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All About Us (Including Directions for Using the Store)
Contact Us
Policies
Instrument Sources
Instrumental Information
Store Directory
Brass Wind Instruments
Drums and Percussion
Ethnic & Early Instruments
Free Reed Instruments
Keyboards
Orchestral Stringed Instruments
Western Folk Instruments
Woodwinds
Query Page
Special Orders
Links
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All About Us
About Me (Kathryn)
About Spirit Guide
About the Store
About Shipping and Payment
About Special Orders
About the Amati-Cerveny Product Pages
About Me (Kathryn)
Hello! My name is Kathryn LaMar, and I am the founder and maven of Spirit Guide Musical Instruments! Here is a little bit about my musical background, and how I came to be doing this. By the time I was 6, my grandmother was teaching me to play the piano. In school, when I was in the fourth or fifth grade, we began an instrumental program (with the school providing the instrument--weren't those the day); because I was in the middle of the alphabet, most of the fad, popular instruments were already taken, so I chose the cornet--as the only girl and one of only three students who wanted to learn the cornet/trumpet, I got it! For the next three years I was in seventh heaven, and even got to play some solos (I particularly remember playing the Panis Angelicus in a band concert, and not telling my parents about it). I also started to learn the French horn. But alas, in "real" junior high school, scheduling conflicts forced me to choose between playing an instrument in the band or singing in the choir (choir won). Thus ended my instrumental career until college. But singing in a choir was also incredibly fun, and gave me a "reference group" to identify with. Today, I sing in two community choirs that specialize in working with "untrained" singers.
In college, although I was a biology major, since I was at Indiana University, arguably the best music school in the world, back I went to studying instruments--this time the piano and the French horn!
Graduate school (University of Minnesota) introduced me to the idea of music as fun--learning to play the guitar for pure enjoyment and relaxation! That continued through the next 30-plus years (through my "real" career as a medical and technical writer/editor), with time spent rewarding myself with new instruments (mandolins, recorders, pennywhistles, accordions, concertinas, and finally Appalachian dulcimers) and learning to play them. As we say in almost every "folkie" group I'm affiliated with, "so many instruments, so little time ... what will be next!"
At the end of 2003 I was laid off from my last technical communications job. Intense soul-searching eventually led me to realize that the corporate world was no longer for me (yes, change is hard for me), and went back to school to become a sonographer (ultrasound technician). The classes and learning experiences were wonderful, but alas, physical limitations (arthritis in my right shoulder) precluded me from actually being able to practice! What to do, where to go, was woe me ?!?
Finally, it hit me from out of the blue! With the craze in "e-commerce" continuing to grow, and the possiblility of being able to set up a business with no (well, hardly any) start-up capital or inventory, what could I do? Why, sell musical instruments, of course! Music has literally allowed me to maintain my sanity, and has given me incredible joy over the years. But I have also seen friends take up instruments and give them up in frustration sooner rather than later, because the ones they chose were almost unplayable, or they had not thought much about the physical requirements of playing. So, I hit on the idea of Spirit Guide Musical Instruments.
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Here is a picture of me at one of the first "Redwood Dulcimer Days" (held in Bonny Doon, California. That's me on the right, hovering over my Blue Lion custom Force-D'Ossche dulcimer. |
About Spirit Guide
When I decided to set up an online business, I wanted to do it correctly. I set up an overall business as a Nevada Type S Corporation called KRLM Enterprises, Inc. The very first "KRLM Enterprise" to be launched was Spirit Guide Musical Instruments.
The "store" is a virtual store, which means that it is not a "brick-and-mortar" store, but an online store. All of the instruments I have listed in the store are actually housed at the distributor. When you order and pay for the instrument, I place the order and pay for the instrument within 24 hours of receipt of your confirmed payment, and the distributor ships your order (usually within 24 hours of receiving it) to your address. Although the instrument is actually sent from the distributor, it will come with my formal business name (KRLM Enterprises, Inc.) and my California address as the return address.
Here at Spirit Guide, you can explore different kinds of instruments, and find one that's right for you! Maybe you want to learn or relearn an aspect of your ethnic culture. Perhaps you just want to learn an instrument because you have heard that it's a great way to keep your brain from atrophying! And maybe you would like to play with other people--in a jazz or Klezmer ensemble, in a swing or bluegrass band--to share the joy with others as you explore new areas and avenues of musical communication. You don't really have a million dollars to throw away on failed experiments, but you are willing to spend a reasonable amount on what may become your new favorite life-companion.
You will find a wide selection of musical instruments here at Spirit Guide. Almost all of them are made by, or are overseen by professional musicians, who understand that an easy-to-play, fine-sounding instrument is what you want. Visit the Instrument Sources page to see profiles of the companies supplying Spirit Guide with instruments. Most of these companies supply merchants only, but some (such as Sunreed and Carvin Guitars) do sell directly to consumers.
A lot of the instruments you can get here come with everything you need to get started. For example, the guitar packages come with a gig bag (soft-sided protective carrying case), extra strings, a capo, a chromatic tuner (so you can tune the strings to the correct notes) and some beginner instruction materials.
Check out the Links page to find links to websites that list teachers of the various instruments, or to sites that teach various aspects of music theory, interval training, and sources of additional learning materials. If you have any questions, please email or phone me, and I will try to research the available information thoroughly, synthesize it for you, and answer your questions. See the contact information on this site for my phone number or email address--I will try to respond to all reasonable requests for information within a day of receiving them.
If you already know what kind of an instrument you want, look it up by browsing through the store. The instruments are arranged in "categories", then into "subcategories". If you are not sure of what category to look in, visit our Store Directory to see a complete outline of the categories, subcategories, and a list of the specific instruments in each one. Within the store directory, when you click on a category or subcategory, you are immediately taken to the "department" of the store where those instruments can be found.
About the Store
When you click on the link to the store, you will be taken to a page that lists all of the categories of instruments. These categories are currently:
- Brass Wind Instruments
- Drums and Percussion
- Ethnic and Early Instruments
- Free Reed Instruments
- Keyboards
- Orchestral Stringed Instruments
- Western Folk Instruments
- Woodwinds
Don't worry if you don't know what's in the categories. The Store Directory page contains a complete outline of all of the categories, subcategories, and instruments, and they are all linked directly to the appropriate pages within the store.
When you click on a category, you will be taken to another page that lists all of the subcategories within that category. Each subcategory is a link to just those instruments, or to additional subcategories. Individual instruments are listed within the lowest level of subcategory into which they fall.
For example, when you click on the category "Brass Wind Instruments" you will find the following subcategories:
- Alto Horns
- Bugles
- French Horns
- Miscellaneous Horns
- Trombones
- Trumpets
- Large Horns
When you click on a subcategory you will find a list of available instruments in that subcategory--for example, when you click on "Trombones" you will be taken to a page that lists the available trombones. These instruments appear with a "title" and a "thumbnail" (a small picture of that instrument). When you click on one of these titles or thumbnails, you will be taken to a "product page," which is an individual page with a larger picture and a complete description of the instrument, and everything that comes with it. At the side of the product page is a link for adding the instrument to your shopping cart. When you click on that button, you will see a confirmation of the item in your cart, and you can choose to "continue shopping", "clear cart", or "checkout". When you click on "checkout", you will be taken to the next step, which is to supply the billing and shipping information. Complete the billing and shipping information, then click on the "next" button.
About Shipping and Payments
In most cases, I have tried to specify the weights of the products "behind the scenes," so that when you order an item, the shipping charges will be calculated for you automatically.
The prices of Sunreed instruments (product numbers beginning with SNR) and Black Mountain Instruments (product numbers b eginning with BMI) already include shipping, and the system has been programmed to bypass the shipping calculator.
When the shipping weights are not available, at the checkout you will see a notation by "Shipping" that says "Contact Seller." We can handle this in two ways, at your discretion.
1. You may compete the purchase using PayPal (see below) without the shipping charges included, and contact me by email or telephone (using the 800 number at the bottom of every page) with the order number of the item you are purchasing and the ZIP code to which you want the instrument delivered. I will contact the supplier to get the required information, and then send you a "request for payment" via PayPal that will reference your order and specify the additional charges.
2. You may contact me by email or telephone and ask what the shipping charges will be. Be sure to let me know the product number of the instrument(s) you are interested in, and your ZIP code (or postal code). I will contact the supplier, calculate the shipping charges for you, and send you an email containing the shipping charges. With this information, you may complete the checkout and pay once for the item and the shipping.
After you have chosen the instrument you want to buy, provided your billing and shipping addresses, and approved the charges, you are asked to pay for your item. I have set up the store so that you may pay by check or via PayPal. If you choose to pay by check, please mail it immediately to me at the address on the bottom of every page. I will be notified of the order, and will let you know when I receive the check and again when it has cleared. Because such orders will not be transmitted to the supplier until your check clears (which can be 2-3 weeks after you mail it to me), you may wish to pay using PayPal, but have the money debited from your checking account (such echecks clear within 3-4 days--but I'll probably transmit your order to the supplier as soon as I receive word that the payment has been made .
The PayPal payment page shows my formal business name (KRLM Enterprises) and an email address for that business. This is my PayPal business account. If you have a PayPal account already, simply specify the payment to be made. If you do not have a PayPal account, you may simply enter your bank account or credit card information to make a secure payment.
When you have completed the purchase, you receive a receipt and a notice that your order has been placed, and I receive your order via email. Once I receive the notice from PayPal that your payment has been received, I place the order with the supplier. You will be notified by email when your order has been placed, and will be given the tracking number and expected date of delivery of your instrument.
Special Orders
There are several instances in which you may want to place a "Special Order."
- If you are willing to accept a "blemished" instrument from Mid-East Manufacturing, they are often available at a reduced price ("blemishes" are cosmetic only, and do not affect the sound of the instrument). Please send me an email message using the Query Page, giving the product number of the instrument you wish to purchase. I will check the Mid-East website for these sale instruments, and let you know what the reduced price will be.
- If you wish to order one of the orchestral instruments from Amati-Cerveny, the instructions for initiating a special order are listed on the page referring to that class of instruments. Again, submit your query via the Query Page, and I will let you know if the instrument is available, what the price will be, and about how long it will take to deliver it (they may have to be shipped from Czechoslavakia, but the supplier states that this can be within a few weeks).
The response to your query will include "Special Order Numbers" for each instrument you asked about. The prices quoted for Amati-Cerveny instruments will include shipping to the ZIP Code (or postal code) indicated in your query.
When you have decided which instrument you want, please fill out the form on the Special Order Page.
When your order is received, you will be sent a "Request for Payment" via PayPal for the agreed-upon price.
When your payment has been received, your order will be placed.
About the Amati-Cerveny Product Pages
When you click on the link to the Amati-Denak catalog (these include V. F. Cerveny instruments), from a product page within the Spirit Guide store, you will see a table that lists all of the instruments of that particular type available from the factory in Czechoslavakia. The instruments are listed within each category in order of INCREASING price.
Within the table, you will see the model number (if you click on a model number with a link, you will see a picture of that model), followed by a list of specifications for that instrument. If there are not many instruments of that type, below the table you will see small pictures of the various models, with the option to enlarge the picture.
Please make a note of each of the model numbers that you are interested in, then go to the Query Page to generate an inquiry into the availability, price, and approximate delivery time for each.
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