A couple days ago i had the chance to play a Keith,Prowse flute (8key) owned by Frank Claudy. I was visiting with him (and brought some of my babies for him to play…a ritual we seem to do every couple years) and he had the Keith,Prowse he purchased a bit ago from Fred Oster at Vintage Instruments. Anyway, turns out the flute was brought back to life by John Gallagher.
Great flute, was my impression. Very Pratten-ish, huge tone, huge holes. I was impressed, especially never having played a Keith,Prowse before. This Prowse, it seems according to Langwill’s, is not related to Thomas Prowse. Who knows.
Anyway, if you ever come across one, it’s a good idea to give it some serious thought. I believe Terry McGee’s website offers a great deal of information on this maker and this flute in particular.
Frank is also a big fan/collector of Butler flutes. He has a cylindrical-bore Siccama-style, an 8key (that I put him to with Pat Olwell, who had it batting around) and one in F. Very neat stuff. I think he’ll have them all with him at East Durham, where he’ll be teaching.
Frank’s a great fellow and lots of fun to listen to. He’s a tremendous player, having learned a lot from the old Washington DC sessions he was part of years ago with the likes of Mulvihill and crew. Bring a tape recorder. Too, marvel at how he gets such great tone on his Patent Headed Rudall/Rose. Even with the quirky Eb plug key. He is so attentive to his flute.
And…he’s a fantastic whistle player, too. If you have his recording, don’t judge him on it. He’s way, way better in person!
On a personal note (as if!), he played my flutes to great delight…and when he played my Clementi-Nicholson (made by T. Prowse), stopped for a moment and finally said: “That’s positively obscene.”
No better words ever said!
Dave M