Once you know you’re ready for a new instrument, it’s important to consider your goals as a player before you actually go shopping. Claire Givens, owner of Claire Givens Violins in Minneapolis, asks prospective buyers to consider how their instrument will be used. In a hall? In a church? Are you a young prodigy or an adult amateur playing for your own enjoyment?
“Figure all the out. Then go into it with an absolute open mind about sound and response”, Givens says. “People get the best instrument when they come in and don’t say, ‘I want something old’ or ‘I really like brown violins’ or ‘I was told to stay away from French instrument.’ Instead, they come in and say, ‘I really want to experience every one of these instrument and see what they can do for me.’”
SETTING A BUDGET
People often ask Givens about pricing. She says there are four things that go into pricing any instrument: authenticity, quality of craftsmanship, condition, and sound. First-time buyers won’t be able to determine authenticity and quality of workmanship, but Givens says that if you do business with a reputable dealer, you can get a crash course in how to listen and how to look at the condition of an instrument.
How much to spend depends on a lot of things, Leek-Dedon agrees, but as a general rule she advises that it’s reasonable to double or triple the value on your first step up from beginning instrument to a quality instrument. “I had a young woman come into the shop who had been playing less than a year,” she recalls, “She was not that good, but she showed good consideration, had a good ear, and probably could do well with it in the future. She had been told by a public school teacher that she should spend $3,000 or $4,000 on her first instrument. I said, ‘Well, I think that’s really high.’ Sure, I’d like to sell a more expensive instrument. But sometimes you place yourself with a too-expensive instrument and you’re not ready for it.”
WHERE TO PURCHASE YOUR INSTRUMENT
Several experts warn against trying to buy your first good instrument at an auction, although prices there may be low. As St. Paul instrument maker and dealer John Waddle points out, auction house’s viewing room will be big and unfamiliar, with lots of other people playing and talking. You’re not going to have sufficient time, they’re not going to let you take the instrument out for a week and try it, and no follow-up services will be provided.
Teacher commissions can be another potential pitfall for the unwary or uninformed buyer. Some dealers pay teachers who help students pick out an instrument from their shop. The commission is usually a percentage of the sale price of the instrument. Not all shops and teacher engage in the practice, and when the buyer is informed that a commission is being paid, there is nothing unethical about a teacher being reimbursed for the time and effort he or she puts into helping a student make a difficult choice. But buyers should be aware that in some cases commissions are paid without their knowledge, and then the objectivity of the teacher’s advice can legitimately be questioned.
