Just picked up a Billy Miller bamboo F from Doc. What a sweet little instrument. The intonation is excellent throughout the scale, even up to high D, the tone is lovely, the action is what one would expect from an F flute. All for around $60. Can’t beat that. Oh, and it smells lovely too–all woody
.
like his flutes
I have one of his F flutes as well. Love it!
Don’t play it often enough though ![]()
I have Billy D bamboo flute. It’s a little bit of a stretch, but it sounds great. Really a bargain for a nice instrument! I think I’ll have to try a few of his flutes in other keys, once I sell one of my other D’s–it’s a very reasonably priced way to try other key flutes. He’s a nice and responsive fellow, too (as is Doc of course).
Best,
Jaydoc
I had a Billy Miller flute way back, before I could play. Broke it long ago. As far as purchasing a new one, what would you guys recommend? Billy’s are pretty straightforward, the one’s at eriktheflutemaker.com are exotic looking & Worldwindsmusic.com flutes are sort of in between. Billy’s seemed to be very thin walled and fragile, Erik’s & World Winds look thicker walled. Does that have an effect on the sound? I do a lot of back packing and would need it to stand up to the rigours of the road.
Billy’s flutes seem rugged enough. I’ve had a couple and have had zero trouble, have carried them to many outdoor locales and sessions, no problem.
Don’t know anything about Erik’s.