Which handpan first?

1. Why a handpan?

Every note on a handpan belongs to one scale, so the notes you tap always sound good together. Within minutes you play something that sounds like music, not like practice.

It is small enough to take to a beach, a park or a friend's house, and the sound fills a room. It's easy to sit down for five minutes and stay for an hour.

Hear it for yourself: tap the pan in your browser and play your first groove today. Play a handpan now →

2. What budget?

Think in three kinds of pan, not in prices:

• Mass-produced: sold by music shops, ready to ship. Quality varies most from one pan to the next, so buy where you can return it.
• Established makers: their standard models, tuned and checked by people who build pans every day.
• Custom and handmade: built to order, often with a waiting list.

We don't list prices: they change, and they differ from country to country. Compare them when you're ready to buy.

3. Which scale?

For most first pans: D Kurd (D minor). Most lessons are written for it, Sona's included. Next most common: D Amara, also sold as Celtic Minor.

Choose a less common scale, such as Hijaz, Akebono or Pygmy, only if you love its sound. You can hear and play 30 scales in Sona before you decide.

4. How many notes?

9 notes fit almost every lesson. 10 adds one high note. 12 to 14, with bass notes on the underside, give you more range but cost more and weigh more. A good first pan has 9 or 10.

5. Steel, tuning and care

Steel. Stainless steel copes well with humid, salty air (by the sea, or in the Gulf) and needs little care. Nitrided steel needs wiping and a thin coat of oil after playing, or it can rust. The two sound different: hear both if you can.

440 or 432 Hz. 440 Hz is the standard and plays along with other instruments; 432 Hz is a matter of taste. Sona plays both.

Before you pay, check:

• every note rings long and clean, with no buzz or rattle;
• every note is in tune (ask the seller to show you);
• a hard case comes with it;
• you can return it.

Red flags: only photos, never a video of that exact pan; a "handpan" that is really a tongue drum; no returns.