Hi,
I wasn't sure where to place this post. My poor searching abilities found little information about alto flutes and I have a couple of questions:
1. What does the alto flute sound like in upper registers (above G4)? Is there a limit for getting a good tone?
2. Are the lower notes easy and comfortable to play at speed?
3. How different does the alto flute sound to a C flute when playing the same note?
All your answers and opinions are greatly appreciated,
thanks
AnnaJ
About Alto Flutes
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About Alto Flutes
"Men have not found the words..., but they have found the music."
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fluteguy18
- Posts: 2311
- Joined: Sun Jul 16, 2006 3:11 pm
I personally really dislike the upper register on the alto flute. It sounds very stuffy to me. But, on one of the altos we have in my studio, I became very adventurous one day. I ended up squeaking out the 4th octave F# [above the C]. I couldn't believe it would play it. But... it wasn't very pretty at all...
Theobald Boehm was the one who designed the modern flute. He also created the G alto flute, and it was his favorite of all the flutes.
As a composer, I enjoy the alto flute very much, and have written for it a lot.
In its higher register it has a very airy sound. This sound can be wonderful in an expressive solo (I use it to represent a hot air balloon in my Views of the North Valley), but in ensemble, tends to be lost because it doesn't project strongly.
The middle register (particularly G to G) is where it projects best and is most versatile. The alto is made with a much larger bore than the C flute (larger than you would get by simply enlarging a C flute to alto size), so the lower register tends to be much fuller, solid and loud than you would get on a C flute. For band pieces where the flute section is playing in unison in the lower register, adding an alto flute enriches the sound tremendously.
As a composer, I enjoy the alto flute very much, and have written for it a lot.
In its higher register it has a very airy sound. This sound can be wonderful in an expressive solo (I use it to represent a hot air balloon in my Views of the North Valley), but in ensemble, tends to be lost because it doesn't project strongly.
The middle register (particularly G to G) is where it projects best and is most versatile. The alto is made with a much larger bore than the C flute (larger than you would get by simply enlarging a C flute to alto size), so the lower register tends to be much fuller, solid and loud than you would get on a C flute. For band pieces where the flute section is playing in unison in the lower register, adding an alto flute enriches the sound tremendously.
Thank you for your replies. I am writing a flute trio for 2 C flutes and one alto. The majority of it is the low to middle register and I chose the alto flute to fill out the sound and vary it a little. It seems I made the right decision.
I hope to finish it by the end of this week, so if there are any flute trios/choirs out there,....
Anna J
I hope to finish it by the end of this week, so if there are any flute trios/choirs out there,....
Anna J
"Men have not found the words..., but they have found the music."