I’m thinking of upgrading from my current
Seery – a difficult instrument to learn
on, since the distance between the right-
edge of the E hole and the left-edge of the
D is 3.2 cm. Spanning between the two is
awkward, and with the E hole so large
(1.1 cm diameter) my second finger keeps
slipping fractionally off the E as I reach
for the D during the trickier embellishments.
So, question – of the keyless D flutes made
by Copley, Hamilton and Wilkes, does anyone
have any advice on which of these three is
easiest to play for a relative beginner?
Also, how are the Olwell bamboo D-flutes
for playability? Recommended for the
beginner?
My thanks to Jessie for information on my
previous Olwell enquiry . . . out of my
price range I’m afraid
The answer to your question is: EXCELLENT. These are all absolutely top notch flutes. Good luck trying to get a Wilkes though. I think the waiting list is at least six years.
Interesting note: Hammy’s flutes are based on the Pratten system. Copley says his is too, but from I can see he has used a Pratten size bore with Rudall size holes (smaller).
Wilkes makes amazing copies of Rudall & Rose flutes. If you fancy a Wilkes but don’t want to wait so long, try a Grinter. They’re absolutely superb and they’re near perfect replicas of the best of the Rudalls.
Here’s my take: Pound for pound, dolllar for dollar you’re going to have a near impossible time doing better than the Copley. You’ll have to wait forever for a Wilkes. The Grinter will take about a year and isn’t as powerful or easy to play overall as the Copley. Word has it Hammy’s flutes are killer, but there’s the wait, plus shipping from the U.K.
I don’t know how long Dave’s waiting list is at the moment, but even if it’s 6 months or so, I don’t see how you can do better.
All the best,
Loren
P.S. Oh yeah, regarding the Olwell Bamboo: They are easy to blow but tough to finger. If large holes and long stretches bother you, skip the Olwell cane flute.
[ This Message was edited by: Loren on 2001-10-27 22:02 ]
Lauren is quite right. The Copley is really your best choice. The only real downside to it is that it is so easy to play that your lips can get lazy and you’ll have a hard time playing other flutes
As far as hands are concerned, playing the flute is hard work for a long while after beginning playing. I’ve been playing obsessively for about a year now (played whistle for a couple of years before that) and I’m just getting to the point that it doesn’t hurt, my lungs feel good and it’s actually a heck of a lot of fun. When I first got my Grinter the span between the holes seemed huge and it hurt like heck to hold it. My hands hurt, my neck hurt, my lungs hurt, my lips hurt. You get the picture. I just pushed through it and now I feel better when I’m playing than I usually do otherwise. I have small to medium sized hands and having just pushed through it I have no trouble playing a LOW Bb whistle or flute. I think some people on this board spend too much time worrying about finding the easiest flute/whistle to play and forget that what we really want is the best flute/whistle, which is NOT always the easiest.
My two cents,
Chris
P.S. - Try frequent hand and fingure stretches. They work. You can definately improve your finger span. If you’re really ambitious, trying putting wine corks between your fingers to stretch them out. It worked for me
Last night at a session I had the chance to play a Casey Burns flute. How does the Copley compare? The Burns flute was fantastic, easy to play, beautiful tone. Thanks for your imput.
[ This Message was edited by: Skipper on 2001-10-28 11:05 ]
I’m playing an M&E and I’d like to know if it’s considered an easy flute. i.e. Assuming I’ve adjusted well to the M&E, would I have an easy/difficult time adapting my embouchure to an Copley/Hamilton/Wilkes/Olwell/Grinter/McGee/?
I ask because I found it nearly effortless to hit the low notes on an M&E from the first time I tried it, after a couple of months playing a Boehm (and the higher octave is coming along well now as well) and I wondered if I was spoiled; am I in for a struggle when I move up to one of these higher-end flutes?
About the M&E flutes. They are very easy to play in the lower end. They are not quite so easy to play on the high end. I don’t thinking playing the M&E is really going to hurt your embouchure. Just try and make sure your playing really focused. Flute makers sort of have to chose whether they want to make a really strong low end, a really nice high end, or a really well rounded flute. Then you have to decide what you want
Chris
Ok, in my flute quest ive basically narrowed the choice down to a Hamilton or a Copley. I’d love to hear what you guys think of each of them. How is the scale of a Hamilton flute compared to a copley? I would assume the holes would be farther apart, but I’m interested in knowing. Would the scale length be comparable to say a low D whistle?
Thanks
Had a chance to play someone else’s Hamilton this spring - I believe it was an 8 key with a short foot. (I’m sure about the foot - I don’t use keys yet, so I didn’t count em!) The finger spacing was very comfotable and comparable to my Copley - no real adjustments required. In the 5-10 minutes that I got to play it, the Hamilton seemed to jump octaves a just a little easier than the Copley. Both have great tone and responsivness - don’t think you’ll go wrong with either one.
[ This Message was edited by: DanD on 2002-07-03 14:24 ]
I have owned both a Casey Burns keyless in Mopane and a Copley in Blackwood. This particular Burns is a great flute. Easy to play, lowish air requirement, great round full reedy tone, and not too bad a finger stretch at all. And it is a really good looking flute.
The Copley is…well, a Copley. An excellent flute and a joy to play. The Copley seems to be a tad bit more of a challenge, but very very rewarding. And, Copley will bend over backwards to take care of his customers and to care for their flutes in a timely manner. Highly recommended.
If you’re coming off an M&E (earlier models, not the R&R he does now), you’ll have an easier time adapting to a Wilkes, a Healy or even a Cameron. The embouchures are all made closely to each other in size and style, although some Healy’s are larger than others.
It gets a tad trickier with an M&E and the channel cut on the embouchure since that’s there to help. A Healy is more comperable on that side.
If it’s just any ole flute for a beginner (and it’s worth the wait, whichever you decide to get), then easiest on the lips of a beginner is certainly Olwell and Copley, with McGee coming in right behind them. They use larger embouchures, so the tight lip isn’t as much an issue for the bottom notes. It will be more so up top (to keep it from cracking the note, rather than in tune, which is the deal with small embouchures).
I’d say the Hammy is between these two areas. Great lows but agood lip necessary for perfect highs.
Perhaps it boils down to a person’s embouchure, at least in the early stages of one’s development…at least that’s the way it’s been for me. My experience was that the Copley was easier from top to bottom than the Hamilton, or any other flute I’ve played. But that’s just me with my undeveloped lip - YMMV!
Well, thanks for all your help. After searching through the archives, and reading so much good stuff about copley’s ive decided to get one of them. I am pretty much basing my decision on the fact that it seems like more people own them compared to hamiltons. It was a tough decision, but I think I’ll be very happy with it.
Dave estimates the delivery date will be December 20. It’ll probably get here just in time for Christmas!
