YRT-304B Tenor Recorder, Key of C , Black

Marvellously engineered, this is a beautifully sonorous instrument, solo or ensemble. At the top of the resin heap, the YRT304B has become my favorite out of the entire recorder family. It is also affordable at $59 - a fraction (10%-20%) of the cost of a wooden recorder of equivalent quality. Easy to maintain without the need for the initial "breaking in" process or need for ongoing oiling, it is immediately playable out of the box and easily replaceable should it be lost or damaged, though due to it's durable resin construct, it is an extremely hard wearing instrument which navigates temperature fluctuations well (not affected as with it's sensitive wooden counterparts). Washable, portable - what more can you ask. The only thing it is short of is: prestige value and the "edge" of exceptional handmade counterparts. Great utility and performance. Ideal spare or travel instrument or to bring on the road. Marketed as "professional" line. For the Adult Beginner seeking an instrument to play - this is ideal. Most relate to tenor recorder's sonorous tones and find it has a relaxing quality, calming even organic (wooden sound) - the only reason school children start learning those squeaky high pitched descants is because of reach limitations. Strain-free playing for smaller hands ======================== Out of the box, the YRT304B requires the widest reach handspanwise due to its unique hole positions (the Bass is easier to play because it already comes goosenecked and with added keys) and of those who manage to play the Tenor in it's straight unmodified form, there is talk about hand strains and sprains after prolonged play. All's not lost however, due to an emerging demographic of aging and arthritic tenor players, the Tenor can be now be professionally "custom modified" per individual requirements - so that smaller hands/shorter arms can now play it with ease and so that universally, the instrument can be played without undue sprains and strains, previously endured by tenor players. Well to start with my hands are too small for it, but I was determined to play the Tenor, so I had it professionally modified in the US prior to shipping at Bill Lazar's earlymusicshop based in CA. He simply added a gooseneck to the headjoint to shorten the instrument and two added keys at the 3rd and 4th holes on the body - in short, I had the works. Depending on your body's unique dimensions, each person has different requirements. In my case I needed all three mods, whilst for another it could be just the one of 3 and for another, 2 of 3 in varying combos. Bill did a great job - it wasn't cheap but I can now play the tenor EASILY AND ENJOY it. Well worth the investment. The total cost of a new tenor with full modification comes up to just a little over a quarter the cost of a wooden Mollenhauer. Well it may not have the prestige of a wooden European recorder but it fulfils it's niche function excellently. $59 from amazon, it is RRP$199 which is usually discounted down to $149 in oz. Hard to pass by. Buy with confidence as each instrument is of uniform quality which delivers a known reliable level of performance, unlike handmade gems which need to be painstakingly picked out from a bunch of instruments and difficult to replace due to it's unique handmade qualities. The 3 top reviews have said mostly everything there is to say about the YRT-304B II. Hope this adds some further value to what is already said.

I own this Yamaha model in an alto version, so I knew exactly what to expect when I purchased this. I was not disappointed! If you want to learn how to play a tenor, need a back up, a practice instrument, or a travel instrument, or you’re not ready to invest in a wooden model, this Yamaha model based on the Rottenburgh recorder style offers the most exceptional value for the money of any on the market. Many professional musicians have Yamaha models as their practice instruments, and yet the sound quality is good enough to play in an ensemble. The tone is lovely, smooth, and clear. The keys are strong and the whole in time to is solidly made. There is nothing flimsy about this instrument. It will last a lifetime. Although the description says that it does not come with a thumb rest, it actually does have a small one, as well as recorder joint cream, and a cleaning rod. You can use the rod with an eye glass cleaning cloth or a cotton sock. Use anything that doesn’t dishes fibers. Clean the cloth regularly. Before you play, as with all recorders, you always need to warm up your hands and fingers and engage in stretching exercises so that your fingers will be able to reach all the holes properly. It is a challenge for almost everyone at first to properly play the middle register C (the lowest note), so you don’t think that your instrument is defective. It is a process of learning how to make sure all the holes are covered and that you are applying the proper breath. This instrument is a great value for the money and I’m thrilled to have one. Although I do plan to buy my wooden recorder within the next four months, I will continue to use this one, as I do my Yamaha alto even though I have two other wooden altos, for my extended practices, as well as for my playing enjoyment.

A bit of background: I studied recorder for a fair number of years in musical school in childhood, and recently got back to music playing bass. Just for fun, decided to recall how to play woodwinds and discovered my childhood (soprano) recorders were really crappy and out of tune, besides I don't much like high pitch shrilling timbre of soprano recorder anymore, so I decided to get a tenor recorder, and this one sounded like a good idea. It turned out it was a good decision: 1) The instrument of excellent quality, everything is in tune (though you need some proper breathing technique to get notes' pitch exactly on spot, e.g. G sounds is a bit flat unless you add some air compared to F ). 2) All skills from the soprano recorder are directly transferable to tenor one. However large size requires a little practice to get used to and fingers need some stretching before you could get a consistent fingering, especially when playing fast. 3) Timbre is a very pleasant one, low and raspy and surprisingly not at all "plastic-y". Personally, I love it much better than even a wooden soprano recorder, though maybe that's a bass player in me speaking ("the lower the better") :) Overall I'm extremely pleased with the purchase - it is an excellent instrument which is a pleasure to play on. At the price it is sold it is a real bargain - it is cheap enough to buy on impulse to play around with (as I did), yet it is a proper musical instrument you can perform on, not a toy.

Compared to an alto recorder, the hand stretches needed to cover all the keys is to be noted. Other than that, fantastic build quality, tone is spot on with deep and rich bass notes. Canadian goose calls will subside after an hour of practice.

I adore the recorder. Yamaha has the reputation it does because they’ve earned it. They know how to make a damn good affordable instrument! It produces a beautiful sound, and I’m sure it annoys my neighbors less than my soprano! Here’s the thing though… no matter where you put the thumb rest, it’s just got a bit of an awkward shape on the lower half. Your fingers are going to be spread out farther than may be comfortable. I love this thing, but I feel like I’m gonna get carpal tunnel syndrome if I keep playing this regularly… and I’m only half joking. All that said, though, if you’re getting into the recorder and try out the tenor, I’d say this is an excellent first stop. Happy playing!

I have been looking for a good quality plastic tenor recorder for those occasions when I don't want to bring my expensive and more fragile wooden tenor recorder with me. For years I've been using an Aulos plastic tenor which I've never been all that happy with. The Aulos has only one key for low C, which makes playing low C# very difficult. This Yamaha has solved that problem by having two keys, so the full chromatic range is possible. It has a very beautiful recorder tone, and the full range speaks very clearly and easily. This is vastly superior to many of the wooden tenors available and should not be avoided just because it's plastic. Easy to blow, easy to clean, rugged. Excellent!

The Yamaha 304 tenor recorder (which is what this is, although it is $1 less than the same instrument listed for some reason), is a solid instrument with a wonderfully pleasing, low, and rich sound. I am used to a soprano recorder and was kind of worried about this product because of people commenting on the finger spacing being quite wide, much to my joy the finger spacing is no problem. The product is almost twice the size of a soprano recorder, the spacing is much wider for the finger holes, but anyone with normal sized hands won't have a problem, and the recorder itself is very solid in its construction. The thumbrest included with the product it pretty much useless unless you put some superglue on it, however I don't really need one when I am sitting down and playing (which I usually am). Due to the finger holes being larger, you will have to adjust your grip to ensure that you are properly covering the holes when playing this instrument if you are used to a soprano, but it will become second nature to keep the holes covered properly very quickly. This recorder has the same benefits and negatives effecting all plastic recorders. The benefit is the thing will basically last forever and will require almost non-existant upkeep, the down side is that the material does not absorb moisture at all and the buildup will lead to blockage when playing pretty frequently. I am not detracting from the instruments quality, as that is common place when dealing with plastic recorders, but it is something that needs to be mentioned for those new to recorders. It makes up for that in price though, being less than a tenth of the price of a similar quality wooden recorder. The tone is absolutely remarkable with this instrument and if you are considering getting a tenor recorder I can't recommend it highly enough. If you are considering one for a child though, you should get a soprano recorder due to size and finger spacing and such. The good news is that this instrument is in the same key as a soprano and any skill learned with a soprano can be carried over to a tenor. Enjoy the music :)

I have played this thing for 2 days over the weekend, about 6 hours or so. It does get clogged easily, but its not as obvious as it is on a soprano. When there's a clog, at least for me, I have a hard time hitting the lower register notes below E. The recorder wheezes and squeaks like your not covering a hole somewhere. it took me time to figure it out, so I wanted to mention it in my review. Just blow it out, and your back in business. I usually fill my kitchen sink with soapy water to fix the problem. The soap causes moisture to not condensate on the recorder, i'm not sure why. But when I treat the recorder with dawn dish soap and water, the clogging becomes a non-issue. I havent done it yet because, well, id rather just play the thing. It has instructions on how to clear the clog. Just hold the whistle part with your hand and blow through the opening to clear the clog. And Play it does! it sounds WONDERFUL! I may be an old redneck, but it sounds great to me. When I play with my kids I can definitely see the difference in sound between this yamaha and their recorders. The cheaper ones sound reedy and plasticy, or windy. This recorder sounds rich and full, assertive. It does not sound like a wooden recorder, for whatever that's worth, but I don't know if i could tell the difference to be honest. The fingering is exactly like the sopranos, but sounds an entire octave lower. Comes with recorder grease, cleaning rod, instructions, caps for the middle part, fingering chart, and a nice canvas bag with dividers for all the pieces. its a 3 piece recorder, and has a lever for the last (low c) key. As for the fingering reach, it is a stretch for me. Over the past few days I can only play for about 30 minutes until my right hand starts to ache. I believe in a week or so It wont bother me anymore after I get used to the position. I find that tilting the recorder 20 degrees to my right helps with the fingering and the bend in my wrist. Its more comfortable that way. Distance between my index finger and my pinky is 5.5 inches.