Hi. I am a beginner Irish Flute player and I currently have an M&E keyless polymer flute. I was thinking of upgrading to either a Terry McGee blackwood keyless Ruddal perfected or a Phil Bleazey blackood keyless. Both look good but Terry Mcgees flute is twice the price of Phil Bleazeys. Any views on this?
Also, my current flute is the only one I have ever played or have access to, and I was wondering whether the McGee Ruddal Perfected is more of a stretch for the right hand fingers or too difficult because of the large tone holes?? I do not have large hands but I do want a flute with a deep dark tone.
I have also looked at Terry McGee’s other Ruddal flutes (5088 and refined) and to be honest I do not know which one to go for ourt of the three?? or Phil Bleazeys??
I play both an M&E keyless polymer and a McGee keyless GLP. I would strongly suggest you look at the GLP - the finger stretch is almost the same as the M&E and it is a SUPERB flute! Terry is great to deal with as well…
I have a Terry McGee keyless Flute made from Gidgee (a speciesof Wattle and very hard )..I this Flute …
To be sure,I’d recommend a Flute by fellow Aussie,Terry…Nothing is too much trouble for him and I’m sure you’d be happy with your purchase…
Just to be different…I played a boxwood Bleazley a few weeks back and was seriously impressed. Very small tone holes, but I could get a very large sound out of it. Took so little air I could play it forever between breathes.
I’ve played 2 McGees in the past - loved the Pratten, but the other didn’t impress me as much (not that there was anything wrong with the flute, but we didn’t bond).
Ade, you don’t say where you are, which can possibly make a difference.
The Bleazey would be more of a cross-step from the M&E than an upgrade. I’ve owned both and still have a Bleazey in boxwood that I play now and then and still love. One major difference between them is that the Bleazey weighs considerably less than the M&E. The Bleazey has if anything an easier stretch, and certainly smaller holes, than the M&E. It’s an extremely easy flute to play, both in the mechanics and the forgiving embouchure. (It and a Sweet are the flutes I play when I’m feeling really tired.) The sound is a little mellower than the M&E, but still very full and capable of quite a bit of variation in tone.
I have a Bleazey flute in Cookstown Ironwood. It is such an easy player. The holes are small, very easy to reach and requires very little air. I love it. I did try Terry’s keyless GLP in Polymer and in Blackwood. They were very very nice. Didn’t keep either just because I couldn’t justify the price, being a new flute player, at the time. I still have my Bleazey and an M&E R&R in polymer.
Thanks for all your help. I have now decided on Terry McGees Rudall 5088 D Keyless in Blackwood with long D foot, Eccentric Bore Head, tuning slide and Rounded Rectangle embouchure. Terry was very helpful in narrowing down my choice.
Seems there is about a 4 month wait so just about to get my order in.
I also quite liked the sound of the keyless phil bleazey as an easy playing flute at reasonable price. (I am in the uk) so may get one of those later now that I firmly have the flute bug! I can feel an expensive hobby coming on!
I was going to suggest you try the 5088. I’d played both a GLP and a Rudall Refined before I ordered and got mine from Terry last year. Obviously I thought the other McGees were good flutes or would not have taken a chance on the 5088. But those others had the improved elliptical embouchure which Terry does not generally recommend except to persons who are sure they want that particular style and I just felt I’d be happier with a little larger, more medium sized flute. Anyway, I got the 5088 with two headjoints–one with a semicircle and the other with a rounded rectangle embouchure. It has a great tone with both headjoints. All that edgy, dark, complex stuff people are always on about–particularly with the semicircle. The rounded rectangle is generally a little louder and brighter. But in either case, the 5088 is not really a super loud flute so much as it is an extremely comfortable flute that has good volume, is very responsive, and is most of all very musically pleasing. So I think I made a great choice and I hope you come to like yours just as much as I do mine.
Thanks for the comments, placed the order now so just embarking on the long wait. Hope I enjoy it as much as you do yours. Seems this is the flute Terry still plays as well so we are in good company!
Could you elaborate a bit on your experience with these 3 different embouchure cuts? It would be interesting to hear your impressions.
I’ve only tried McGee’s rounded rectangle cut, on a Rudall 5088. Great flute, very loud, easy speaking and responsive, but that embouchure hole made it too bright and colourless for my tastes. Now I’m trying to decide between the improved elliptical or 2 semi-circles for a new headjoint I’m going to order from the man. I’m leaning towards the elliptical, since I generally favour the traditional cuts, but I would love to try the 2 semi-circles. I imagine it would be less demanding to play, and if it is close enough to the elliptical in tone colour it might just be worth it.
I’d be thankful if you cared to share your impressions a bit. Not your opinion which is the best cut, but what the differences have been for you. And how does the 2 semi-circles compare with the two other extremes when you play them.
this Flute …