concert flute pitch

[henrylr]

Hi all,

This is a question about concert flutes made at different pitches. Many of the best flute makers make flutes in various pitches. For example Brannen makes them in A440, A442, A444 or A446. What would be the difference between flutes at different pitches? Is it just the headjoint length or are the tone hole spacings also different?

Thanks,
henrylr

[pied_piper]

For a flute to play properly in tune with itself and others at the various pitches you listed, the flutes are (or should be) built differently. The entire flute should be a different length and the tone hole spacing should be different. We are talking very small fractions of an inch difference in the tone hole positions. To the naked eye, you would likely not notice the difference.

Now you may ask if an A440 flute can be played in tune with a group that tunes to A442 or A444 (or vice-versa)? The answer is yes, but it requires the player to listen more loosely to each pitch and make more adjustments while playing. So, it is best to buy a flute tuned for the pitch that you will most often play at.