Does anyone on here own a Trevor James flute? I'm looking to purchase an intermediate flute sometime soon and I wanted to try out Trevor James. Only problem is that I can't seem to find any retailers here in Canada...
I was wondering about the Cantabile model flute, which has a solid silver headjoint and a silver-plated body. Is it worth the price (about C$1200)? Or should I go for the Virtuoso model, which is solid silver?
Trevor James Flutes
Moderators: Classitar, pied_piper, Phineas
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fluttiegurl
- Posts: 882
- Joined: Fri Dec 10, 2004 11:05 pm
Honestly, I was not all that impressed with any TJ that I have tried. I believe that there are better flutes out there for the money. In my opinion, they did not feel very substantial nor did they sound all that great compared to other flutes.
Whatever you do, be sure you play [b]several[/b] flutes before you buy one. I have had students buy their "dream flute" without playing any others only to find out that they sound much better on something else. Try fluteworld.com. They ship to Canada, and will even offer a trial plan.
Whatever you do, be sure you play [b]several[/b] flutes before you buy one. I have had students buy their "dream flute" without playing any others only to find out that they sound much better on something else. Try fluteworld.com. They ship to Canada, and will even offer a trial plan.
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pandagirl11
- Posts: 78
- Joined: Thu Sep 02, 2004 5:49 pm
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fluttiegurl
- Posts: 882
- Joined: Fri Dec 10, 2004 11:05 pm
I really like Muramatsu (I have a bottom of the line EX that I use when I travel). VERY impressed with intonation, structure, and overall tone. I have one student who plays a Miyazawa, and she sounds fantastic on it! I believe Miyazawa is a little cheaper as far as price is concerned. I have never heard anything bad about Yamaha, but my experiences with anything above a student model is very limited.
I know that I sometimes come across with a vey negative attitude aboute some flutes. This is simply because I know how expensive flutes are and I HATE it when a player saves to buy something that will last a lifetime, only to buy a flute that he/she is very disatisfied with in a few months or years. One piece of advice that I can give is: don't believe everything that you hear/read about ANY flute. Websites are designed to sell flutes. The manufacturer WILL NOT give you any indication of anything negative about their flutes. What seams like a great deal is not always worth the money. Play them for yourself. After you have decided on a specific model, play several of that model. Not all flutes are the same, even if they are the same model.
I know that I sometimes come across with a vey negative attitude aboute some flutes. This is simply because I know how expensive flutes are and I HATE it when a player saves to buy something that will last a lifetime, only to buy a flute that he/she is very disatisfied with in a few months or years. One piece of advice that I can give is: don't believe everything that you hear/read about ANY flute. Websites are designed to sell flutes. The manufacturer WILL NOT give you any indication of anything negative about their flutes. What seams like a great deal is not always worth the money. Play them for yourself. After you have decided on a specific model, play several of that model. Not all flutes are the same, even if they are the same model.
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pandagirl11
- Posts: 78
- Joined: Thu Sep 02, 2004 5:49 pm
I've not played all of these, but some. Working in a music store, I see a lot of flutes. I'm flatly UNimpressed with anything Gemeinhardt has made in many years (poor intonation, sometimes stuffy tone, mechanisms which need frequent adjustment). I've played many Yamahas, and would suggest skipping the 300 series altogether (too much like their basic student model with a silver head), and starting at the 400s or 500s. The Emersons seem to have a very light tone (not necessarily bad, just may or may not suit you), and a light-feeling mechanism. I've got to second the recommendation of the Muramatsu (EX)--all their flutes seem good. Mine is an old (30 yrs) standard model. Play lots of flutes and pick the best one for YOU. Happy shopping! 
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fluttiegurl
- Posts: 882
- Joined: Fri Dec 10, 2004 11:05 pm
I agree with comments about Gemeinhardts. They seem to be nothing but trouble. I had a student who INSISTED on buying a new Gemeinhardt KGM. After a few weeks, it had so many adjustment issues that Gemeinhardt just replaced the entire instrument. At the time, I was pleased with the outcome. However, since last week, I realized that this one is not much better. Their new 70 series of flutes are supposedly designed to fix many of the problems with intonation and adjustment, but I have yet to actually try them extensively to see for myself.
I did have an Amadeus in my posession for a trial a few weeks back and was somewhat impressed, but the flute is just a Haynes headjoint on an Emerson made body. You could save a LOT of money and just buy a used headjoint for your existing flute. I did that for my first few years of college, and my Emerson 8B sounded amazing! The flute was OK before, but there are much better flutes out there. Same comment for Sonare which is a Powell head on a cheaply made Chinese (I think) flute. I have three students on Pearls (both 665 and 765 models), and they all get great results from them. Maybe some of them will post their comments (hint) on here.
I did have an Amadeus in my posession for a trial a few weeks back and was somewhat impressed, but the flute is just a Haynes headjoint on an Emerson made body. You could save a LOT of money and just buy a used headjoint for your existing flute. I did that for my first few years of college, and my Emerson 8B sounded amazing! The flute was OK before, but there are much better flutes out there. Same comment for Sonare which is a Powell head on a cheaply made Chinese (I think) flute. I have three students on Pearls (both 665 and 765 models), and they all get great results from them. Maybe some of them will post their comments (hint) on here.
I had a chance to play some of the new gemeinhardt 70 series at the Nashville convention. After close inspection and play testing, I couldn't tell any difference between the 70 series and their other lines. The flutes they had on display were not well constructed. The keys didn't fit together well and it was rather clacky. I also recall that the embouchure hole was basically oval shaped with a large flatish lip plate--they were kind of hard to produce sound on. I talked a little bit with the guy at the booth about the new flute line, but he couldn't seem to tell me what was different about them. The apparently make the 70 series in all the different metal combinations, and from what I saw the quality isn't any different from their other lines, so who knows.. I'd be curious to hear from someone else who had some experience with these flutes.
Hello
Hi there. I own a Trevor James which I purchased in July and I totally love it. I agree completely when others say that Geminhardts have stuffy dull sounds. I tested many diffrent flute brands in professional s, Murumatsu's Yamaha's, Geminhardts, Haynes, Miazawas, Sonare, Powells and Trevor James. We did a blind test and elmimate it to a Trevor James M2. It's open holed solid-silver throughout. B gizmo key, c sharp trill key, high e falicitator. and it sounds beautiful especially in the high registors. I bought mine from JB Weissman for about 3,400. It was a really good deal and it plays nicely especially considering that I went from a student flute straight to professional . I am completely in lvoe with it. I definalty reccomend Trevor James. I was surprised when doing the blind test to realize some of the top brands in flutes just didn't sound right which proves its truely the player...