Customer Reviews

Hohner Kids Hardwood Wood Block with Mallet

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

My two-year-old and I have a great time playing with this and other percussion instruments while listening to salsa and other music with a good beat. However, this wood block is very high-pitched and kind of hurts the ears if you play it full-out, correctly. The flip side is that it's rather difficult for a little kid to find the sweet spot on it--and get that full-out sound. I'm not sure there's a better option since its small size is both what causes the high-pitchedness and what makes it manageable for small hands! Bigger ones probably have a more mellow sound and a larger sweet spot, but will be too big for a toddler's hands.

This is an excellent, non-threatening little percussion instrument for school music activities, drama productions, and / or drum circles. They always seem popular with my students when we do music and / or rhythm exercises. The woodblocks have a nice, rich sound, especially when you find their "sweet" spot.

This is a fun toy -- but the block is not really made of hard wood. My 19-month-old daughter made indentations all over the wood by hitting it with the mallet. Not of great quality -- but what can you expect for under $3.

I bought this for my 2 1/2 year old who typically loves percussion instruments. He loves playing bongos and has since he was so small he could not hit them and played them by scratching the skins. Now he sets the bongos up with a tambourine in the center leaning on the books that are behind it so that he can hit the middle one and get a different sound and he will play them for 15 minutes at a time, to his own rhythms or, somewhat syncopated, to recorded music, forever on the 2 year old timescale. So, I thought, he might like something that he could play in the car and stuff.

He used it for one trip and decided to leave it at home the next time. The things I noticed were the same as others did - the "sweet spot" is small and only on one side, and he experimented a little hitting it on other parts, the only really wood blocky sound was in one small hard to hit place. Maybe if he was older. It is a very sharp sound, but he is too young to ask if the sound hurts his ears. (Well, I could ask him, but I can't interpret his answer.)

The photo shows a lacquered mallet. The mallet we got was painted. The block was lacquered. Not that big of a deal, just worth mentioning that the photo did not quite match what we got.

The wood is soft wood. It looks like stained pine. My grandson didn't play with it long enough to make marks on it.

I am very sad to write this review, but after I opened the package and very soon learned that this product was grossly misrepresented as being "Hardwood", I am complelled to get the word out.
The product is made from pine or fir and stained to look like hardwood something it's not. The sound one gets out of the product (even if it supposed to be a "kids toy") is not the same rich tone one would get if it were indeed made from hardwood.
I bought this product to use as a music enhancer for some video background music I am recording. I have had the real hardwood models of this very same instrument in the past. One made of Mahogany and one of walnut or have played one of teak. Those instruments made the rich sounds that come from hardwood.
Now if you can provide me proof that this product is indeed "hardwood" then fine, but I have worked with many many types of hardwood as well as pine, and when I took a knife and sliced a small sliver off the edge of the product. I would lay heavy odds on that it is ondeed pine.
Even if you would have made the item a more costly it certainly would have been worth it to be able to rely on and get those exquisite sounds I am looking for to enhance my video music.
But to out and out mislead and claim that this product is made from hardwood is just BAD BUSINESS!
BUYER BE WARE.
Come on now just say it's pine and most people will buy it anyway, especially as a kids toy. But do not try and dupe the public into thinking it's hardwood when it is not. BAD BUSINESS!

I bought these inexpensive blocks to take to the drumming circle. The blocks are a great addition, many have remarked that they are pleased we have them. Great way to participate without hauling "BIG" stuff. The blocks maybe for kids, but they are great for adults also. We Enjoy Them.

my daughter is a music therapist and uses this in her sessions, it works great.

This was exactly what I had in mind when I ordered. Well contructed and sturdy. This should hold up to many generations on noise making.

I bought this for our grandchildren to use in a musical rhythm band. They love rhythm ad music. It will be a fun addition to our rhythm band instrument collection

The block is well made with a good finish. The mallet is a bit small, but that is ok. The real problem is the sound the block makes when struck. It is very high pitched and loud. It hurts my ears. Wanted to give the kid something fun to learn about sounds and rhythm but I don't want to hear the sound of this toy every again.