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Workshop/
| Marshall Music introduces Festival August, 2002 Over the years we at Marshall Music have heard band directors across the state wishing their students had the opportunity to purchase step up instruments as they enter the eighth grade and high school band years. The beginning instruments your students start on are adequate to meet the performance need of the students while providing a comfortable price range for their parents. Working with you Marshall Music has sought to provide a quality instrument that will meet the basic requirements of your students through graduation. Unfortunately, we all realize that these beginning instruments do have their limitations as the student progresses and the demands of the literature increase. Most of us have watched that student who tries a Bach Strad trumpet or Buffet R13 clarinet and suddenly gets that characteristic tone he or she has heard and never knew they had. The beginning instrument manufacturer has to balance a comfortable price for parents indulging yet another of their children’s interests with the features it can offer. One cannot expect a $668 Yamaha 20 student clarinet to play like a Buffet R13 with a retail cost of $3492. This is where the worlds of idealism and pragmatism merge. In the beginning we are concerned with durability, strong cases that can take abuse, ease of play and cost. Over the years we have seen many “step-up” models introduced into the market to allow parents who can’t justify or afford the cost of a professional model instrument to at least find some middle-ground to provide a better horn than their child’s beginning instrument. Too often, these instruments offered little gain in quality or performance to justify the price. What was the band director to do? You knew that your students would benefit from an instrument with the features of a professional model but the price was becoming prohibitive unless the student was going to pursue music in college. You did not feel comfortable recommending that Johnny or Suzie buy a Buffet R13. The benefits to the average intermediate student did not justify the price. Still, you realized your students would benefit from an instrument more suited to their abilities. During the past few years technology and the expanding world economy have created manufacturing advances that have benefited the consumer. For instance, today you can buy a Buick Park Avenue comparable to the Cadillac Seville at a substantial savings. Not too long ago, names like Sanyo and Toshiba were considered distant alternatives to Sony. Not any more. The same technological advances and world economic dynamics have found their way into the instrument-manufacturing world. Today we are able to find quality violins made in China. Brasses designed and manufactured in Germany and the Czech Republic. The world market is producing phenomenal alternatives to the traditional professional model instruments. These intermediate model instruments have many of the same features of the professional instruments but at a substantial savings to the consumer. They are made to ever increasing standards of excellence. Familiar names like Getzen, Benge Gemeinhardt, Armstrong, Kanstul and newer names like Jupiter Carnegie and the exclusive Accent line (see our May newsletter), have realized the need to provide a quality and affordable alternative to the pro-line instruments. Beginning this August, Marshall Music is implementing a new program called the Festival Series. Marshall customers who have been leasing their instruments for eighteen months will be offered the opportunity to exchange their beginning instrument for a quality intermediate instrument with the features of a top line instrument at a much more affordable price while retaining 100% of their rent equity. You read that correctly. Marshall Music will apply 100% of the parent’s rent equity from the beginning instrument to one of our intermediate instruments. The Festival Series includes: · Quality intermediate instruments · Many of the features of professional model instruments · Significant cost savings compared to a professional model instrument · Easy exchange of the Marshall Music beginning instrument for a Festival Series instrument · Continue with Marshall Music’s exclusive rental/purchase agreement, adjusted for the new balance, with full maintenance and insurance · 100% of the rent equity of the beginning instrument applied to an exclusive Festival Series instrument upon exchange It is Marshall Music’s goal to lead the industry in meeting the needs of the music student, parent and educator. We are hopeful that the Festival Series Program will allow your students to improve their performance, reinvigorate their enthusiasm for band and allow your ensembles to reach their fullest potential through the purchase of quality intermediate instruments that represent value and the parent’s interest as well. For more information regarding the Festival Program contact our school service department at (517) 337-9700 or visit us on the web at marshallmusic.com. Educational Articles ● School Service Articles ● Product Articles ● Here's an Idea |
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