Chiff and Fipple Forums

I am getting ready to get back into the flute after many years away and have been reading tons of posts on here and on The Session about various flutes. I know I want Delrin for ease of care. I have been looking at Shannon, Copley, etc in that price range 2 - 375 ish... Have noticed that people always talk about big bottom D sounds and loud session cutting.. But I won't be playing in sessions so am interested in a flute that is easy to play and can be played softly. I also like baroque music and on my whistle can play quite a lot of accidentals.. So a keyless flute that affords this ability too is a plus. I tried searching the forum for quiet flute but could not really find anything..

Unlike 19th century English flutemakers, who were looking for power, continental fluters of the same era sought sweetness. As a consequence, they're softer. I don't know of any contemporary makers who copy that sound, but there are still a fair few vintage French and German flutes around, often very reasonably priced. Try searching Ebay for terms like "nach meyer". If you're lucky, you might find an 8 key flute for the price of a modern keyless. One would be perfect for Baroque music.

The nineteenth century American makers made medium-bore, smaller holed flutes. Notably the Firth, Hall, and Pond families. Terry McGee offers a modern take on these flutes with his 'Grey Larsen Preferred' model. While these can be driven to a respectable volume by a player with excellent 'chops', they also are quite nice to play at a more moderate volume in a 'chamber' environment. If you cannot find a Firth, Pond, Hall, & Sons (or some combination of these names), then you can seek out one of the antique American made flutes made in 'Fluteville' NY. Some of the 'dealer' models sold in NY city were built along these lines, and even some of the later post mounted flutes, often made with Cocus wood, are not to be despised.

Bob

There are quieter flutes and louder flutes ... but, in addition to that, one of the great things about flutes, as contrasted with whistles, is that you can play them quietly or loudly at will. Of course, it takes a bit of practice to be able to play them really well, quietly.

Er I think a couple of you missed something here.. I was asking about specifically Delrin.. and about 400 dollars.. Thanks for the info though..

I guess the question is which would be quieter or easier to play quietly.. Copley or Shannon or something close to these ??

I think you will find that delrin flutes have a good deal of volume, typically.
The Shannon and Copley delrin flutes are session-ready. The Sommers Rudall
model (delrin) may suit your needs better--though these also can develop
good volume.

If I may make a suggestion: Sweetheart flutes, while wood, are made to be
virtually care free. They are soaked in tung oil so as to be impervious to moisture.
Generally wooden flutes don't need much care, and Sweetheart flutes need less.
The D flutes are quietish, probably more so than anything you will find in delrin,
light in the hand. They have a lovely sweet rudally tone, and they aren't terribly
expensive. I have never seen anybody play one in a session, since they are quieter.
If you want quiet and low maintenance (the latter appears to be the reason you want delrin),
they are an option.

SirRoger wrote:Er I think a couple of you missed something here.. I was asking about specifically Delrin..

Fair enough, but if you're chasing a particular sound, the material it's made of isn't the most useful detail to prioritize.

SirRoger wrote:I also like baroque music and on my whistle can play quite a lot of accidentals.. So a keyless flute that affords this ability too is a plus

If that's what you want, get a baroque flute (e.g. a Bernolin resin traverso, which isn't Delrin, but still polymer turned on a lathe and plays very nicely). 19th-century-style flutes (aka 'Irish') just don't do so many accidentals without keys. Even smaller-holed ones, which may do some, but not all.

Best of all, get both!

s1m0n wrote:If you're lucky, you might find an 8 key flute for the price of a modern keyless. One would be perfect for Baroque music.

A baroque flute is perfect for baroque music.

s1m0n wrote:Fair enough, but if you're chasing a particular sound, the material it's made of isn't the most useful detail to prioritize.

He wants Delrin 'for ease of care.'

OK, but he's not going to get his complete ask - a quiet delrin flute for 375 or less. He's going to have to compromise on something. Snottily rejecting an alternate solution to his problem is the opposite of gracious.

Aulos makes a couple of baroque flutes in plastic. One is a Grenser model and the other is a Stanseby Jr. I think the latter is the better flute, but its pitched at A=415hz (which might not matter if you don't intend to play with others). The Grenser is pitched at A=440hz. These are not Irish session instruments, they are baroque flutes, but should match the requirements you outlined fairly well. They cost a few hundred dollars new, and can often be found for close to your target price used.

So heres another question, would a Copley blackwood be easier to play quieter than a delrin one..

Quiet playing depends on your control more than the flute.
That is, most any flute can be played quietly. But it's hard to
do at the beginning. So if you want to play quietly, best to get
a quiet flute. I doubt that there will be much difference in volume
between the Copley delrin and blackwood. Both are meant to be
workable in sessions, though there are louder flutes around.

One thing that seems to have gotten lost in this discussion is the fact that Terry has made his GLP model in delrin.

Bob

If I may say this again, I think the Somers Rudall, which I have played and heard in a session, is a good flute and less loud than every other delrin flute I've played. This is probably as good as you can do in delrin--given your needs. It is loud enough for a smaller session, but most of the makers in delrin make something louder.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMJvjC4Ghi0

So heres another question, would a Copley blackwood be easier to play quieter than a delrin one..

Dave Copley's flutes are not quiet flutes. Regardless of whether they are made of Delrin or blackwood, they are Irish flutes made for playing in sessions, and being heard. This means that in the general scheme of things, they are loud flutes. A guess to be more accurate we should say they are flutes that are capable of being played loud. The volume of a flute depends mostly on the player rather than the flute. While they are very nice flutes, I would say that Dave Copley's flutes are designed for a set of requirements that are at the opposite end of the spectrum from those you outlined in your original post.