will a muramatsu flute be good for me ?

[joolz]

Not wanting to hyjack the thread but this topic applies to me at the moment too as I am thinking about buying a Muramatsu. I am interested in what has been said about trying a few flutes in the same model. My problem with that is that there is only one dealer in my state and they only have one of each EX and GX model so I guess I won't be able to do this.

What would one do in this situation? I have been thinking about ordering one from the US purely from a financial persective because it is many thousands of $$ cheaper for me to do it this way even with the exchange rate and shipping fees. This means of course that I won't be able to try the actual flute I buy. Scary!

As for the whole open hole thing, I learnt on one but currently play a closed hole as I am hiring from the school I teach at. I don't find it that different but I think I prefer open hole purely because that's what I grew up on. I guess I always thought it helped with correct finger placement but I think I remember reading somewhere that since everyones fingers are different, it's not really entirely the case. I think it's a personal thing.


Joolz

[Buttercup]

Actually, it's quite easy to go wrong buying a Mura or any other brand of instrument if it doesn't suit you, as we've noted several times in this thread.

My humble opinion is, if someone has their heart set on a Muramatsu and has the money to spare, Muramatsus are well-made and reliable instruments. I think people go a bit OTT with trying this flute and that flute, and agonising over every little aspect of the flute. I know a couple of friends who have spent months agonising over every little detail with very little difference in the end. At the end of the day it's a handmade instrument from a reputable maker, it's going to be a superb instrument.

And anyway, it's the person playing the flute that makes the biggest difference.

[flutepicc06]

Actually, it's quite easy to go wrong buying a Mura or any other brand of instrument if it doesn't suit you, as we've noted several times in this thread.

My humble opinion is, if someone has their heart set on a Muramatsu and has the money to spare, Muramatsus are well-made and reliable instruments. I think people go a bit OTT with trying this flute and that flute, and agonising over every little aspect of the flute. I know a couple of friends who have spent months agonising over every little detail with very little difference in the end. At the end of the day it's a handmade instrument from a reputable maker, it's going to be a superb instrument.

And anyway, it's the person playing the flute that makes the biggest difference.

Yes, at the end of the day it will probably be an excellent flute, but no matter how fantastic the instrument is, if it doesn't suit the player, it can (and probably will) hold them back musically. Your friends did the smart thing IMO, by trying all the flutes they could, and having the patience to wait months until they could choose just the right instrument for them. If you can't find a difference between how different flutes play for you, then I suppose I understand where your comments are coming from, but simply choosing a flute because it's handmade without regard to how well it works with you and your playing style is not the best way to purchase an instrument, especially when you'll be dropping such a large sum of money on it.

[Buttercup]

I'm not looking for an argument. You posted your opinion, I posted mine.

[flutepicc06]

I'm not looking for an argument. You posted your opinion, I posted mine.

Nor am I. However, it's important that people not just rush into these decisions, especially when such a large amount of money is on the line. Similar to you wanting to protect Andrew Oxley, etc. in another thread, I want to protect readers from one of the major pitfalls of buying an instrument...Not trying them, or just being too impatient to give them all a try. My goal was not to start a controversy.

[sidekicker]

I'm with flutepicc on this (and also the other thread discussing the negatives of some top notch UK flute vendors).

This is an information site. We are all basically lay people rather than experts, so it's up to us to generate the most conversation about our experiences so that others can learn. Yes, from time to time, word choices could be better. But the message should not be lost trying to choose "protective" ways of expression. I think most of us are able to see through overly-emotional posts and get the point being made. We don't need self-censorship.

Not all handmade flutes are going to suit every player. And a particular high end brand is not going to please everyone simply because the flutes are mechanically reliable. Personally, I have hated every Muramatsu flute I've tried, which have been many. They don't seem to suit my playing style nearly as well as the Boston styles that I prefer. That doesn't mean that I wouldn't recommend someone try a Mura, though. It means that for at least one person (me), that line of flutes is not the best. That's all it means. But my opinion on that is important because there may be others like me, i.e. that an American made flute and/or head may be more suitable. I don't want that person to stop shopping at Muramatsus when a Haynes may turn out to be a better flute for them. That's all flutepicc is saying (I think): the worst thing one can do when going for the gusto (buying a handmade flute) is to limit yourself to a single brand or group of brands (e.g., only Japanese flutes, etc.).

Buying a handmade flute is a huge, and often a lifetime, investment. A person considering buying one is entitled to know as much information possible before shelling out that much dough. Those of us who have had negative experiences with something, IMO, are duty-bound to share those with others who come here looking for advice. Someone coming here may not have thought of a particular issue, one that might make a big difference to them.

So why don't we all just calm down on these things . Nobody here has an obligation to "protect" a vendor they feel wronged by or that they just do not like. I think we learn more from the negative experiences than from the positives. Think about it. In life we always want to know the "catch" if there is one. That's really all we're doing, for the most part, when we share our negative experiences: expressing that "catch" some of us may have discovered.

SK

[flutepicc06]

That's all flutepicc is saying (I think): the worst thing one can do when going for the gusto (buying a handmade flute) is to limit yourself to a single brand or group of brands (e.g., only Japanese flutes, etc.).

That's exactly what I was saying. Thank you SK!