The gift-giving season is rapidly approaching, and it’s about time to start making lists of what we’d like to buy and for whom.
If you have a child who’s taking piano lessons, you might want to commemorate your child’s efforts with a special gift. Piano teachers also should start thinking about what type of gifts they’d like to give their students – not only for the holidays, but perhaps as a thank-you after a successful recital, or for any reason at all.
Inexpensive piano student gifts can be a small way for you to thank your student for his or her hard work, can act as incentives to students and can motivate them to keep going.
Here we will look at some examples of the following types of inexpensive piano student gifts, each of which is priced under $15:
- Holiday gifts from piano teachers to students
- Piano recital gift ideas from piano teachers
- Holiday or recital gifts from parents to piano players
- Piano gifts for kids (younger piano students)
Holiday Gifts from Piano Teachers
For holiday gifts, some piano teachers like to give each student a personalized ornament. These can get expensive quickly, however. If you have many piano students, you might not want to go this route as it can add up to more than you’d probably like to spend. They are really cute, though, like this Rudolph and Me Personalized Piano Christmas Ornament at Amazon.com.
Non-personalized holiday ornaments can be just as fun for your students, and usually cost a lot less. This one by Ornament Central features a female blonde piano player, and is available in various styles (i.e., female piano player with brown hair, male piano player, etc.). Additionally, the manufacturer notes that this ornament can easily be personalized, if you wish, by using a Sharpie pen. Not only can you choose an ornament that resembles your student, you can also put his or her name on it!
Another cute piano ornament that is priced under $15 is this Musical Instrument Christmas Ornament 3.5 Inch Black Grand Piano by Broadway Gifts. It arrives ready to give your student encased in a red gift box. Your piano student will fondly remember you and treasure this ornament as he or she puts it on the Christmas tree each year for many years to come.
Other piano teachers have said that they like to give each student the same gift at holiday time, so as not to show favoritism. The best place to buy small, inexpensive piano gifts in bulk is OrientalTrading.com. They stock a variety of piano-themed gifts that won’t break the budget, from Musical Notes Pencils, to holiday-themed Music Notes Charms. Or you can buy a bunch of small gift items and place them into these Music Gift Bags.
These Music Beaded Bookmarks, by Peter Pauper Press are the perfect item to hold your place in your student’s piano music book and are affordable enough that you can buy one for every student. Another indispensable item that you, as a music teacher, might want to give your piano students is this Music Book Clip or Page Holder by Chesbro Music. This is invaluable for holding and keeping a book of music open to the right page. (They also come in handy when you’re reading and need to be hands-free!)
Piano teachers who are into homemade gifts might want to handcraft their own ornaments for their students. If you’re handy with a needle and thread, this kit of Dimensions Needle Felting, Sweet Gingerbreads might be right up your alley. It comes with everything you need to make three felt gingerbread ornaments.
Are you into counted cross stitch? If so, you might want to look at this Janlynn Christmas Cupcake Ornaments Counted Cross Stitch Kit. It contains the materials to make six cute 3-inch by 3-inch cupcake cross stitch ornaments.
Piano Recital Gift Ideas from Piano Teachers
Another occasion that piano teachers should commemorate by giving gifts is their students’ piano recital. Piano recital gift ideas can be tricky, as some teachers prefer to give each student the same gift, while others change the type of gift based on the age or seniority of the student.
(Caption: Although your piano student likely won’t play like this at his recital, it’s still an important day to remember through giving him a gift!)
One of the favorite recital gifts I received from my piano teacher when I was a piano student were small busts, or statuettes, of composers. He used to give us a different composer’s statue each year. I would anxiously look forward to the aftermath of the recital, wondering which composer I’d be rewarded with this year. Depending on how many piano students you have, you might want to purchase these in bulk, such as this Set of 18 Halbe Small Music Composers Statuettes. You can decide which student gets which composer, and they include: Wagner, Tchaikovsky, Strauss, Schubert, Mozart, Schumann, Rachmaninoff, Mendelssohn, MacDowell, Liszt, Haydn, Handel, Grieg, Debussy, Chopin, Brahms, Beethoven and Bach.
Piano teachers might also choose to give their students sheet music or piano books as recital gifts. (Don’t choose a boring book filled with rote exercises or scales as a gift, however, as these will not be appreciated by your piano students!) Perhaps you could choose a piece of music from their favorite composer, or a song that your student has been begging you that they want to learn to play? Books filled with popular music of the day, such as this Chart Hits by Hal Leonard Corporation, for example, are available for each year and include many of the pop songs from that year.
Do any of your piano students also compose their own music? If so, you might want to consider giving them this Music Journal by Peter Pauper Press. Available in hardcover and softcover, this journal contains lined pages for writing lyrics or ideas and staffed pages for composing music. It’s the perfect gift for a budding composer.
Holiday or Recital Gifts from Parents to Piano Players
If you are the proud parent of a piano student, you might want to show your student your pride in his or her performance through a special piano-related gift at holiday time or after a successful recital. There are some very creative gift ideas for piano players available. Can you imagine your child’s photo from recital day ensconced in a piano-themed picture frame? This Black & White Beveled Glass Music Theme Picture Frame by fc is the perfect choice to celebrate your child’s big day.
Does your son or daughter need something in which to carry all of his or her piano books and sheet music? This Piano Keys Music Waterproof Oxford Cloth Handbag Shoulder Tote by Rinastore is just the thing to keep your child’s beloved music dry when he or she is shuttling back and forth to piano lessons in all kinds of weather.
While they aren’t worn as often as they used to be, cufflinks are still necessary in some situations. These Piano Keys Cufflinks by Vcufflinks are the perfect way to accent your son’s outfit while displaying his love of music.
If your daughter is the piano student in the family, you might want to consider this Jiayiqi Jewelry Fashion Piano Keyboard Picture Pendant. This eye-catching pendant is made of a metal alloy and glass and comes with a 20-inch chain.
Piano Gifts for Younger Kids
Piano teachers and parents must become a bit more creative when choosing piano gifts for kids ages 7 and under. OrientalTrading.com can be helpful in this regard, as little kids often love small gifts such as the ones featured there. You can also find inexpensive small piano gifts in bulk on Amazon.com, such as these Premium 30 Animal Collectible Set of Adorable Japanese Style Novelty Erasers with bonus 120 Collectible Animal Stickers, because what little kid doesn’t love stickers?
I remember as a little kid loving to buy stationery of any type. My favorite aisle in the store was the one full of pencils, rulers, erasers and various types of stationery. If you have piano students who are fond of stationery, this Punk Music Themed School Supply Stationery Set might be just the ticket. It comes with eraser, pencils, ruler, pen box, and a pencil sharpener and is available in three different colors to please all students. Now your piano student can be thinking about music even when he or she is at school!
Some piano teachers who are crafty like to have a holiday party in which they create handmade ornaments with their younger students. If you have the proper materials, you can make almost anything without spending a bundle. Your students will have fun making them, too, which is an important part of the entire holiday/gift-giving experience!
Younger kids also love sweets, so some piano teachers choose to bake cookies or make candy for these students. If you do this, however, make sure to check with your students’ parents first to see if any of your students have food allergies that you must avoid triggering.
Kids love store-bought candy as well, and some might be just as satisfied with a simple, inexpensive candy cane or lollipop, or being allowed to choose their own piece of candy from a large grab bag you offer to all of your students. Did you know they even make fruit-flavored candy canes now, for those who don’t like the taste of peppermint? You can please all your students’ tastes!
If you teach only younger piano students, you might consider having a pizza party for them, either at the end of December before your holiday lesson break or just after a recital to celebrate. Again, make sure to check with parents of your students to see if there are any food allergies to be concerned with.
Conclusion
There are many different piano-related gift ideas that piano teachers or parents can give to piano students, whether it’s for the holidays, to honor a recital, or just because. You don’t have to break the bank to be able to give piano students something nice and memorable that they will treasure for a long time.
