One of the most popular beginner instruments, the keyboard, certainly needs no introduction. Available in all price ranges and with a variety of functionality options, the keyboard is a versatile instrument, a must-have for artists, and one with a comparatively smaller learning curve than most other instruments.  

Keyboards come in various key counts: 25 key, 32 key, 61 key, and 88 key, and with different key actions – synth feel (lightweight), semi-weighted, weighted (similar to an Acoustic Piano), and graded hammer keys (like a Grand Piano). But more importantly, electronic keyboards are mainly of three types - Arrangers, Synthesizers, and MIDI Controllers. While each has a utility unique to their build, the basic functionality of an electronic keyboard is to make and reproduce music using a variety of sounds (pre-recorded or made from scratch), but with more versatile background scores and voice options. Analog keyboards make sound by striking a string (like a piano), plucking a string (like a harpsichord), or by depressing air through a pipe (like old pipe organs). The newer keyboards have a simple electronic circuit that replicates the stored sound when a key is pressed.