Yay, more packages in the mail. I so love getting packages in the mail. 
And more from Tony Dixon, too! I managed to buy a secondhand Dixon whistle and a secondhand Dixon flute from two separate sellers, a week or so apart; it only dawned on me when I got the whistle that both were from the same maker in the same material.
So, what is this new thing? It’s a keyless flute, in polymer – but this is the milled-and-bored three-piece, not the low-whistle combo. And I’m impressed! I got a good price on it, to be sure, but this is an excellent beginner/utility flute.
The embouchure is relatively large and the fingerholes average to small and nicely spaced. It just fits in the hands right. There’s not a whole lot of decoration – gold-coloured paint at either end, and a Dixon logo, and that’s it. It’s this big black STICK. The cork tenons fit together smoothly, and the headjoint is solid enough that you can pull it out a bit – there’s no real tuning slide, but there’s enough room for a bit of tuning there.
It’s very easy to fill. I’ve been playing one of Ralph Sweet’s rosewood flutes until now – mine is apparently one of his better attempts, from what I’ve heard – but the larger embouchure on the Dixon is enough to take a bit of readapting. Even then, it just begs you to make it sound; it’s just the upper range in the second register I need to work on a bit. It sounds pleasant, too; it’s not a McGee or an Olwell, but it’s got quite a range of tonal variation including the heavy-attack rasp we all love.
So that’s the “beginner” side. I called it a “beginner/utility” flute, though, and the “utility” side is this flute’s big hidden feature. Point One: It’s not wood. It feels like wood, it’s balanced like wood, and it sounds like wood, but there’s no oiling, no variation or cracking from humidity, no absorbing moisture. One thing I’m going to like about this flute is that I won’t outgrow it. Sure, in a few years I’ll get myself something nice from one of the big makers, but where if I was just playing the Sweet I’d sell it at that point, I can’t imagine getting rid of this one for the places where I wouldn’t want to take a $1000 flute. I plan on throwing it in my shoulder bag when I head out to the Montreal Celtic Festival this weekend to occupy me when I’m not catching a show – and they’re calling for rain! And I’m not concerned!
(One problem with polymer – while you get a very smooth bore and the feel and sound benefits from it, you also get every bit of moisture that goes into the flute running out the end.)
I’d heartily recommend this flute to people looking to pick up the flute, and to established players looking for a reliable beater instrument. It’s more expensive for a beginner than the low-D-combo, but this is the real McCoy – turned and bored, conical-bore, with flute hole spacing and a well-cut embouchure. It’s made the same way as he makes his wooden flutes, in fact.
Between this and last week’s whistle, I’m awfully impressed at what’s coming out of Dixon’s shop, especially at his prices.
- -Rich
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