January 2012 Notable Toys — Musical Toys

Little rock star swill take center stage playing Schoenhut's “next generation” guitar. Schoenhut's innovative design incorporating a molded composite body with dual curves greatly enhances sound and durability. The birch soundboard which offers excellent tone and resonance, hardwood neck (for rigidity), and molded composite fretboard ensure proper height and spacing of the frets. Six steel strings permit a wide range of rich sounds. Available in several vibrant designs. Includes: Pick and Extra String.

Schoenhut's beautiful Pineapple Ukulele with four nylon strings provides clear, authentic Hawaiian tones. The innovative design incorporating a molded composite body with dual curves greatly enhances sound and durability. A birch soundboard which offers excellent tone and resonance, hardwood neck (for rigidity), and molded composite fretboard ensure proper height and spacing of the frets. Available in several vibrant designs. Includes: Pick & Extra String.

Schoenhut's Thumb Pianos are sure to be a hit with the young set. These percussion instruments, also known as Marimbas, emit warm, resonant tones by striking the ends of the tines with your thumbs. Simple tunes are easily tapped out, with unlimited possibilities for creating complex melodies. The new design incorporates a durable molded composite back, resulting in enhanced sound and durability. Easily portable and fun to play, a Schoenhut Thumb Piano is the perfect choice for encouraging children to enjoy music. Available in several vibrant designs.

This award-winning set includes a mini rainbow shaker, baby maraca, baby rattle and cage bell. Includes a vinyl carrying case.
Awards: 2007 Creative Child Magazine Top Toy of the Year Award
— As of 01/09/2012 this product had 4.5 out of 5 stars from 24 reviews on Amazon.com.
— In a January 2012 survey, Dean Smith, co-owner of JaZams in Princeton, N.J., told TDmonthly that their best selling musical item was, "Baby Band from Hohner — we had them for just a few months, and sold 15/month. It's a popular item."

This keyboard encourages interactive play with lots of buttons to press and plenty of musical choices for singing, playing, and recording. The Meowsic Keyboard comes with a book of lyrics and a small book of favorite kid quotes posted on the B Quote Gallery. Has a record button with instant play back, five instrument sounds and five beat choices, as well as a 20-song playlist that includes seven cat-themed songs.
— As of 1/6/2012 this product had 4 out of 5 stars from 60 reviews on Amazon.com. Pros: Lots of songs to choose from; Includes black keys as well as white keys. Cons: Some parents very strongly believed that the pre-recorded songs sounded terrible, and that the songs sung with "meow" instead of regular lyrics were intolerably annoying; a few reported that certain keys wouldn't work simultaneously.
— In a 2012 survey about musical products, two of 13 retailers told TDmonthly that the Meowsic Keyboard from Battat was their top seller in the category.

Pounding sends the balls tinkling over the xylophone. Pull out the keyboard and the xylophone can be played solo. All Hape products comply with EN71 and ASTM quality standards - wood used comes from FSC managed forests.
Awards: May 2012 TDmonthly Top Toy Award. Why it won: This item was named a Top-10 Musical toy in February and a Top-10 Wooden toy in March by specialty retailers interviewed by TDmonthly. Its innovative design combines the elements of the popular shape sorting/tapping toy and the xylophone, giving it great play value.
— As of 1/6/2012 this product had 4.2 out of 5 stars from 13 reviews on Amazon.com. Pros: Durable; lots of ways to play. Cons: The keyboard is not properly tuned.
— In a 2012 survey about Musical Products, three out of 13 retailers said this item was their best seller. Kelly Boone, manager of The Elephant's Trunk in Greenville, S.C., told TDmonthly that they sold at least 36 during the holidays.
— In a February 2012 survey about wooden toys, two out of 14 retailers said that this was their bestseller in the category. Kristin Dolle, manager of Playthings Toy Shoppe in Louisville, Ky. told TDmonthly that they sell between 8 and 12 units of this item each month.

This kid sized Ukulele from the Hohner Kids line, all wood ukulele with real tropical sound is 21" long and includes instruction book. The Kohala is a little bit of a step up in quality and materials but essentially the same look and size as the HOH029.

Preschoolers can put on a rockin' performance with the Let's Rock Elmo Guitar. Packed with fun features, the Guitar includes three preschool tunes, three modes of play, light-up keys and a fun whammy bar. For even more rockin' fun, the Let's Rock Elmo Guitar also interacts with the Let's Rock Elmo character, which is sold separately, who magically knows when you have the Let's Rock Elmo Guitar and plays along with you to the Elmo's World song. The guitar comes with instructions. It includes 3 AA batteries.

The Laser Band is a laser-activated instrument from PlayAbility Toys that lets children and adults experience the joy of creating and playing beautiful music. The Laser Band allows everyone a world of musical opportunities with small arm and hand movements that break the plain of a laser beam. Launch date: October 2011.

3/4 size guitar. Nylon strings, spruce top, mahogany back and sides. Chrome plated machine heads, pearl dot side position markers, Rosewood finger board, Nickel-silver frets, single black binding. Guitar length is 36".

WowWee Paper Jamz are affordable and innovative instruments that provide an instant rock star experience and open-ended play. The creative blend of technology and play is made possible with Active Graphics Technology circuit-embedded paper, which allows kids to play like a pro by simply touching the paper surface. With cutting-edge technology, this Paper Jamz Pro microphone lets anyone sound like a pop star. USB cable included. For ages 8 and above. Batteries 3 x “AAA” (not included).

There’s a conga in the Congo with these 10 wild instruments. Includes Leopard conga drum with 10-bell tambourine lid; Antelope slide whistle; Hornbill water whistle; 2 giraffe maracas; Croc cabasa & clacker; Twister hand drum and 2 snake drumsticks.

All single hand bongos are made of natural color wood with quality skin heads and nylon strap handles. A mallet is included.

Rugged and built to last. These unique tambourines incorporate an unbreakable, reinforced polystyrene rim with cowhide head. Top quality jingles (with rounded edges) complement these superior quality tambourines and provide superb tone. Cowhide heads.

Versatility is the key to this member of the ChromaHarp® family. The following 21 chord bars enable the player to literally play hundreds of songs. Construction and design feature torsion-tight tuning pins, pre-stressed maple frame, maple top and back.

This unique bell set is great for early childhood. The note names are indicated on each of the individually colored bars. Accurately pitched with a diatonic range from c2 to c3, and a pair of mallets are included. All corners are rounded for safety.