the repair -- which it did -- the bridge cracked. Cost us $120 to repair it. so any savings was just lost. We are still renting our 8th graders violin. He has a better violin - $250 rental- The cost to purchase the violin was the same as renting it.

Our music teachers have to promote Music and Arts but they will tell you not to rent from them.

Check out The String House in Rochester NY. Awesome people and soo very affordable. We are in CT and are extremely happy with them.

good luck with your decision.

 

[squeegee]

we used to rent from Music and Arts but found them too expensive. I was able to find a rental for $150 for the year including the insurance. The violin is soo much better than Music And Arts violin. We recently purchased one of our rentals - our 6th grader - will play for 3 years in Middle school. It was cheaper to purchase the violin then rent it. the only draw back to owning it was if it broke we had to pay for the repair -- which it did -- the bridge cracked. Cost us $120 to repair it. so any savings was just lost. We are still renting our 8th graders violin. He has a better violin - $250 rental- The cost to purchase the violin was the same as renting it.

Our music teachers have to promote Music and Arts but they will tell you not to rent from them.

Check out The String House in Rochester NY. Awesome people and soo very affordable. We are in CT and are extremely happy with them.

good luck with your decision.

Holy cow, $120 for a new bridge now! They used to be about a $20 part, easy to change on your own, but I think I paid about $30 to have one replaced once. Granted, that was over ten years ago. Inflation, I guess.

 

[mykidslovesdisney]

Holy cow, $120 for a new bridge now! They used to be about a $20 part, easy to change on your own, but I think I paid about $30 to have one replaced once. Granted, that was over ten years ago. Inflation, I guess.

Apparently each bridge is custom made for the instrument . Music and arts in town was $99 to repair but 4 weeks turn around bc they send it out. The String House quoted $120 but charged us $99 - shipping was $20 but we had it back in a week. They do repairs in house.

 

[havaneselover]

we used to rent from Music and Arts but found them too expensive. I was able to find a rental for $150 for the year including the insurance. The violin is soo much better than Music And Arts violin. We recently purchased one of our rentals - our 6th grader - will play for 3 years in Middle school. It was cheaper to purchase the violin then rent it. the only draw back to owning it was if it broke we had to pay for the repair -- which it did -- the bridge cracked. Cost us $120 to repair it. so any savings was just lost. We are still renting our 8th graders violin. He has a better violin - $250 rental- The cost to purchase the violin was the same as renting it.

Our music teachers have to promote Music and Arts but they will tell you not to rent from them.

Check out The String House in Rochester NY. Awesome people and soo very affordable. We are in CT and are extremely happy with them.

good luck with your decision.

Thanks!! DD's teacher has a lot of "suggestions" and only wanted instruments rented from Music & Arts or another small store. There's only one brand Music & Arts rents to his students (Strobel made by Eastman). I can buy a used ML 80 which is what we're renting for $250 or so it seems or buy it from the Music and Arts for a little more (I think they told me around $300). Whatever I do, I don't want to continue paying $400/year to rent. I'm probably a few weeks away from making a decision.

 

[LJSquishy]

If you're certain she will be playing for a minimum of two more years, it is wise for you to buy one. At $35/mo to rent, you're spending $420/year (or $350/year if you don't rent during summer??) for a total of $840 (or $700 if summer is excluded from renting). If you can buy a step up for $750 I would go that route since you can always sell it used if she loses interest and if she indeed does decide to play in high school she'll already have a suitable instrument and won't need to upgrade.

 

[HM]

Has your student finished growing? The good thing about renting is when your child needs to move up a size in the instrument, you can do so without a change in cost. Once they reach their final size, then it's time to think about buying.

 

[havaneselover]

Has your student finished growing? The good thing about renting is when your child needs to move up a size in the instrument, you can do so without a change in cost. Once they reach their final size, then it's time to think about buying.

She started (when she was almost 11) in a full size so that makes buying more sensible. I wouldn't buy otherwise.

 

[HM]

She started (when she was almost 11) in a full size so that makes buying more sensible. I wouldn't buy otherwise.

Good. I don't think my kids were in a full size until a bit later than your daughter. (Son played Violin, Daughter played Cello).

 

[Dashzap]

Ask her how into it she is. My mom bought my flute without telling me. I dropped playing not long after.

I've been renting my son's trumpet since he was in 3rd grade. He's in 10th grade. @@ He likes playing in groups, but never practices. I figure at $17/month, I can rent for a long time.

I have bought him a succession of different sized mouthpieces over the years.

 

[ArmchairDetective]

My daughter started in strings in elementary school as a violinist. We have a family violin so we didn't have to pay to rent one. When she switched to Middle School she joined Orchestra, Fiddlers, and Jazz club. She also decided she wanted to switch to the double bass. So, we now pay $600/yr for her rental. Make sure she wants to stick with the violin before buying one! We have no plans, at this time, to purchase a double bass, unless I find one on Craigslist.

 

[havaneselover]

Ask her how into it she is. My mom bought my flute without telling me. I dropped playing not long after.

I've been renting my son's trumpet since he was in 3rd grade. He's in 10th grade. @@ He likes playing in groups, but never practices. I figure at $17/month, I can rent for a long time.

I have bought him a succession of different sized mouthpieces over the years.

She's one of those kids who enjoys everything she does so it's hard to gauge. But strings will definitely be her elective for the next two years. I'm not sure about high school since she is still only 11. Buying will be cheaper than renting for two years assuming she doesn't lose or break the violin so I'm leaning toward buying.

 

[TI double-GUH ER]

I'm a music teacher... what I tell the parents is this: kids are kids, and most will need "help" remembering to fit practice in to their schedule. It's similar to how they need reminders to clean their room, or brush their teeth, or do their homework... If your daughter is practicing without putting up a major fight every night, then she's showing sufficient interest to keep going. With all the options available to kids now, (not to mention the homework loads) 120 minutes per week is great! The other thing to remember about practice is that it isn't all about the amount of time -- it's about how you use the time. If she is practicing efficiently, 120 minutes per week is plenty of time for her to continue to make progress and be able to be a contributing member of her ensemble at school. There's something to be said for consistency. (I'd be thrilled if all of my students practiced that much every week!!)

The break even point on purchase over rental is usually about 2 years. If you're playing at least that long from this point, it makes sense to purchase.
So, I think you'd do fine to purchase your daughter an instrument, based on what you said here. I'd personally go with the step up instrument. She might outplay the beginner instrument sooner than you think. As someone else said, if she decides to give it up later, you can resell the instrument. Most likely, she'll see your purchase as a vote of encouragement on your part! Just be sure you buy a quality instrument. There are some real clunkers out there, and it's beyond frustrating to play on a junky instrument.
Good luck!

 

[homedad]

My son played the euphonium (mini tuba), it was 60 a month to rent. I bought a good used one for $450. He played for 2 years and then wanted out in 8th grade. Sold it this year for $825 on ebay minis 50 for shipping. Buy one.

 

[havaneselover]

I ended up buying DD the instrument we were renting. After the manager showed me the $1,300 violin (I know that's not a lot for a violin, but it's a lot for me) and then the brand new version of the one she was renting ($900) I told him I needed to think about it and might look around for a used one. Then he remembered I could buy the one she was renting. With a discount and the rental credit it was < $300. I did add on the two year maintenance agreement. With 18 month interest free financing it worked out to $25/month vs. $36/month to rent and I'll be done paying for it in December of 8th grade. Then if she doesn't want/need it after 8th grade I can sell it for $100 or so.