Hello there
I’m interested in a keyless hardwood flute made by a maker in Malahide, Ireland (A de Keyser) does anyone know whether this would be a good flute to buy? I’ve tried it and it sounds nice!
Also - what do people think about rosewood vs ebony?
Hello, Juliette,
i’ve never heard of them, but as far as the wood is concerned, it should make no difference; pick the one you like most. If you live in a dry climate, usually blackwood is a better choice (harder to crack).
Hi Juliette,
My first one was a de Keyser, in rosewood. I got that about 7 years ago, so I don’t know what the newer ones are like. It was a reasonable flute to start with. The tuning wasn’t brilliant, but it wasn’t earsplitting either. It had a fairly mellow tone, but that may have been my emboucher at the time. It cracked on an intense weekend of playing, which I think was a blessing. (It led me to borrowing a lovely older flute for most of a year, which eventually led me to get a better (and keyed) flute this year.)
But all that said, the only thing is to try it. See how it feels to play. See how the finger spread is for you. If you don’t trust your own playing enough yet, bring along someone you do trust and listen. You’ll know if it’s reasonable for you then!
I bought a de keyser flute as a replacement for a flute that was stolen. It was cheap, and seemed ok.
I have played it constantly for about 2 years now. It has been a good flute on the whole and in tune!
For the money It was one of the best buys I have made. Maybe I got one of the good ones.
There were a few posts about this on the forum before, check here
http://chiffboard.mati.ca/viewtopic.php?t=5933&highlight=
All the best,
Wes