Reports on Chris Wilkes' Rudalls invited

[jim stone]

I received yesterday from Blayne at the Irish Flute Store the flute mentioned above. I like it very much. I wonder if I can ask those of us who have played these flutes for their thoughts and suggestions about them. Maybe I'll chime in later, and I'd like to know what you'all think, if you will.

[Steampacket]

Congratulations Jim. I too have a Wilkes keyless blackwood flute, Rudall model, with wide rose-engine turned, silver ferrules, end cap, and foot joint end cap, made in 2000. It's a fine flute, very responsive. If you search "Wilkes" on the flute forum you'll find stuff I've written about my Wilkes. Due to inexperience It took me a while to get used to the embouchure, and to find the best placement of the cork to get the best intonation in the second octave. I wasn't so experienced in flute playing when I first got the flute. Since then I have bought a couple of Rudall flutes, and through playing them as my main flutes, I find it easy to play the Wilkes. So I switch between them now without problem. The Wilkes doesn't take a lot of wind to sound. Ciaran Somers played the Wilkes shortly after I got it and said that the second octave was out of tune. This was before I knew about cork placement. Cathal McConnell had a go on another occasion the same year, and said it was a good flute, but it needed playing in. By adjusting the cork and moving it back so that is approx. 21 mm to the centre of the embouchure hole this works for how I blow, so that the flute is in tune with it self in the two octaves that I use.

[jim stone]

Thank you! I know we had a longish thread about Wilkes' flutes in April, which got a bit sidetracked and then locked. So I thought it might be alright to revisit. The flute Blayne sent me is very conservative visually, no bling, and beautiful looking. It plays wonderfully, and it's hard not to be carried away with enthusiasm (common with my first experience of a new good flute). The intonation is very good indeed, and I remember from the last thread the advice to play it with a tight embouchure and a narrowly focused air stream. I'm having no trouble playing it. The flute has a lot of ooomph, it speaks pretty aggressively, if I may put it that way. At the same time underlying the tone is a beautiful woody sweetness, though the headjoint is lined with silver. A complex and beautiful combination. My hyperventilating aside, I reckon this is one of the best flutes I've ever played--and I've played a number of Rudalls. I reckon Mr. Wilkes is one of the great flute makers, a demon for perfection (the quality of workmanship is astonishing to me) and working at the place where acoustic craftsmanship becomes true art. Hard to play this instrument and not be happy.

[eilam]

i have a 5 key prattten by Wilkes that i love, also played a few of his R&R type flutes and they were all amazing players, i never had any issue getting a solid tone from them.
congratulations jim !

[jim stone]

Thanks. Can you say how W's Prattens compare with Pat Olwell's?

[eilam]

flute playing is so subjective and personal, i like smaller embouchure cut...deeper chimney.....
i don't think the Wilkes i have and played had a deeper chimney then olwell's i've owned, but the embouchure was a bit shorter, and the tone maybe a bit more complex?
i love his craftsmanship and love having one of his flutes, and will never sell it, though it's not my main flute.

[tstermitz]

I actually got to play that flute. It's a Pratten, right?

I was interested in it until I tried it and realized that it wasn't my cup of tea, as I'm more used to Rudall style flutes, well American Firth-Pond which is closer to Rudall than Pratten. Also, it doesn't have a modern, forgiving embouchure, so you do have to work it in... or work yourself for it.

I'm still new to fluting, but at this time in my development, Prattens aren't what I like.

And, that's a good thing to learn.

[Uni Flute]

There is an interesting video where a kindly YouTuber compares a Rudall and a Pratten flute, both of which are made by Chris Wilkes. The link is below

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=sBOcfreb0uo