I know it’s probably been covered before, but I just received my flute from Paddy and wanted to give my opinions about it. First off I ordered a 6 key Hawkes copy, with one piece body, and partially lined headjoint. When I first opened the case and looked at the flute, I was in awe…the workmanship is flawless, very clean, and very pleasing to the eye. His keys are some of the nicest of have seen, you can tell he takes his time with them. They are very functional, and placed in such a way which I can play flat-handed on the right hand… I found with some other makes this can be a slight problem.
The tone is nothing short of exceptional, very loud, but very open and clear, perhaps not as raspy as some flutes I have played, but still it maintains that nice warm reedy sound. I would say it is a very close match to the sound of an original Hawkes or Prattern. The tuning is impeccable in all 3 octaves, and I must add that it easily plays in all three of them. The volume is amazing, with very little force I can get an amazing amount of sound out of it. Another thing I really like is how the flute balances…not too heavy in the headjoint, and the keys aren’t all that heavy either, so it’s very comfortable.
Anyways, enough said, just wanted to give my opinion on a flute maker that needs a little more recognition.
