Question re Keyboard to learn Piano

[purplerabbit]

So R wants a keyboard for his birthday. He wants to learn to play the piano and we don't have room for a piano in our house. So do I have to get an 88-key one for him to learn properly. I am confused by the array of keyboards and the different numbers of keys -- 61, 76, 88 -- and need to know what to get him. Suggestions?

Comments

[freeimprov.livejournal.com]

The key quality is an excellent point. It's a much bigger playability issue than the number of keys. I have a Kurzweil stage piano that feels really good. The Yamaha synth? Feels like a toy.

What you want is "fully weighted keys" if possible, and the kind with flat, piano-style fronts rather than cutaways. The cheap Casios have the cutaway, unweighted or "semi-weighted" keys, and don't feel nearly as substantial. Weight means resistance, and resistance means more precise control.