It’s been referred to in the past how playing a beast such as the Seery will make you play a wooden flute better. I’ve been playing a Seery since last November after a 2 year (or so) hiatus from the flute. I’d been playing an old German flute prior. After struggling with the Seery for a while things began to improve. I still can’t make it through more than a few sets without my embouchure getting hard to maintain. The interesting thing is I played a beautiful Pratten style by Eamonn Cotter the other night and I felt (and sounded) like Molloy, well maybe not Molloy, not my style anyway. It was so easy to fill, get great attack and ornament on. It was like going from driving a 15 passenger van to a Corvette. I was ripping through sets of tunes that I couldn’t imagine playing 8 months ago. So, my point is that the merits of synthetic flutes have been debated, but I the effort it took to develop an embouchure and technique that would work and be sustainable on the Seery was good training for being a better high end flute player. Now if only I could afford something like that!
Maybe it wasn’t playing the Seery that made you better but just time spent on the flute. My own feeling is that playing a mediocre flute makes you worse rather than better.
I’d have to agree with you there! I’ve been “in the woodshed” a lot since I talked with you last.The German flute was an example of Mediocrity! This particular Seery is pretty good. Much better than others I’ve tried. It’s just tough. It has a huge bore. Another flute player, the owner of the Cotter actually (she’s an amazing player) said she though it was a good flute, just demanding to play. One of these day’s I’d like to have the funds to get a Copley, or one of Brian Byrne’s Rudalls.
I think that’s what David was getting at - simply playing a good flute compared to a mediocre is what made you better, but I also think he’s saying that while the Seery is a good flute there is nothing inherent about the Seery that made you a better player than playing say a Hamilton, Olwell or whatever.
David - please forgive me if I’ve misinterpreted, but if that is what you’re saying, I absolutely agree.
That’s a good point I hadn’t considered. I figured since I had to work harder with the Seery, that that gave me extra “training” kind of like swimming with extra resistance gives you a more powerful stroke. Or riding a bicycle up mountains makes you a stronger rider.
The only downside to seeing how well I was able to play the Cotter, was that now I want a nice wood flute more than ever. Hmm, must be a way to get federal grant money out of this…
About a month before my Hamilton arrived I started playing the Seery pretty much exclusively.
I feel that this is one reason that from the first day I have found the Hamilton to be a very easy flute to fill; “working out” with the Seery had me ready for it.
Another interesting thing was how well the Seery started singing for me after I had played the Hamilton pretty much exclusively for months. I gained an entirely new appreciation for just how fine a flute the Seery really is.
These two flutes have an interesting “leap-frog” effect with each other; I can take something I learn on one, and then the other flute will take it that much further again.
A little secret for me, at least for my Seery. I live in an apartment, and can’t really practice here, day or night, flute or whistle. However, the Seery does allow me to practice fingering, and I can get just hear a little of the correct pitch out of it in both octaves. Playing this gently on any other flute I can only hear the first octave.
The Seery is definitely a good flute. I like it a lot better than the wood flute I had a few years ago. It’s also better than a wood one I was playing for a while this past year . That said, I definitely realized that I now am ready to move up a notch to something better. I’ve become a much better player than I realized. Like David said, putting the better flute in the hands increases the sum of all parts. My Seery will still be my “take to work” flute. It’'ll probably be the one I keep around to pick up and start working out a tune.That seems to be the trend among owners of the better plastic flutes.
