As the owner of piano—keyboard—reviews.com I often get e-mails from people who are looking for a digital piano to buy but given the vast choices of brands, models and features to choose from, can present a daunting challenge.

In the good old days of the 1970s and the 1980s there were very few electronic pianos to choose from unlike the selections available today.

Many of the e-mails that I received exhibited a common thread, “how can I choose a keyboard given the vast array out there. It’s virtually impossible to compare features and prices amongst the various brands and models”

After giving it some thought it became quite clear to me that I had to find a solution for many of the visitors to my site.

After some thought, it occured to me that I was looking at the problem from the wrong end. What I mean is that rather than looking at the problem from the point of view of the feature sets, it was best to focus on the buyer and their needs then match that to available features.

So, given my 42 years at the piano and my marketing background I came up with a solution, that to this day has worked exceedingly well in helping buyers to select the right keyboard for their needs.

The solution involves segmenting buyers into five categories based on their playing needs and objectives.

To put it quite simply these five segments can be thought of five player styles where each style determines not only how potential buyers play, but what they wish to accomplish in the future with their keyboard.

I’ve coined the terms that relate to each of the five playing styles:

– The Classic
– The Trad
– The Improv
– The Comp
– The Rock

Typically anyone who plays the piano would fall into one of these categories above.

So let’s look at each of these styles and as you read, you’ll discover the style that best suits you. Although there may be two or more styles that you identify with, typically there is one style that you will identify with.

But lets have a look at The Classic:
The Classic style can best be described as the style adapted to the classical pianist and performer who has studied classical piano for many years or is currently studying classical music. Someone who is a classical piano player would be looking for a piano that has extremely sensitive keyboard dynamics, in other words the keyboard articulates every little nuance demanded of it by the pianists fingers. So the touch sensitivity of the piano is extremely important to the classical musician. The Yamaha YDP161 would be a good example of a digital piano for the classical musician.

The Trad
This style is well adapted to those who do not have a lot keyboard experience and are typically exploring their musical abilities and do not have a well-defined style as of yet. In these cases typically I would recommend a digital piano which is middle-of-the-road, an affordable digital piano. What is important for these pianos is a set of features that allows the beginning pianist to play along with prerecorded songs that offer the full orchestra experience. The keyboard should be flexible enough to allow the aspiring player to select a multitude of songs representing different musical styles, allowing the pianist to experiment with different music styles. The Yamaha P85 is good keyboard for The Trad

The Improv
You’re an experienced musician and piano player with the ability and agility to improvise. In other words, you like to play solos and piano licks on the fly. You need a keyboard that is responsive and can take everything you dish out. Typically jazz musicians like the distinct touch and sound of the Yamaha baby grands . But to find an equivalent in the digital piano world I would recommend the Yamaha CP300 digital piano.

The Comp
This style refers to the traditional composer. Someone who doesn’t require a live performance keyboard but rather, a digital keyboard that provides a wide selection of instruments, allowing the composer to experiment with a complete canvas of creative sounds. Equally important is a keyboard that allows the composer to quickly record new musical ideas.. The recorder should accommodate 16 track recording with at 256 keys of polyphony, meaning up to 256 notes can be played concurrently without overtasking the keyboard. The Korg M3 Workstation is a perfect example of keyboard for the composer.

The Rock
You’re playing in a rock band and you need a keyboard that can fit the bill. You need a keyboard that is a road warrior, that can take a beating on the road and still sound great with the rest of the band playing. You should look at stage pianos like the Roland Juno G or the Yamaha YPG 635. These keyboards offer versatility and ruggedness for the road. They are perfect as an accompaniment and soloing keyboard.

All in all, there is a keyboard that will fit your playing style. Rather than look at the feature sets offered, look inwardly at your playing ability and style; understand your playing strenghts and what you want to accomplish then choosh one of the 5 playing styles above. Armed with that information and what your goals are, you should easily be able wade through the myriad of keyboards to find the right one for you.

About the author: Dan Maynard is a pianist and marketer, a rare combination. He owns and publishes information and reviews of digital pianos at http://www.piano-keyboard-reviews.com/.