What kind of flute is the best to have?

[ange_gurl]

I was wondering what kind of flue is the best. Right now I have a Yamaha Intermediate or Advanced model. I have been playing the flute for about five years and i have taken flute lessons for maybe a year. Would it be better for me to use a professional model with holes.

[flutist001]

I would say that you should stick to the flute you have now, unless it is closed holes. I have also been playing for 5 years, and I am probably getting a new flute(Yamaha 481) on saturday( ) so i think you are probably fine with the one you have now.

[Phineas]

If you like the flute you have, keep it! That whole deal about open hole and closed hole is just a myth!

I would suggest keeping the flute you have, saving your money, then try every flute you can until you find one that fits you.

Half the fun in playing an instrument is shopping for one!

Phineas

[bladibla]

If you have the money, get a open holed, bfoot gold muramatsu flute. I dont care if people say its for professionals. if you can play the beginner notes on it, then your good.

Realistically, a yamaha int or adv is fine.

[powayflute01]

Gold is not necessarily the "best" metal for a flute to be made out of. You might like yours if you have one, but the "best" metal composition generally depends on what kind of setting the flute is going to be played in. If the flute is going to be used in an ensemble setting or for jazz music, a silver flute is generally better because the sound tends to carry more and will be heard more easily over the other instruments. The sound is also brighter, making it a good choice for jazz music. Gold flutes have a much different sound that does not carry as well, making it better for solo playing. I have encountered people who put gold head joints on silver flutes for playing in an ensemble setting because they like the sound of a gold flute better, but the sound will still carry.
I don't think I would go so far as to say "the blank model of such-and-such manufacturer is the best" because there are so many great flutes out there. Silver and gold both have good qualities, Powell and Muramatsu both have good qualities, B foot and C foot both have good qualities, open hole and closed hole both have good qualities. How can you say what is best for someone else?

[bladibla]

Gold is not necessarily the "best" metal for a flute to be made out of. You might like yours if you have one, but the "best" metal composition generally depends on what kind of setting the flute is going to be played in. If the flute is going to be used in an ensemble setting or for jazz music, a silver flute is generally better because the sound tends to carry more and will be heard more easily over the other instruments. The sound is also brighter, making it a good choice for jazz music. Gold flutes have a much different sound that does not carry as well, making it better for solo playing. I have encountered people who put gold head joints on silver flutes for playing in an ensemble setting because they like the sound of a gold flute better, but the sound will still carry.
I don't think I would go so far as to say "the blank model of such-and-such manufacturer is the best" because there are so many great flutes out there. Silver and gold both have good qualities, Powell and Muramatsu both have good qualities, B foot and C foot both have good qualities, open hole and closed hole both have good qualities. How can you say what is best for someone else?

I guess you are right to a extent. It is wrong for me to simply judge the quality of a flute by what metals its made of, since all of them has different style of music.

This again goes with the model. However, this is somewhat speaking with a little experience. I've tried blowing on both muramatsu flutes and yamaha flutes (muramatsu of course my mentors ) anyway, it seems the sound comes out much more smoother than that of the yamaha. However, again, it does not mean there is a radical difference in the best quality of music that instrument can produce

[fluttiegurl]

"What is the best flute" is a very open ended question. Every person is not the same. If you took a look around your own section, you wil notice that everyone has different shaped lips, finger length, etc., etc. These differences can effect how a certain flute would play for that person. For these reasons, if you were to have one flute for everyone in the same section to try, there would be variations in sound from each individual. Different metals are going to sound different for individual players as well. I have a gold flute and picked it after trying many silver flutes which did not give the same response. My "mentor" did not like her sound on gold, so she did not go that route.

With that in mind, there are obviously some models that are better constructed than others. Yamaha seems to be one of the better lines for this. If you like your sound on your current flute, stick with it. I will also say that if you are playing on a student line Yamaha, a Muramatsu (handmade) is OBVIOUSLY going to sound better. By far, it is a better flute, and the price reflects this. I don't feel that a flute of this nature is suitable for a beginner or intermediate player since it could end up being a waste of money in the long run.

As for open holes, I encourage my students to play with them for a number of reasons which I will not get into. Remember that just bacause a flute has open holes DOES NOT make it a professional level flute. Like all other flutes, you can buy a beginner model with open holes as well. Talk to your teacher about this decission.

[ick27]

I think it's great that are so many different makes and models of flutes. Professionals sometimes prefer a certain make of flute, and every high quality flute maker has top players that use and endorse their instruments. This is much more exciting than say, the clarinet world, where one brand is clearly the choice for professionals.

As for what flute is best for you personally, talk to your flute teacher, I'm sure they know something about when to buy a new flute and what brands to look at.

[BrightFlute]

I usually recommend Yamaha flutes to my students. I also prefer open-hole, inline-g. - Terri

[fluttiegurl]

Just out of curiosity, why an inline G? I know that this is a hot topic for manufacturers right now, and I had an inline for about 13 years before switching to offset. I have students who play both inline and offset, according to what they like, but am very curious as to why teachers recommend one over the other. I was told years ago that inline promotes better hand position, but have not found any truth in that myself. I know of other teachers who prefer inline (including my own). Is there something that I am missing?

Just curious

[BrightFlute]

Maybe I prefer inline because I have long fingers. My college prof also preferred inline. In general, I DO feel hand position is less likely to become "lazy" with the inline, however, there are times when I suggest a student go with offset. What I do with my students is to try to set their hand position with inline. For students with smaller hands, sometimes offset works best. I started playing flute with an offset G, then switched to inline. It solved some hand problems for me (again, maybe because I have long hands). My personal experience is that I would have had less hand alognment problems if I had started with the inline g. For reference, I'm 5ft 9in. Of course, a high school student who is 5ft 2in, might have hands small enough to need the g offset. Anyway, yes, I generally recommend the inline g, but I DO recognize there are cases where the offset works best. I hope I stated this clear enough. - Terri

[fluttiegurl]

Thanks Terri! That did make a great deal of sense. I am 5ft 2in, and can relate to the other side of things!

Thank you. I greatly value the input of other teachers and feel that your opinion helps me look at things in another light.

[BrightFlute]

Glad I could help. It's funny that I picked YOUR height for comparison. Just so you know, most students already want to turn their left hand too much. If you think of the left hand as being either parallel (flat against the flute) or perpendicular (actual is NOT exactly, but at a small angle), it's easier to see why many teachers resist recommending the offset G. While someone with small hands NEEDS to have the g offset so they CAN reach it, many students who CAN reach the inline G want it offset as a crutch sl their left hand position can be lazy. When the left hand position aligns too closely with the flute, the wrist is too bent, the fingers are cramped, and sometimes, the student is even turning their head to the left to "baby" their entire left arm. All of this results in poor sound (very airy) and poor technique. Anyway, you are obviously one of the exceptions that NEED the offset G. Just be careful about your hand position. - Terri

[fluttiegurl]

Thanks again for the info. I actually played with an offset G for some time then switched to the inline for 13 years (through college and into my first years as a teacher) before switching back. The main reason why I switched was due to the fact that I liked the feeling much better. Since switching, I have had no problems, but have developed a much more relaxed technique which has helped in MANY ways.

I have run into instances where student want to turn their left hand too much (one that I recently took on from another teacher). I don't feel that telling them to switch at this point would be benefial as we generally work through these problems in one or two lessons, but this info will help me as I work with other students who are upgrading in the future. In years past, I have allowed students to make the choice themselves, but have had no actual basis or preference for one or the other. This will definately encourage me to do a little more research and hopefully, offer more to these students before they make purchases. Thanks again for your input.

[ange_gurl]

Thanks for all of your ideas. I have really small hands and very short fingers. I am 5'4" and my shortest fingers are my pinky's and ring fingers. Also what do you think about a split e on the flute seeing as high e is hard for me to play.
I have braces. is that a reason it is hard?