YAMAHA ADVANTAGE™ BAND INSTRUMENTS HELP BEGINNERS LEARN RIGHT

—Instruments and Cases Specially Aimed at School Market—

GRAND RAPIDS, MI (August 23, 2002)—Yamaha Corporation ofAmerica, Band & Orchestral Division, announces the debut of the Advantage™ line of band and orchestral instruments.

Advantage™ Line of Band and Orchestral Instruments

The Advantage line includes the AD-FL1 flute, AD-CL1 clarinet, AD-AS1 and AD-TS1 saxophones, AD-TR1 trumpet and AD-SL1 trombone, and all provide added features for the beginning student. Their easily stackable molded plastic cases offer innovative features like shoulder straps, making room for storing accessories and more. They combine the proven quality of Yamaha student-level instruments with key features taken from Yamaha's intermediate and professional instruments.

"The Yamaha Advantage line of instruments represents a new direction for our products," says Kurt Witt, marketing manager, Band & Orchestral Division, Yamaha Corporation of America. "Educators and dealers are going to be very impressed with these new instruments—they each have numerous vertically integrated features from our intermediate and professional models, all designed for the best possible success for the beginning musician."

Created with the school service music store in mind, instruments in the Advantage line are slated to reach stores in January, with pricing comparable to those of other student level instruments—making them as well suited to a student's family budget as they are to a new artist's hands and experience level. "With its high quality, focus on student ability levels and 10-year warranty, the Advantage line of instruments satisfy the longstanding request from dealers who depend upon the school sales and rental market for a product line geared to their customers' special needs," says Michael Bennett, vice president and general manager, Band & Orchestral Division, Yamaha Corporation of America.

The Yamaha Advantage™ band method introduced this summer is a unique method that stresses musicianship by introducing correct note duration, line direction, proper phrasing, musical forms and musical terms. The systematic yet flexible approach is designed to focus students on developing embouchure, breath support and fingering, using classical music and proven technique studies from some of the world's great composers. Books are available for flute, clarinet, saxophone, horn, trumpet, trombone, and percussion instruction. The Yamaha Advantage™ was launched in cooperation with esteemed music publisher Carl Fischer and Play-In-Time Productions.

For more information about marching instruments, write Yamaha Corporation of America, Band & Orchestral Division, 3445 East Paris Ave. SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49518; call (616) 940-4900; e-mail infostation@yamaha.com; or visit www.yamaha.com/band.