Hello everyone,

I am looking to get a keyboard for Christmas. I am a beginner and don’t want to spend more than $200 to $225. I played piano for about two years when I was in elementary school and some guitar when I was in college. I can’t say that I ever got very good at either, and did not learn to read music. When I played guitar, I just learned tablature and have forgotten most of what I learned in elementary school. One of my problems is that I get easily discouraged if I don’t make progress relatively quickly. Now at age 32, another problem that I foresee is that since I now have a 2 year old and a 7 month old baby, I doubt that I will have a whole lot of time to practice. I am hoping that I can learn 5 songs in a year’s time. Some of songs that I would love to be able to play in the distance future include The Entertainer, Classical Gas, Sanford & Son theme song, Axel F, Georgia on My Mind, and The Pink Panther. I would guess that most of these are really hard to play and are way too advanced for a beginner who would have limited practice time. This would be one of the reasons why I don’t want to spend a lot of money. By the way, which songs on my list are the easiest to learn and which are the hardest? Also, can you save enough money buying a keyboard over the Internet as opposed to a local store to make it worth while? If so, what web sites would you recommend. Given the above information, which keyboard would you recommend? What are some of the features to look for? If at all possible, I would like to buy one that can emulate a true piano sound. Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
-John