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"Up-grading Your Flute"

by Franziska Nabb
Lecturer of Flute and German, University of Nebraska-Kearney

On May 16th, 2004 the very first Nebraska Flute Club (FLC) convention was held at UNO. If you missed it, plan to attend the next meeting at UNL in May of 2005. Besides competitions, master classes, and recitals by renowned flutists, many smaller workshops were offered. I feel very honored that I was asked to give one of these and my topic was up-grading your instrument for Middle and High School students. Up-grading your flute is exciting and maybe a little bit scary at the same time. Exciting, because you get to choose something new, something that might give you a boost in practicing and will make you sound better and can even help smooth out some of the technical difficulties you might have. The best solution for those, though, is to practice. The frightening part comes from all the different brands and all the different options that are offered. The information presented in this article will hopefully make some of these decisions easier.

The very first thing to do even before you dive into flute shopping is to determine your budget. Sometimes waiting half a year or longer can be of benefit as the quality of an instrument rises with its price. Then make a list of all the features you must have and of those you would like to have. Often it helps to consult your private lesson teacher or your band/orchestra director.

The next step will be selecting either a local store or a mail order company. If your local store has a good variety of instruments you can try out the models without having to pay a shipping/handling fee and can compare many different flutes at the same time. Mail order companies often send out up to three flutes, but you have to use a credit card and enough credit on it to cover all three instruments. Call the various companies to find out their policies about sending out instruments. Many have finance plans available.

Flutes are made out of a variety of different materials: a) Nickel silver, b) Sterling silver, c) gold, d) platinum and e) wood. The most common low cost material for beginning flutes is nickel silver. It has a deceiving name, as there is no silver in it. It is an alloy of nickel, copper, and zinc. Silver has been the most preferred choice for more than a century. It comes in different purities and is usually alloyed with other materials, some of those the secret of the makers. Bright, live, and responsive are some of the qualities of these instruments. Sterling silver is 92.5 % pure silver. It is the standard material for flutes worldwide. Gold is denser than silver. When alloyed with other materials (e.g. copper,) it is also harder. Gold flutes are prized for their warm tone. Platinum is a white and very dense metal that looks silver and very shiny and it is very expensive. Some think it produces a harsher and brighter sound, others consider its tone brilliant, the Jaguar among flutes. Wooden flutes are mainly used in chamber music and for playing renaissance and baroque compositions.

The tone of a flute is mostly determined by its headjoint. Materials used for this important part are silver plating, solid silver, gold, platinum, and wood. A silver headjoint with a gold plated lip plate does not sound much different than one with a silver lip plate. The tone quality improves only with a solid gold lip plate. Gold plated ones are mainly made for looks and to avoid allergic reactions to silver.

There is an array of features that a flute can and should have for you to choose from. We will discuss the most important ones. The ones marked with a star are strongly recommended.

Most beginning models come with closed hole keys. Open holes* can be of value when working on pitch bending or multi-phonics. But the holes have to be covered completely by the fingers or the flute will not "speak" properly.
Off-set G* has the advantage of facilitating the left hand fingers. Its position is more natural and relaxed. Often players of inline flutes complain of tension in their left wrist and fingers and in extreme cases this can lead to tendonitis. There is no difference in the sound quality of the flute.
The B-foot* adds some weight to the flute while extending the range by half-step. Some players think this gives the flute a "darker" sound and more resistance as the air has to travel about an inch further. Low B is used more and more in the flute repertoire, including the ever growing flute choir literature.
Split-E* facilitates the speaking of the "e" above the staff (e3). This mechanism splits the double G key. When playing high "e" it closes the lower one of the two G-keys.
The "Doughnut" is an insert into the lower G key in the shape of a half moon and can be made out of metal or plastic. It has a similar effect as the Split-E, but is less expensive.
Drawn toneholes are usually used in student and intermediate models. After punching a small pilot hole into the body tube metal is pulled up from the tube to make the tonehole.
Soldered toneholes are now a standard on most instruments starting at about $7000. A separate piece is made and soldered to the tube with silver or gold materials to form the complete tonehole.
The C# trill key is an added key to help smooth out trill, e.g. B/C# (1.+ 2. octave)
The Gizmo key facilitates the high "c" (c4). It closes the B tone hole on the foot joint (only for flutes with B-foot) to obtain a clear response of the fourth octave C. Use it only when holding out this C.
Wall thickness has also some influence on the sound of a flute. Thinner wall instruments seem to play "lighter", with a brighter sound. Thicker walls play with more resistance and a "darker" tone.
Rollers help the movement of the right hand 4th finger (pinky) on the footjoint.
French Arms are often used for looks, but are also and indicator of a higher level of craftsmanship.
Pitch = 442 is today's standard. Older flutes are tuned to A = 440.
The instrument's scale is the relationship of toneholes to each other and the distance to the embouchure. A good scale helps to play more in tune, with better intonation.

Now it is time to try out your selected flutes. Use a tuner to check every note's intonation. Try every register separately playing legato and staccato. Also play bigger intervals slurred and tongued. Play as soft and as loud as you can, make crescendos and decrescendos. How loud and how soft can the flute play? Then play a piece that you know well and something that is hard for you on your old flute. Is it easier on the new one? Always have listen closely and have someone you trust listen. It is helpful to have someone else play the flute for you, so you can hear its sound from a distance. Have a professional repairperson check the mechanics. Unfortunately, instruments are not always in prime condition. Finally ask yourself some questions:

How does the flute feel in my hands?

How does it compare to my old flute?

Does it produce the sound I have been looking for? (But remember, every instrument takes a lot of time getting used to.)

How far will it take me?

Will it be good enough or will I have to get yet another instruments in 2, 3 years?

One last thought: Consider keeping your old flute for marching band!

Have a great and successful time selecting your new flute!

Franziska Nabb graduated from the Robert Schumann Institute in Dusseldorf as a student of Michael Faust, and participated in a two-week masterclass at L'academie Musicale de Villecroze in France. Ms. Nabb has served as a member of the East Texas Symphony, and of the Garland/Las Colinas Orchestra. At the University of Nebraska at Kearney, she teaches flute and directs the flute choir.

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