I purchased two of these recorders: one as a replacement for my daughter’s inexpensive soprano recorder (which my 3 year-old son shattered while playing golf) and one to play when I travel.
My goal was to find an inexpensive, easy-to-care-for recorder with a softer sound than the typical shrieking whistle sold to school children.

I have not been disappointed–the Yahama Soprano recorder has a wonderful warm sound and is very comfortable to play.

A note for parents: This recorder uses Baroque, not German fingering. This means that it is may not a good pre-band instrument, as most band woodwinds (and most recorders for school-age children) use German fingering. For example, on a Flutophone (German fingering), you play F by covering all of the holes on the left hand and only the top hole with the right hand. In Baroque fingering, you play F by covering the first, third and fourth holes on the right hand. It is a bit more challenging to play legato, since you have to cover/uncover multiple holes simultaneously.

Also, some recorders for children (such as the Flutophone) have lipped holes, which seem to make it easier for the child to completely cover the hole. The holes on this recorder are not lipped.

For the price, this recorder is one of the best plastic ones out there. If you are thinking about trying the recorder, I would highly recommend this one over the cheaper ones. The cheaper ones tend to sound shrill when you start playing the higher notes. I think that’s part of the reason why recorders have such a bad reputation; kids shrieking on their school issued recorders can send any adult running. In contrast, the Yamaha 302 has a warmer tone and the higher register is not grating on the ears. It comes with a cleaning rod, cream for the joints, a fairly nice carrying case that zips, and a small insert with a fingering chart.

The only drawback to this recorder is that it tends to clog easily. The mouthpeice is thinner, which makes it more comfortable to play, but I think it contributes to the clogging. Of course, clogging in unavoidable in all plastic recorders – all my other recorders clog too so I don’t think this detracts from the benefits of this model.

All in all, I have been very happy with mine and I think I could only do better by buying one of the handcrafted wood recorders that run upwards of two hundred.

This Yamaha recorder provides fantastic quality for the price. The Soprano YRS-302B is durable, comfortable, and sounds surprisingly nice. It will meet the needs of most casual players.