Opinion on best Irish flute

[rh]

10 seconds left on the eBay Rudall...

[Aanvil]

You git that whale capin or nantucket sleigh ride?

[Doc Jones]

I've played a Hammy for about six years -- I've always found it easy to fill, certainly as easy as any other Pratten-hybrid I've played, give or take. Where this flute gets tricky is in the fingering response; if you're sloppy on a Hammy, it does not hide your sloppiness -- rather, it announces it to anyone listening. So, precision is key to sounding good, as long as you also are pushing a good tone up front.
All other observations made above are true, as well, but Jim's comment about good v. great flutes, and who need them, is a great point. I remember an interview with John Skelton (on Brad's site?), where he said he plays a Rudall, but not a "great one". While we should all be so lucky as to have a not-great Rudall, there are -in fact- many so-so ones out there. When Skelton plays his, however, I doubt anyone thinks of it as a so-so Rudall. Any decent flute will do you proud if you play it well. If you're lucky (or wealthy and patient) enough to get a truly great flute, that will only enhance the experience, and - hopefully - your fondness for your flute. But so, so much more important is the player, and the amount of work he/she puts into their flute, that the search for the perfect flute is a bit like hunting an albino whale (This is a literary reference, BTW, and decidedly NOT whale-hunting advocacy).
Best,
Gordon

My feelings precisely. I don't find Hammys particularly tough to "fill". I think "Filling" a flute has much more to do with embouchure development than lung development.

It's me fingers that get lazy and, yes I confess, sloppy. Hammys are fantastic flutes but you've got to hit those big ol' holes like you mean it. Largish, longish fingers are a definite plus when wrassling such a critter..

Doc

[I.D.10-t]

My feelings precisely. I don't find Hammys particularly tough to "fill". I think "Filling" a flute has much more to do with embouchure development than lung development.

Are you talking about max volume? What is filling a flute?
Only having one flute I have no basis for comparison.

[Gordon]

For me, "filling" a flute is a bit of a misnomer; I basically meant being able to produce a full, sustained tone, or passage, without losing a lung. Once you play flute at all, really, this is not the issue any more, on a Hammy or on any other decently sealed flute. So Doc is right in his take on what I was on about - a good embouchure is far more important to driving a Hammy than massive lungs.

Regarding hole size, my fingers are fine enough on this flute, but I can't get lazy as I might on a smaller-holed flute. One trick (which I rarely employ) is to dab my fingertips in oil, or water, and the seal will be far tighter on the holes during a set of tunes. A temporary trick, to be sure, although later in a session or gig, sweaty fingers and moisture from inside will serve much the same purpose.

Best,
Gordon

[jim stone]

Right. Once your embouchure is in order, I think
playing a flute, including a Hammy, takes less air
than many high whistles.

I think the Hammy is set up very well so that it
fingers well despite the big holes and wide tube.
Immensely likeable flute.

[monkey587]

I remember an interview with John Skelton (on Brad's site?), where he said he plays a Rudall, but not a "great one". While we should all be so lucky as to have a not-great Rudall, there are -in fact- many so-so ones out there. When Skelton plays his, however, I doubt anyone thinks of it as a so-so Rudall.

I have an old Rudall Rose, but it's not a great one. As I said earlier, I've been playing my own Hawkes for so long now, that it's hard to immediately get a good sound out of another flute. So I don't chop and change. I stay with the same flute. I'm afraid that I don't know much about getting a good bottom D on a Rudall & Rose, unless it's a problem of forcing the flute to play louder than was intended, with the result that some notes (towards the bottom) will sound a little thin.

[cocusflute]

Not it matters a lot, but the bore on a Hammy is surprisingly narrow, despite the perception that Hammy flutes have a wide bore.
The bore of the Hammy at the top of the heart joint measures 18.4 mm. The top of an Olwell Pratten measures 18.2 mm.
At the bottom of the heart joint the bore of the Hammy is 13.1 mm. The bore of the Olwell is larger, at 13.2 mm.
The top of the Doyle is largest of all, at 18.47.

[talasiga]

Right. Once your embouchure is in order, I think
playing a flute, including a Hammy, takes less air
than many high whistles.

I second that.

[peeplj]

Right. Once your embouchure is in order, I think
playing a flute, including a Hammy, takes less air
than many high whistles.

I second that.

Yep, I concur.

--James

[daiv]

That doesn't mean you have to blow the crap out of the flute either. I used to do that until I met John Daly, a fiddler living in Chicago. He described flute players back in Ireland that would barely fill a flute and yet produce an almost magical sound. So I tried it, and I found that as long as you get a tone that is middle-of-the-road, you have a lot of volume left over when you feel like expressing yourself. And I think that this music is all about enjoyment and expression.

shh.... that's a secret! next you're going to let everyone know that resonance comes from your embouchure and inner mouth shape instead of sheer volume of air!

EDIT:

shoot, someone already let it out!

Right. Once your embouchure is in order, I think
playing a flute, including a Hammy, takes less air
than many high whistles.

[bob o'brien]

I've heard the distinction made between 'microphone flutes' and 'session flutes'. Certainly some are great when you're playing in a room or your own but then disappear when there's any competing noise. with other you can cut through anything. in my book Sam Murray flutes are hard to beat. They can sometimes be tricky but they have fantastic clarity, character and volume if you have enough puff.