Cheap flute for an uncertain newbie flutist?

Crysania · Post by **Crysania** » Sat Jan 03, 2004 12:29 pm

I always wanted to be a flute player when I was younger, but I was never able to make a sound on a modern flute (I can now make a sound...but well, it doesn't sound very good). When I was younger, I just gave up and became a clarinet player.

Last March, I took up playing the whistle and have been going to sessions since May. Not too long ago, I picked up someone's Irish flute and was surprised to find out I could actually produce a fairly decent sound on the instrument. Good news for me, yes! However, that being said, it's a fairly expensive wooden instrument...and certainly not one I can afford at this point in my life.

So what I'm looking for is a very inexpensive flute that I can play around with for a little while...one that won't cost me much money (I'm still in school, still very poor...so I can't even afford a $250 beginner model right now). I've seen some in the $50 range and I think I could swing that. I also don't want to spend a bunch of money on a flute, only to discover I actually can't play it at all.

Does anyone here have any suggestions on cheap beginning flutes that are fairly easy to play? Any help is appreciated!

~Crysania

JessieK · Post by **JessieK** » Sat Jan 03, 2004 12:41 pm

In your price range, a good bamboo flute could get you started quite nicely. You'd have to adjust your embouchure a little when you want to switch to a wooden conical flute, but that would happen whenever you'd change from one flute to another, and in this case, it's an easier switch than the reverse would be (it's harder to get a good sound on a bamboo flute than on a conical wooden one - but still manageable for someone who is musical). Patrick Olwell is at the top of the American game on these, but he is taking some time off from making bamboo flutes. A close second is Steve Cox. He makes very playable bamboo flutes that are well-tuned and well-pitched. Good luck.

www.tallgrasswinds.com

Blackbeer · Post by **Blackbeer** » Sat Jan 03, 2004 12:58 pm

Lest we forget our own Alan Mount. Makes a very good sounding easy playing pvc tunable flute with off set finger holes which make it very easy to transition from the whistle. If you decide to go bamboo think about an F or an Eb. Most D`s I`ve played have quite a finger stretch and might be uncomfortable to play. I love bamboo flutes and besides JessieKs` suggestions Sunreed makes a good flute in any key, there is also a maker you will find in another thread, the bamboo flute thread, who I have been talking to who learned the trade from the same guy that Patrick Olwell did and has been making them for about 20 years. I am waiting for an Eb from him. Oh one other thing (and I hope nobody is listening) I picked up a passel of bamboo flutes on ebay for something like 10 bucks. Every key from high D to low D. I no it sounds ridiculous but according to my tuner they are all very close to being in tune and are well in tune with them selves and pretty easy to play. But do`t tell anyone I did that. Anyway dive in and prepair your self for the ride of your life.

Tom

Jayhawk · Post by **Jayhawk** » Sat Jan 03, 2004 1:10 pm

Jessie's advice on a bamboo flute is good. There have also been some really good reviews of Alan Mount's PVC flutes. I think they run about $50, and you can search his name on this board (he's a member).

For about $75 there is the Hammie Hamilton practice flute: http://homepage.tinet.ie/~hammie/practice.htm

Finally, Doug Tipple (search eBay under Irish flute) makes several different styled PVC flutes for $35 (buy it now option) that Michael Eskin has a sound sample of : http://www.granitehillsdesign.com/micha ... /dougs.mp3

Granted - since Michael is a good player, you won't sound that good on the Tipple flute (neither would I!), but it shows what it can do.

No matter what, have fun. I started with whistles, too, but I find the flute much more addictive.

Eric

Crysania · Post by **Crysania** » Sat Jan 03, 2004 3:59 pm

Thanks to everyone for their replies so far...I'm currently waffling between the Alan Mount and Doug Tipple flutes. Both cost the same amount (I'd want the tuneable Tipple flute, which is also $50, rather than the $35 non-tuneable one). Both also have offset G and D holes, which I'd probably opt for (I'm assuming the spacing on a D flute is the same as on a low D whistle?...which I was suprised was such a reach! I was able to fairly comfortably reach on a tenor recorder, and it was a stretch, but not impossible, on a bass recorder...and the whistle was much harder for me).

So it's a tough call at the moment...of the two, which is easier to play? Or are they pretty comparable for easy of blowing into them and producing a sound?

Thanks again!

~Crysania

Jayhawk · Post by **Jayhawk** » Sat Jan 03, 2004 4:17 pm

Unfortunately, I've never tried either flute. I know Tom above has an Alan Mount flute, while as I said before Michael had a Tipple. Both liked them. I'd say either one would work fine.

Eric

Henke · Post by **Henke** » Sat Jan 03, 2004 4:39 pm

And I'll weight in with: If Eric is right (and I don't understand why he would'nt be), it probably doesn't matter which one you ultimately go for. If they both are decent quality, it's my opinion that you should just get one of them and get used to it and it will work fine and then it probably would not matter which one others would think is the better.

MsC · Post by **MsC** » Sat Jan 03, 2004 5:03 pm

Crysania, check your PM's.

KateG · Post by **KateG** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 10:21 am

I bought one of Doug Tipples's flutes about 2 years ago. Had played Boehm flute in band as a kid, and was fooling around with a penny whistle...but didn't like the stratospheric pitch. It's not a bad flute at all, 'specially for $35 (mine pre-dates his tunable models), although I find the left hand stretch a bit tough...a problem I think he's addressed in his current models. The tuning is spot-on, and the tone very acceptable.

I have since acquired one of Ralph Sweet's new model rosewood numbers, and am beginning to hanker for a six keyed flute....but that represents inevitable IAS rather than dissatisfaction with Tipple's product.

PVC has all sorts of advantages for a knock about instrument, since it's impervious to wind, water and general rough and tumble stuff. Mine is still my instrument of choice when hiking. Nothing like playing haunting airs while sitting by a lonely mountain pond. Enjoy!!!

JessieK · Post by **JessieK** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 11:02 am

I don't want to be pushy, and you will do what you see fit, but I feel the need to point out that a PVC starter flute is just that, and a good bamboo flute is an instrument that many professionals (Brian Finnegan of Flook, for example) would play. It's in the same price range as a starter PVC flute, but the complexity and beauty of sound possible with a bamboo flute is immeasurably better.

Wombat · Post by **Wombat** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 11:38 am

Just a comment on stretch. I have an Alan Mount D without offset holes and can play it with a bit of a stretch with ordinary fingering. I have yet to meet the low D whistle that I can play easily without using pipers' grip, not that that bothers me on whistle. (I actually find the offset holes on Reyburns more of a problem than a help; I play them with whistle grip but have to use my pinkies.)

I have Olwell bamboo F and D. They both sound very nice—I agree with Jessie about that—but the stretch on the D is really quite hard for me at this stage. I find it hard to get a proper seal on all the holes, much more so than on Alan's D where the stretch is much more manageable. The F, on the other hand, is very easy to play and sounds ... well, as great as a flute can sound in the hands of a newbie.

Crysania · Post by **Crysania** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 12:44 pm

I've opted to get the Alan Mount D flute with the offset holes, just in case it's too much of a stretch. I have rather long fingers and I was surprised to find that the low D whistle I have was such a stretch (though it only is for the right hand ring finger...everything else is easy to play on it for me).

I've found it virtually impossible to play with piper's grip on anything. I think 20 years of clarinet training make it really difficult for me to break from the habit of covering holes with my fingertips. I've noticed a lot of whistle players around my area play with a grip that looks more like pipers, but I've never been able to get my fingers to move that way. So hopefully the offset holes will let me play comfortably!

Though really, it's the embouchure that worries me most...I have a feeling it'll be a constant uphill battle for me with that. But I might finally realize my childhood dream of being a flute player.

Thanks again everyone for your suggestions...I can't wait to try the flute!

~Crysania

Blackbeer · Post by **Blackbeer** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 1:33 pm

I think you will be happy with your choice Crysania, it is a good flute and will get you through the hard times that may be ahead. The embouchure for some people can be a real problem and for others it is no swet. You will just have to work through it. For me it was a nightmare and to this day I don`t know why there aren`t flute pieces sticking out of my wall. But then one day without thinking about it I got tone. And then the real journey began. If you have trouble with it or get frustrated we are all here for you. Believe me it makes a difference when you are able to come here and cry on everyones shoulder. Sure helped me.
Jeez JessieK it sounds like you love bamboo flutes as much as I do. They have such a unique and complex sound. I have a couple that are just out of this world. Next month I will be getting an Eb from Wiliam Miller. He made some coments on the bamboo flute thread. His prices are comparible to Patricks and he learned from the same guy Patrick did and has been making them for 20 years or so. I will let you know how it is when I get it.

Tom

JessieK · Post by **JessieK** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 1:55 pm

Blackbeer wrote:Next month I will be getting an Eb from Wiliam Miller. He made some coments on the bamboo flute thread. His prices are comparible to Patricks and he learned from the same guy Patrick did and has been making them for 20 years or so. I will let you know how it is when I get it.

Yes, please do! I look forward to hearing about it.

Crysania · Post by **Crysania** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 3:00 pm

Blackbeer wrote:If you have trouble with it or get frustrated we are all here for you. Believe me it makes a difference when you are able to come here and cry on everyones shoulder. Sure helped me.

Don't you fret, I'm quite sure I'll be back here to cry on everyone's shoulders...lol. I found a regular classical concert flute to be nothing but a complete frustration when I tried it. I'm hoping this won't be AS much of a frustration, since my natural aptitude for it seemed to be slightly higher than a concert flute, but I'm sure there will be many frustrating moments ahead. Just have to talk myself into not giving up!

~Crysania

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