My policy about homosexuality is to encourage it in men
and to discourage it in women.
Similarly I’ve decided to encourage flute monogamy in everybody but myself. Shorten the waiting lists, you all,
sell second flutes, lower the market price,
see if I care.
It’s interesting that the adjective ‘dry’ applied to the Seery
sound is spot on, IMO. I know exactly what people
are saying, having played the beast,
though I’m not really sure what the word means.
sorry Jim - if you don’t know what i’m talking about, then i can’t help you
to me, the difference between recorder and whistle, somewhat represents (even though much exaggerated, recorder tone being very rich, complex and narrow, whistle being dry and wide?)
the tonal differences between R&R type flute and Pratten.
i think it has to do with chimney depth and embouchure size and shape.
the Seery head is much thinner then the M&E.
like i write earlier - i love them both, and in fact grab the Seery most of the time, but if i’m playing where the tone really matters, i’d play the M&E.
the two are not a match to the Noy, Hammy, Olwell…but when you consider the price difference, they sure may be a better value for the money to many.
Well, the Seery certainly is a Pratten.
I think some of us chifandfipplers, having played both Prattens and
Rudalls a good deal, have gravitated to the Rudall
sound, finally. Conversations suggest this and it’s
my experience personally. Perhaps that has to do
with your preference for the M&E?
i actually like the Seery better, and so, i would naturally want the Seery to have the tone that i’m looking for.
if anything, to me this suggest more objectivity ?
Well if one does not fully disclose the performance issues of a given instrument because their intention is to eventually sell it, is this not affecting the impartiality of the reviewer? Plus there’s bound to be some cognitive dissonance when someone’s laid out mucho peso for a flute and that person’s been on a waiting list since forever only to get a flute that’s marginally better than the one they’ve already been playing. No, such an individual is not being “paid” per se for their post but their desire to unload the flute has potentially impaired their their impartiality.
I’m not trying to stir the pot but only asking readers to take note.
I was simply making the point that we all tend to be biased towards the flutes we have at the moment, and as such, those who come here looking for advice might to well to keep in mind that we may not have compared what we own to what we don’t own.
Sometimes enthusiasm for a flute flows in part
from liking the maker personally and wanting him
to flourish. Another factor is that people who
don’t like a flute don’t post about it, typically,
so one may be getting a sincere but one-sided
sample.
I typically do a search on a flute that I might be
interested in and read everything that’s been
posted here forever. Lots of conflicting descriptions,
often, and my own impressions (when I finally
play the thing) often don’t match
the mainstream of what’s been said, FWIW.
I didn’t interpret Lorens post as any criticism against Henrik, just an example to point out that, opinions (emotions, knowledge…) are anything but static. Henrik might have expressed some strong opinions in the past but I have always felt it has been in the best of efforts to help others, with conclusions based on his own experience and not factual convictions. One of the fun things with the board for a long time lurker is to see how others progress and evolve. I have seen a number of people join the forum with little experience but rapidly grow into to good musicians in a very short time, Henrik being one of them.
But I think Loren had a very valid and important reflection. Opinions do change and that’s a good thing, it’s a sign of progression.
Who knows what will happen next? In a few years Henrik might even agree with me that the type of timber has nothing to do with the sound characteristics of a wooden flute, it’s all up to the effects thermal conductivity and the microscopic boundary layers
Anyway, irascible is hip. It keeps us talking. 
