Folding Music Stands

You have decided to learn sheet music and the time has come for you to buy a music stand – which one is best? That is an excellent question as there are so many in the market. Start by shopping for a folding music stand. These are stands that can fold away into smaller units that are easy to transport. Also, the fact that it folds means that once you are finished using it you can fold it and keep it away, leaving the room looking neat and tidy. Before you buy the stand fold it and see exactly what size it becomes. There are some that fold but not significantly. Ideally, it should fold into something just slightly longer than an A4 size paper with the legs nicely tucked away.
The best folding are sturdy music stand. If you are performing with others there tends to be quite a bit of movement around, and you don’t want a music stand that will collapse at the slightest disturbance. If your stand is made of the right material it will hold your music without any problems, but be careful about the weight too. A music stand may be sturdy because it is made of heavy materials, which makes it hard to transport especially if you don’t have a car.
You will need to use your music stand while standing from time to time, so you should check whether the height is adjustable, and whether it adjusts to a height that you are comfortable with – there are some that extend very little and they can be very uncomfortable for taller people. Extend it upwards to see whether you can comfortably read sheet music when you are standing up straight. You will also need to tilt your stand to a comfortable angle so check on this before you buy.
Not many people think of music stands as a place where you ca n keep away books, but if you are a serious performer you may want to bring along a book or two to brush up before performances. There are music stands that have bookshelves, and the number of shelves you go for will be determined by how many books you think you will be keeping on it. Also, you need some space on the music stand for more than your music – you will need somewhere to keep your pens, violin bow, pencils and so on.
As you become more and more advanced in your music you will find yourself playing music that is longer than 1 page. It can become very awkward to try and turn a page in the middle of a performance. You will need a stand that can take at least 3 sheets of music.
One music stand vendor that comes highly recommended is RATstands. They have all kinds of folding music stands that you can see in their showroom. Having been in the business for more than 40 years you can be sure that they produce some of the best stands in the world. You can find out more on their website, http://www.ratstands.com/.