student Gemeinhardt flute not up to scratch

G Carlyle · Post by **G Carlyle** » Tue Feb 16, 2010 12:49 am

My daughter has a Gemeinhardt flute and is in an intermediate band at school. Her new teacher tells her that the flute is not of the standard the band would expect and it "doesn't have the bottom notes".
Are we having the wool pulled over our eyes; she has a flute and a new flute would be some $700 Australian. Would appreciate any advice.

lula · Post by **lula** » Tue Feb 16, 2010 8:58 am

My friend has a Gemeinhardt flute and she too sometimes had problems getting the really low notes out. It might not be the flutes fault though. I'm not the biggest fan of the Gemeinhart brand; I have tried them before, but they seem to work for a lot of other people. My Yamaha cost me $1500 and it was the best thing my parents ever got me, but that was a lot of money. I've never had a teacher tell me that my flute was not up to their standards. I went from a Buffet flute up to a Yamaha and that improved my playing a lot. But it might not be the flutes fault that the low notes won't come out; low notes took quite a few practice sessions for me.

Hope I helped some and good luck with the flute!
-Lula

PiccoloShorty · Post by **PiccoloShorty** » Tue Feb 16, 2010 1:46 pm

I have a gemeinhardt flute for over 8 years and was used for over 4 years before that. I can play down to a low C all the time. It could be the flute, but it could be your daughter. Has she ever played a different flute and gotten those notes out? if not, its her. If she can then i would get a new flute

G Carlyle · Post by **G Carlyle** » Tue Feb 16, 2010 4:04 pm

Thank you for your responses and ideas. I'm touched.

fluteguy18 · Post by **fluteguy18** » Tue Feb 16, 2010 9:39 pm

It is true that Gemeinhardt flutes aren't of the highest quality. They're fine for getting a player established, but once you get to a certain level of playing, you really should consider getting a different instrument.

It is also possible that the flute has leaky pads. A flute can play with dozens of leaks, so a leak does not necessarily render a flute un-playable, but rather makes it more difficult. Or a whole assortment of things could be wrong.

I would go to a flute repairman, have them look it over and get their opinion. And while you are there, you could probably look at several "intermediate" model flutes.

lula · Post by **lula** » Tue Feb 16, 2010 9:52 pm

Just thought I would tell you that I play a Yamaha Allegro 471 series flute. (it's one of those intermediate flutes) As I said earlier, it costed us quite a bit. I had to sell my old flute and piccolo to help pay for this new flute. I would not trade this Yamaha for anything. The man who helped me select this flute told me it would last me past college years and beyond. The flute had greatly improved my playing skills. I have the B foot joint on it which allows me to go down to the lowest B on the flute. The low notes come out easily. I doubt any teacher would say that this flute wasn't up to their standards.

-Lula

fluteguy18 · Post by **fluteguy18** » Wed Feb 17, 2010 10:27 am

lula wrote: I doubt any teacher would say that this flute wasn't up to their standards.

Not meaning to rain on anyone's parade, but I think it depends on career goals to determine whether it is up to the standard or not. It would be fine for someone who wants to leave high school and become a Music Ed major at a local state university, but it wouldn't even come close to standards if you were to become a player wanting to pursue a career in flute performance at a conservatory.

My flute cost me almost $5K (USD), and I am barely getting by with it. The flute I need could cost me anywhere from $12-23K USD.

But with that being said, my situation and goals are different. If I were in your position (age and experience level), I would have been thrilled with a Yamaha 471. And for what standard the teacher is probably wanting with a new flute (for now), it would most likely pass their standards as well.

lula · Post by **lula** » Wed Feb 17, 2010 4:12 pm

I know there are much better flutes out there than the one I have, but I meant just for school band or whatever. I'm not wanting to have flute playing as a career; as cool as it sounds, it's not for me. I want to go to college and play flute and take some music courses, but after that, flute will just become recreational I'm sure.

flutepower · Post by **flutepower** » Thu Feb 18, 2010 7:00 am

Hey lula,

You know, thats exactly what I want to do in college, just take some classes.
Its great to know you will too! I thought I would be the only one in college taking flute just for fun, but now that I hear that other people do it too, I won't feel like its silly doing it in college. Music will be a recreational for me too when I'm older. Just wanted to tell you

~Melissa

fluteguy18 · Post by **fluteguy18** » Thu Feb 18, 2010 8:00 am

Tons of people get a minor in music. If you enjoy music, there is absolutely no reason why you shouldn't really...

lula · Post by **lula** » Thu Feb 18, 2010 9:50 am

Hey Flutepower. I love flute and I've seriously considered majoring in music education, but I can't see myself teaching others to play an instrument. I plan to go to college and take a few music courses and major in psychology. I'm sure that flute will still seem fun, but I won't be able to dedicate all my attention to it like I am now.
For now, flute is still my life.

School has been called out all week because of all the snow so I need to go practice for another clinic that is next weekend. Wish me luck!

-Lula