My daughter loved playing her recorder so after her first year, we bought one for her so that she didn't have to use the schools. Better to stick with plastic though because all kids do chew a little on the mouthpiece and her first one was a wood recorder and it very quickly got damaged due to chewing. Her next lasted longer and the sounds were not as good but it wasn't significantly worse.

Anonymous wrote:Please don't speak of the recorder. My ears are still ringing from the incessant playing of Hot Cross Buns, Mary Had a Little Lamb, and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, and my kid is a sophomore in high school. There is a special place in hell for the music teachers who think that giving fourth graders high pitched, blow-able objects is a good idea.

Yeah My daughter has to play the recorder in high school too! And hose songs too!!! She could hardly believe it as she had learnt recorder in grade 3 and went on to the clarinet. Naturally she is bored passed with flying colours but she still had to play with all her classmates. She is the one now suffering from sore ears and not us. (Because she doesn't need to practice it one bit at home!)

Please don't speak of the recorder. My ears are still ringing from the incessant playing of Hot Cross Buns, Mary Had a Little Lamb, and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, and my kid is a sophomore in high school. There is a special place in hell for the music teachers who think that giving fourth graders high pitched, blow-able objects is a good idea.

Anonymous wrote:haha... Talking about bins - Anyone has any idea why my teacher would have 4 bins. For clean and dirty and for boys and girls. They were big bins so space wasn't an issue and we had small classes so I was wondering why the difference. Was she sexist? Wished I could have asked her!

One friend told me boys are dirtier and have more slob in their recorders apparently. Really??!!

YuP. I think so. My two sons included. They can play just for only one minute and saliva drips out the other end! They don't care if it smells and if food gets stuck in it. My daughter on the other hand knows how to wash it and she is just 6!

haha... Talking about bins - Anyone has any idea why my teacher would have 4 bins. For clean and dirty and for boys and girls. They were big bins so space wasn't an issue and we had small classes so I was wondering why the difference. Was she sexist? Wished I could have asked her!

One friend told me boys are dirtier and have more slob in their recorders apparently. Really??!!

I used the schools recorder. (Also 90s for me!) one bin was clean and the other dirty and we just took any from the clean bin that we fancied. I didn't remember the teethmarks being there bothered me one bit but I remembered there were some that were really chewed up badly by some nervous child. But I instead looked for the lighter coloured beige ones compared to the dark brown or black ones. Some how the beige one felt cleaner and less chance of something crawling out of it.


My daughter now uses the school as well. But the system is slightly improved and she gets assigned a number and uses the same one throughout the year. She also has two bins and could put it to dirty when she thinks it smells bad and it needs a wash. But otherwise she keeps it at her desk and uses the same one each week. She doesn't bring it home either and all practice is done in school. (good for my ears!)


I really wished we could afford our own oboe (expensive) or flute. I used the flute and piccolo in my band days.

90s, my brother, sister and I all provided our own recorders.

Band: brother and sister provided own drum sticks, bought practice pads, rented bells, drum set and used the rest of the percussion equipment while in class, practice or performance. There was no choice for percussion section, and anyone that forgot drum sticks was charged double what they were charged if theirs broke during practice or performance.

I used my mother's flute the first year of band. Second year, my combined Christmas/birthday present was a refurbished open hole flute. Third year, combined present was a refurbished piccolo. No, none were new, but all were cleaned, checked and fixed by the instrument company.

My mother made sure that we all knew how to care for the instruments. I was debating between oboe and piccolo, and they would have done a refurbished oboe as well. Rented instruments weren't allowed to go home, the kids had to stay after school to practice.

We thought we would save money and use the schools. Sure it had teethmarks but we washed it with hot water and my daughter was ok with it. But Two weeks ago, the school charged us for it! They said my daughter chewed on the recorder! It was already chewed when we got them by other hungry kids! Sure she could have added a few more of her own but don't all kids do? Having us now pay for it for using an old instrument is ridiculous! I would say just buy your own!

I will buy my own. All kids chew their recorders!