A recorder at the mercy of a small child has often been regarded as a form of torture by parents. Now, as schools up and down Britain dust off their music stands, relief from teeth-clenching squeaks and whistles is at hand. The recorder, once the instrument of choice in schools, is being edged further from the classroom by a new contender – the melodica.
Twenty primary schools in Yorkshire have swapped recorders for this keyboard wind instrument which, advocates say, is much more mellifluous.
