Suggestions for buying a beginner flute

[shammadamma]

I have found you guys. You are
my oracle, and I come to you under an arbour of laurel, and a fatted calf, so
that I may hear your wisdom and leave better than I arrived. My second child
wants to play with you people, not in so many words. I, as a mere, humbled
trumpet player in my day, have NO working knowledge of these tin whistles, and
suddenly I''m against the grain to find one that''s suitable for a beginner
in a middle school band. So what should I look for? I see so many "beginner"
models available from a variety of vendors, and without proper knowledge
aforethought (remember, us trumpet players don''t require thought with three
simple keys), I haven''t the slightest idea what value is a C-key or B-key or
O-ring or the SuperSecretEject button. It''s all greek. So he''p a brother
out, and guide my hand. Be gentle, I walk where you walk because you put me
there. Shammadamma

[AG950Flute]

I've been working in a music
store for several years, and may be able to offer some advice to you on what to
look and think about before buying a flute. Unfortunately, I've seen too many
instruments that have been bought through an online store and have a "no-name"
brand and the customers are generally unhappy when they find out their flute is
not worth much. Many people just feel that they shouldn't spend too much on an
instrument, however you DO want one that will be suitable for your child and
that is mechanically sound and won't "break" and discourage your child. I've
seen this before too. If you're curious now about what are good flutes I would
strongly suggest a couple other flute websites. Fluteworld.com has a list of
instruments that they sell and all are reputable brands. There is also
flutesmith.com and there are also a list of good flutes there as well, I think
you may find that they are very similar. From there, whether or not you decide
to buy online or not, you can always check out some music stores in your area
and see what brands they carry and compare them to the list of flutes at these
sites. If you don't see one on the list, i would be careful, or drop a note
here and i'm sure someone will be able to help you. good luck!

[waterkicker]

For Beginning instruments, I
would seriously recommend either Yamaha, Gemeinhardt, or Pearl Flutes. It really
depends on how much you want to spend. You should be able to land a pretty good
new beginning flute for about $400 or less, but if you look at sales or slightly
used instruments, you could get one for as little as $200. Essentially what
matters is whether your child is planning on continuing playing or whether they
may decide flute is not right for them. Plan accordingly.

[flute friend]

Hi!!! I juat started playing
about 6-8 months ago oand one of the best flutes I think out there that I have
tryed is my Armstrong!!! It plays so smooth and has a great sound. My music
teacher only will let our flute players play with Armstrong and he has been
playing music for over 40 years and teaching music for over 30 years!! He's
great!!! So I strongly say that Armstrong is the way to go!!!! [:)] [;)] P.S
good-luck and hope you find the right flute for you!! -Flute Friend

[Penny]

Problems Problems Problems
Tough buying a first flute, even tougher if you haven't been playing a rental
or borrowed flute for a lengthy time. You really don't know much about playing,
or what to look or listen for. Your embochure isn't grooved so trying
instruments out means very little. Fortunately beginner flutes are plentiful in
the used market and not that bad new so a mistake won't be that terrible.
Secondly you won't sound different on any half way decent instrument, even many
of the throw aways. If you stay with it long enough and you've gotten better
you will want a step up flute or intermediate flute anyway. That is why I think
the decision comes down to reliability, availability and which one your
teacher/band director likes. In Student flutes Yamaha is generally considered
the most reliable, fewest repairs and adjustment compared to its closest rival
Gemeinhardt. The cheaper models like Pearl, Armstrong, Emerson, etc probably are
not worth considering as a beginner instrument unless your local retailer only
carries them and is the place you have to go to for repair and they will stand
behind them. Yamaha also tends to be in tune over a wider range than its
competitors in the cheap market and it is easy to play. My advice would be to
buy a used open hole Yamaha with offset G and split e. Keep the holes plugged
until you start to feel some familiarity then take a couple out when you
practice at home and keep em in the rest of the time. If you aren't easily
discouraged working with open holes will be a big plus. The open holes won't
make it sound better but will make sure your fingers learn the right place to
land! Don't buy an inline they are ergonomicaly inferior and only better in old
school cosmetic thinking. Now if you make it to when you need a step up your
ears will be able to help you make a good decision.[:bigsmile:]

[flute friend]

I STRONGLY say that you need to
get a no holed flute. The kinds with holes are hard to play and very anoying and
probly not good for biggners trust me

[nicki_flute]

Whatever you do don't get a flute called a 'Blessing'. Let your child try out various flutes, see which they prefer. Don't buy them from supermarkets either, get them from a reputable music shop.

[MeLizzard]

I'm not sure what's somebody's hangup with Armstrong, but on the rental program at the store I work in, they're offered alongside Yamaha, Emerson and Gemeinhardt. They seem to log fewer hours in the repair room than the others, though the Yamaha flutes are very good, too. The tone quality of each is a subjective area, but having grown up with a big tone (Haynes, Powell) in my ear, I don't prefer the sounds of Yamaha and Emerson so much (very light). The newer Gemeinhardts have some distinct intonation problems, though these are usually less noticable in and to beginner players. These become apparent after a year or so, when a student is capable of making more discriminate tone and intonation adjusments. Our only complaint about he construction of the Armstrong student flutes is a rather minor one. They use synthetic corks on the trill and D# keys, which don't seem to hold adhesive terribly well. These occasionally fall off, but, again, this is a minor repair. Our tech simply replaces them with natural cork, no big deal. So, unless a student is using his or her flute as baseball bat, any of these brands should prove acceptable for a beginner. Happy shopping!

[MeLizzard]

I'm not sure what's somebody's hangup with Armstrong, but on the rental program at the store I work in, they're offered alongside Yamaha, Emerson and Gemeinhardt. They seem to log fewer hours in the repair room than the others, though the Yamaha flutes are very good, too. The tone quality of each is a subjective area, but having grown up with a big tone (Haynes, Powell) in my ear, I don't prefer the sounds of Yamaha and Emerson so much (very light). The newer Gemeinhardts have some distinct intonation problems, though these are usually less noticable in and to beginner players. These become apparent after a year or so, when a student is capable of making more discriminate tone and intonation adjusments. Our only complaint about he construction of the Armstrong student flutes is a rather minor one. They use synthetic corks on the trill and D# keys, which don't seem to hold adhesive terribly well. These occasionally fall off, but, again, this is a minor repair. Our tech simply replaces them with natural cork, no big deal. So, unless a student is using his or her flute as baseball bat, any of these brands should prove acceptable for a beginner. Happy shopping!