We'll be in Paris for a month and have kids that will need to continue some piano lessons. We can't bring a keyboard with us, but are hoping to find one for rent or perhaps one we could buy cheap used and donate at the end of the month.
I'm seeking recommendations on where to find a keyboard we can use for a month, ideally at a low cost. I'm used to stores and online systems in the US to seeking this kind of stuff out, but am not familiar with what is commonly used in Paris.
Just like in the USA there are many musical instrument rental services, either from shops or online.
I don't know if you will find the type of keyboard you are looking for, I guess you won't need an 88 keys.
In Paris many stores selling / buying or renting musical instruments are located in the Pigalle district in the 18th arrondissement.
(near Montmartre).
such as "Star Music" 1-11 Clichy Boulevard
You can go find out in one of these shops, they will certainly tell you how and where to find a digital keyboard for a month
"Arpeges" 123 Lamarck street, also rents instruments.
Leboncoin.fr is the best of the online second hand markets. Is there a music shop near where you're staying? You may be able to rent.
If you have a Facebook account, you might try the Marketplace once you are over there. By the time you rent for four weeks, it could be cheaper just to snap up an old Casio or Yamaha for sale. Or go "old school" and try some of Paris' famous flea markets -- but an electronic marketplace is probably more efficient (if not as fun)!
Thanks everyone. These are helpful suggestions. We'll be in the 2nd and I see some of this are quite accessible nearby and we're likely to have this work out by stopping into a music shop and chatting.
See also at "Paul Beuscher", This is the largest and oldest musical instruments shop in Paris, located: 27-29 Bd Beaumarchais in the 4th arrondissement, 3 minutes walk from Place des Vosges, I spent a lot of money there in the 70s, 80s :))
Even if they don't rent there will probably be someone who can help you.
It's closed on Sundays and Mondays.
Even if you don't end up buying/renting anything, I'd like to offer the suggestion that visiting musical instrument shops (and neighborhoods where there may be multiple music shops) can make for a wonderful, completely authentic backdoor experience.
I once shopped for (and ended up buying) an expensive musical instrument in Japan. There's a neighborhood in Tokyo where the streets are lined with specialty shops selling everything one could imagine (and more) in the realm of musical products. I spent hours in complete amazement wandering those streets and poking around shops, eventually I found the shop I had specifically been looking for, stayed in that shop for a couple more hours trying out instruments, eventually buying one. Nobody in the shop spoke any English (I speak no Japanese), which made it all even more of an adventure. It was so much fun, and I came home with a wonderful instrument (a high quality model, made in Japan for the Japanese market) that would have cost thousands of dollars more at home.
Finding specialty shops -- or even better, a neighborhood where there is a concentration of many specialty shops -- is a treasure for travelers. Always a delightful treat and worth seeking out. (This reminds me, I need to post a request for something like this in a separate forum.)
Electronic keyboards for keeping up with the piano lessons should be very easy to find. Very cool thing to do on your trip!
