Need to purchase new flute

Cass · Post by **Cass** » Sun Feb 09, 2003 12:15 pm

Hi, everyone. I was hoping that I could get some
recommendations on purchasing a new flute from someone that has no reason to
deceive me and I do not know personally. My Applied lesson instructor owns a
flute store, so I don''t necessarily want to take what she says at face value.
I''m a 2nd year Music Education Major (I''ll graduate in 2005), and hope to
enter the Music Ministry after Seminary for a couple years. I may be using this
flute that I want to purchase for the rest of my life (giving lessons, playing
flute on Sunday Mornings in worship, playing in bands, etc...) though it will
not necessarily be my profession. I was playing a Gemeinhardt 3SHB, but the
silver plating on the keys and the pads are wearing out. My instructor suggested
that I purchase a new flute, and has loaned me (it''s the Music Dept''s) a
YAMAHA 581 925 to play until I get my new flute. I have scholarship money to
purchase a new flute, and I was hoping to find one that is a step up from this
YAMAHA I am playing. I have a price limit of about $2300. I would like to get a
solid silver flute is possible. Any recommendations, anyone? I''ve always
played a Gemeinhardt, but this YAMAHA is pretty nice. I was at the KMEA this
weekend and played a Pearl 665 RBE-Coda that was pretty nice, but it wasn''t
solid silver and the low range was kind of hard to make speak. I also played on
a Sanyo(?), which was easier, but I really liked that Pearl- it had a couple
cool keys on it and the rods were more compact. It was a lighter instrument,
too, and was the one that felt the best in my hands, even though I wasn''t
pleased about the sound. Thanks for your help!

damjan · Post by **damjan** » Sun Feb 09, 2003 2:19 pm

Hi Cass, I would say the most important thing
when you choose your flute is the sound. Even if another flute has some extra
keys, I would go for the one with a more beautiful tone. I play a Sankyo and it
is a really nice instrument with great intonation. They run a little higher in
price for solid silver. If you are buying a new flute, you could probably get a
new Yamaha or maybe even a cheaper Sankyo or Muramatsu (Muramatsu are really
nice flutes) for that price range. Ultimately, you should just test it and see
what you like. Sound is the most important, then intonation, the key mechanism,
... Go to www.fluteworld.com and check out pricing on some flutes. It will give
you an idea of what you can afford and whether the price offered by your teacher
is good. Then, just go to a store and test some flutes. Best of luck,

flutemom · Post by **flutemom** » Sun Feb 09, 2003 11:02 pm

I just purchased the Pearl 765 Coda from
fluteworld.com. It is solid silver with silver-clad keys and plays like a dream.
It should be in your price range too. They give you 10 days to try it out. I
know I LOVE mine!!![:)]

tarzaflute · Post by **tarzaflute** » Thu Jun 05, 2003 5:25 am

I recently upgraded and I got a Trevor J.
James Virtuso II and its solid silver, open hole, split E, B foot and contoured
lip plate and its got the most amazing sound! They're priced around AUD$4500,
which is obviously less in US$. Have a look at http://www.trevorjames.com/ and
check out some of the models, they are priced reasonably I feel for how good
they are!

dolci_sf · Post by **dolci_sf** » Fri Nov 07, 2003 1:57 pm

I'm planning to buy a new flute in the next
year or so and I've done some research and am going to consider Altus, Trevor
James and Prima Sankyo. The most important thing that everyone has told me is to
try before you buy because every flute is different even within the same brand.
One thing I do like about Trevor James is that he's relatively new to the US
and therefore I feel that you can buy more flute for your money. I've also
spoken to an Altus representative and they mailed me their brochure. It's a
very impressive company and they are highly recommended. Good luck shopping!
Lisa [;)]

BridgetP · Post by **BridgetP** » Mon Nov 17, 2003 9:18 am

Have you tried the Jupiter brand flutes? I
have a Jupiter DiMedici, solid silver with a Britannia silver head joint. It is
a professional handcrafted flute and is highly endorsed by my flute professor,
Dr. Eldred Spell, who is a flute maker himself. I would always go with a solid
silver headjoint AND body. There's a huge difference in tone quality. HTH!

krzymunkey · Post by **krzymunkey** » Wed Nov 19, 2003 9:30 pm

i have recently been shopping for a flute
too (though i am not going to get one anytime soon [:((] [:blackeye:] , with
budget problems) I play a student model yamaha and it has a very good sound, i
would get a yamaha 600 or 800 series model, it you want one better than yours
(yamaha 581 is discontinued, it's now a 600 series, basically the same
though..) i would probably look for a cheaper 800 series (i think you can find
it at around $2500) but, i agree with damjam.. try different flutes (nahagara
has free trials, you just have to pay shipping and handling..)see which sound
you like the best! different people prefer different tones, though i know u know
that already, so bye!

krzymunkey · Post by **krzymunkey** » Mon Jan 19, 2004 1:25 pm

get a muramatsu! the cheapest one is about
2500 dollars.. it has a solid siver headjoint, i heard that a completely silver
plated muramatsu sounds better than a solid silver yamaha

AG950Flute · Post by **AG950Flute** » Mon Jan 19, 2004 1:59 pm

hey... it's actually nagahara [:)] but you
are right about them sending out free trials and needing to pay for sending it
to you. i personally own a nagahara, and LOVE it, however, their cheapest flute
is a little more than 9K, so it would not fit well into the 2500 budget range.
however, for those looking into a professional flute, i would highly highly
recommend nagahara. i tried a lot of the other makers and i found the nagahara
to be the best [:)] although i guess i am a little biest. also, one of the
nicest things about nagahara is how personal they are with each of their
customers, and know each one. there's only about 7 people that work there. i
spent a week at the flute convention last summer working at their booth and i
was able to tell people how wonderful their instruments are [:)]

FluteDiddy · Post by **FluteDiddy** » Mon Jan 19, 2004 4:36 pm

Your parents forked out 9K for a flute? Dam
we need to play a duet together and maybe recommend your parents adopt me. So is
your dad a doctor or a lawyer?

sakuramimato · Post by **sakuramimato** » Mon Jan 19, 2004 5:18 pm

Since I've only had experience with the
Gemeinhardt line, I can't really suggest much, but I've gone through two
Gemeinhardt 3SBs and they're decent flutes being solid silver all the way
through except for the keys. You can get them around $750-$1500 depending on
what specifications suit your needs. I would request price listings from
[http://www.wwbw.com] on their flutes. They have low prices and mark downs all
the time for promotional purposes. Happy flute shopping!

Cass · Post by **Cass** » Mon Jan 19, 2004 5:50 pm

I would like to thank everyone for their
suggestions- keep posting here with ideas for flutes. I ended up with a
Gemeinhardt 33SB. The Keys are plated, but everything else is solid silver. I
love the tone and the way it fits in my hands. Everything I could dream of! Only
thing that seems to be wrong is with me- my flute professor and I think there is
a chemical that my hands release when I sweat that reacts with silver. I may
have to get a gold flute before this is all overwith, but I am trying my best to
keep my flute polished and well taken care of. Toot your Flute! Cass the
heartnut

AG950Flute · Post by **AG950Flute** » Tue Jan 20, 2004 1:25 am

FluteDiddy, I wouldn't say my parents
"forked" out the money...but after much discussion we decided it was one of the
next logical steps in my flute career. And it came much more as surprise than I
had anticipated because I was not really expecting it at all. Anyhow...to answer
your question, my dad is not a doctor or a lawyer...instead my biggest fan and
supporter [:)] (oh, and just a little tid bit...my "name" - Ag950Flute is
actually the kind of Nagahara flute I have...in case anyone was wondering.
Instead of being 92.5% silver, which is generally referred to as Sterling Silver
or 925 my flute is 95% silver. other companies have done similar things, I
believe Burkart is the one company to come the closest to having a pure silver
tubing with their 998 flute which is 99.8% silver.)

jensal · Post by **jensal** » Wed Jan 28, 2004 1:44 pm

Try this site
http://www.wwbw.com/Category/?d=9&dd=95 ... 5&sc=&b=49 they have the 500
series for under $2000

powayflute01 · Post by **powayflute01** » Thu Apr 29, 2004 8:05 pm

I'm looking at a number of different places
to purchase a nice flute (new or used) at the best price I can possibly get.
I've been looking around, and I was just wondering if anyone has bought
anything from the following websites: -www.fluteworld.com (www.fluteworld.com)
-The Flute Exchange, Inc. (www.flutes.com/sale.html) -www.fluteclassifieds.com
(www.fluteclassifieds.com) I just found these and wondered if anyone here has
made any (sucessful) transactions using one of them. I know a lot of people here
seem to like www.usedflutes.com and www.wwbw.com as well. If there are any other
websites you've had success with, please post them for reference. Thanks!!