<p>Hey, </p>
<p>Does anyone know of any grants or loans available to help a student buy a new instrument? I am buying a new double-bass, and, between me and my parents, I can pay for all but a small portion of it... Any suggestions?</p>
<p>Thanks.</p>
<p>I know of nothing specifically designed for instrument purchase, but there are of course loans/credit situations you might be able to obtain especially if your parents are willing to cosign a note for you.</p>
<p>Does U. Chicago have any instruments they lend to students? This can also be a good way to get a good one, but maybe that is a specialty of music schools. If you could borrow one, you could postpone the need to buy one for a few more years.</p>
<p>Cosmos, I've looked, and have found no blanket funding or loan source for the "average" conservatory level student. There are plenty of sources available especially for underpriviledged hs and below aged kids, and many of these target programs, as well as deserving, talented individuals.</p>
<p>There are a couple of instrument societies/organizations for the emerging young soloists, that will place superb instruments on loan to extreme talents in the early career stages.</p>
<p>As for the average pro aspiring joe or josephine, there's just not much out there (at least that I can suss out). There are one or two Canadian sources and a couple in the UK, but they are designed to service their own citizens, or possibly a foriegn student studying at a UK/Canadian program.</p>
<p>This is one of the areas where contacts can help immensely. Knowing the "right" people can put you in a position to be introduced to a benefactor or patron. It's not vastly common, but yet not unheard of or rare that a music lover with deep pockets will fund, loan or outright purchase and gift a high quality performance grade instrument to a promising player. I've seen it happen more than once, and have been a party to helping a foster kid acquire a very good instrument through this type of channel. This type of relationship is normally developed over time, but its been known to happen on a one time or chance meeting. Sounds like a fairy tale, but it happens.</p>
<p>Some schools will also help fund a purchase. Those with a strong history, deep endowment, or specially allocated endowments may do this. There are a few, not many, and the programs are not widely known or advertised. Another place where contacts help immensely.</p>
<p>A number of orchestras across regional, major, and top tier have instrument loan acquisition programs for tenured players.</p>
<p>Beyond that, some luthiers will work with you, allowing a good portion down and the rest over time on a payment plan. Some shops will also allow a financing option, as might some individual sellers, depending on their circumstances.</p>
<p>Other than that, there's the personal loan from your parents, a co-signed bank loan with them (or other relatives), a loan between yourself and a lending institution if you have enough credit history. There's also a possibility of a collateral loan, with the value of the instrument securing the lending institution's exposure; there are usually low end limits on these types of loans, the instrument must be greater than "x" value, of documented lineage, and a history of appreciation in value.</p>
<p>Talk to your teachers/mentors, some emerging pros. They've been there, and should have specific sources and experiences that may help you.</p>
<p>Good luck. Stringed instruments be not cheap.</p>
<p>Hi Cosmos,</p>
<p>When I was in high school, I worked to support myself musically and had to choose between buying a car and buying a cello, so I can sympathize with your situation (though the difference between cello and bass is significant). Not knowing more of your situation (location, age, goals, etc.) a couple of places spring to mind:</p>
<p>Young Musicians Foundation: Young</a> Musicians Foundation
From the Top's Jack Kent Cooke Awards: Fromthetop.org:</a> Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist Award
Barton Foundation: Rachel</a> Elizabeth Barton Foundation - Instrument Loan Program</p>
<p>The best help, however, will come from your teacher and other music educators you're acquainted with (band/orchestra teacher, YO conductor, etc.)</p>
<p>Best of luck.</p>
<p>Wish I could help...and not to hijack your thread...but what happened with your teacher?? Hope everything worked out!</p>
<p>Thanks very much for the help. </p>
<p>The bass I'm trying to buy is really expensive. I have already gotten the price reduced by $5K, but I hope to get it reduced further. My teacher at home is friends with the seller, so hopefully he can help me out with that in some way. </p>
<p>I think that this bass is absolutely perfect for me (good size, etc), so I hope that I'll be able to buy it! My teacher told me that he saw this bass in the shop a few weeks ago and thought that it would be a good fit for me... </p>
<p>Symphonymom, re: my teacher
Well, my teacher at school and I weren't getting along well for a while. We are getting along much better now, but what I'm hoping to do for this year is to take lessons with him as well as with a second teacher who I'm more comfortable with. We'll see how that works out.</p>
<p>Sounds perfect! I'm so glad.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, I have no other sources of financing to suggest. Will the maker consider holding the instrument for you upon payment of a substantial deposit while you look for a buyer for your current instrument, or while you put together enough playing gigs and other employment to be able to come up with the rest of what you need?</p>
<p>Regarding the two teacher approach, are both teachers on board with this arrangement? I have run into individual teachers who go ballistic if they find out you are also taking lessons from someone else without their knowledge. (They have a point when it comes to potentially overworking a student because they did not know about the other teacher's assignments.)</p>
<p>I agree with BassDad. The teacher pairing can be a difficult situation, and should not be one entered into clandestinely.</p>
<p>Cosmos went through the teacher doubling issue last year on a different thread...didn't want to hijack this one. I think she knows the score (no pun intended:)</p>
<p>Hi . This is my first post- I have been lurking for quite a while. I just want to note that the purchase of a new instrument is considered an educational expense and you can add to your PLUS loans, or other educational loans for that expence-like travel and books are also considered an expense. My son is trading up ( again!) and buying an better double bass and he was adivsed by several of his teachers/ professsors that this is the way to make the purchase. If you wait until you are through with school, you would have to take out a regular loan, with astromonical interst, if availavle at all.</p>
<p>Welcome, bassisity.</p>
<p>I understand the attraction of the PLUS loan to those who have little (or negative) home equity because it requires no collateral, but I wonder if a Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC) might be a better way to go for those who are still well above water on their primary residence.</p>
<p>In both cases, the loan would be made to the parents rather than the student. The PLUS loan has a fixed rate (currently 8.5%) with a 10 year term and a 3% origination fee. HELOC's mostly have variable rates that are in the 5.5% to 6% range these days and many have options to convert to a fixed rate that is only slightly higher than the current variable rate for a nominal fee ($100 to $250 is typical). Many HELOC's do not have origination or maintenance fees and, if you shop around a bit, you can find banks that will pay any other closing costs like the appraisal fee just to get your business. With a little research, you could probably find a HELOC with no up front costs, then immediately convert it to a 10-year fixed rate loan at about a 6.5% interest rate for say $200. Compared to that, the PLUS does not look so great, particularly if you are borrowing in the $20K to $40K range (typical of a very good bass, but not the extreme high end.) Am I missing something here?</p>
<p>I really wouldn't be borrowing that much, I already have a lot of the cash for it... my bass is $30K and may be reduced further if my teacher can manage to talk the seller into it, so I'm hoping for $28K. If it stays at $28K, I can buy it without a loan. If not, I need to find $2K somewhere...</p>
<p>Actually, my son is a grad student. We are still paying for two children who just completed undergraduate school and he is now paying his own expenses. Thus, the PLUS is paid to him, in addition to Stafford loans.</p>
<p>Ah, but Cosmos is still an undergrad, hence the loan would be in her parents name and the checks would be sent directly to the school.</p>
<p>Cosmos, have you already borrowed to your full Stafford limits? If not, and you can swing the additional amount on your monthly payment, that may also be an option. There is a calculator that shows your monthly payments and the total amount of interest paid back for Stafford vs PLUS loans at FinAid</a> | Calculators | Stafford vs. PLUS Loan Comparison Chart</p>
<p>If I keep my current summer job for next summer & forgo doing a festival that year, I could make around $14K over the summer. Then, if I add that to the money I'll get from selling my old bass ($10K), I would only have to make up between $4K and 6K which is doable. I may be able to borrow the difference from my parents. </p>
<p>I would be willing to forgo one summer in order to have this bass for the rest of my life. I could still try out for NYSOS for December, so it's not like I wouldn't have any bass stuff to do all year.</p>
<p>Have you given the issue of timing any thought on this purchase? It appears that it will be at least a year before you will be able to purchase the new instrument, possibly more if it takes longer than you anticipate to sell the old one. If you are buying a used instrument, that is a very long time to expect the seller to wait. You run the risk of having someone else buy it before you. </p>
<p>Might your parents be willing to front a larger loan with the idea that you could buy the new instrument immediately? For example, if they were able to take out a $30,000 loan over a five year period (bear with me and keep reading before you say "no way"), it would cost them something like $600 per month. You could buy the new instrument in a matter of days with the loan and put your old instrument up for sale immediately. As soon as it sells, you can use the proceeds to reimburse your parents for any loan payments they have already made on your behalf and still have more than enough left to cover the remaining payments until your summer job kicks in. Even if it takes several months to sell the old one, they will not be out more than the $4K to $6K that you would be asking them for anyway. Once your summer job starts, you will be in good shape because you will earn enough in one summer to handle the next two years worth of loan payments. (Note that you have to be REAL sure about that summer job or risk having to sell your new bass to be able to keep up with the payments. You would also want to be very sure that you have insurance on the new instrument, so you are not left with a $30K loan on a pile of firewood in the event of a catastrophic accident, G*d forbid.) The downside is that you will be paying roughly $6K in interest over five years, but you could reduce that substantially after a second summer of solid employment by repaying early or refinancing the loan.</p>
<p>It is easier if you are getting a new instrument, because it may take a year or more (if the maker has a backlog, and the good ones usually do) for the instrument to be finished. In that case, you could probably go with your plan A.</p>
<p>I'm rooting for you to get that bass, but I'm just curious--what kind of summer job makes $14,000?</p>
<p>My parents like my plan, so all is taken care of! I am actually going to sign a IOU kind of note to my parents and forgo the next two summers in order to work and pay off the bass. My summer job is working at a law firm as an intern which pays $20/hr and I work 5 or 6 days each week for 7 hrs a day. It's a very good summer job! I also have a long summer break - from June 16-Sept 29 which allows for a lot of time at work... </p>
<p>I will probably end up working mid-June until late August next summer and try to do a festival that's late in the summer, and hopefully NYSOS, too.</p>
<p>The only word of caution is the effect of additional summer income on your financial paperwork (FAFSA, Profile) and a potential corresponding reduction in aid.</p>
<p>Just something to thnk about, and maybe run some preliminary numbers through the online fasnancial aid calculators. I can't remember if you'll be a junior or senior this coming fall.</p>
<p>Good luck with the new instrument.</p>