https://www.ebay.com/itm/Romy-Benton-B- … 2949252335
This beautiful flute is 28 inches in length and plays 2 octaves. The sound is deep and resonant with a good dynamic range. Intonation is very good. It has a hardwood lip plate. The only downside is that a person with small hands may have difficulty reaching the holes. Using a piper’s grip - especially with the right hand - makes playing much easier.
NOTE: There is a small surface crack on the head of the flute. It has been stable and does not affect the tone or playability. When I bought the flute, Romy said that cracks may develop, but the binding would prevent leaks. So far (I have had the flute several years) this had proven true.
I’m curious. I’ve heard of such things but … a flute in B minor? What’s the scale? Does it go B, C#, D etc?
I’ve always loved Romy’s work. Never played one, but when he was still active and had a website there was a gallery of his bamboo flutes that were the most gorgeous I’d ever seen. I always wondered if they played as good as they looked (I presume so–he was a pretty good player).
I was sorry that he hung it up. One day he sort of vanished from the flute world and now it’s hard to find any traces of his presence. I always wonder why flute makers sometimes walk away from their craft, though it is not difficult to imagine possible reasons: personal upheavals, tired of being a poor artist, fed up with dealing with having to be a salesperson, etc.. I did wonder if he sort of priced himself out of the market. This is pure speculation–I really haven’t the faintest idea–but his stuff was pretty high-end compared to other bamboo flute makers. It stood out as being more beautiful and clearly a lot of work went into his flutes, but it might be that when folks were shopping for a bamboo flute they saw his prices, then saw Erik the Flutemakers prices and scratched their heads…
As I say, speculation. Mere vulgar curiosity on my part because I was an admirer of his stuff.