I’m selling my wife’s flute here and wondered the following. Actually both us as are wondering.
Is there such a thing as an “Irish” flute that is all keys and no finger holes? My wife is says it’s much too hard for her to play the Sweetheart, i.e. cover the holes (she has very small hands and fingers). She’s tried the pipers grip and can’t get it on this flute either. I think she’s pretty much set on using a keyed flute if she’s gonna try at all.
Thanks much.
Steve
There’s the Siccama system: http://www.mcgee-flutes.com/siccama.html
The Radcliff system: http://www.oldflutes.com/articles/radcliff.htm
But they are both very rare.
She could try with an open holed flute with more ergonomic holes. You’re in the states, you can try with Casey Burns, he’s pretty much specialised in this.
Or you can also get a modern Boehm wooden flute, it will have a mellower sound than the standard silver flute. Or you can get a wooden head for the silver flute, and it will sound somewere in between.
There will certainly be some more informed responses than mine, but here goes:
Irish music can be played on fully-keyed flutes. This article: http://www.theflow.org.uk/articles/article_styles_east_galway.html suggests that some regional styles are typically played on the modern keyed silver flute. The book “The Complete Irish Flute Book” from Mel Bay is designed for players with keyed silver flutes.
Paddy Carty played a keyed flute that used the Radcliffe system (rather than the Boehm system found on just about every other keyed flute). I don’t think anyone makes these flutes today, and I doubt anyone would recommend one as an option for your wife.
It would be a shame for your wife to give up too easily. It’s possible that your wife’s small hands aren’t the only source of her frustration playing her current flute. I love my Ralph Sweet pennywhistle, but I don’t think his instruments are consistently easy to play. I would suggest she try the following: spend some time playing an inexpensive D pennywhistle (like a Sweetone or Generation, both for less than $10). This will give her more experience playing Irish music on an instrument with open tone holes. Once she has a feel for it, look for a flute by one of the makers who makes keyless flutes for small hands. Casey Burns, I know, does this.
I agree with the high D penny whistle to work on first.
I too have small hands and this is what has worked for me. I tried alot through my new teacher. If you can, finds some for her to try.
In my case, an M and E fit what I needed.
I hope that she doesn’t give up either.
Just my humble opinion.
The hole spacing on the Casey Burns small-handed flute is similar to that of the holes + key of a Siccama flute. I can manage both but the only M & E I have tried was too big a stretch to be comfortable.
Thanks for the responses. Tsackett she is pretty adamant about not being able to play the keyless flute for the moment. I may not even be able to get her to go keyed. She has talked about a whistle but she would like the lower keys which can again get into hole size issues. We’re just moving along slow and careful. I used to have a Goldie F that she liked the sound of but the holes were too big for her to play. At any rate. Thanks for all the comments and information, it is helpful.
Steve
Steve - I have just seen your for sale post. If my experience is anything to go by three weeks is too soon to give up. It took over three months for me to be sure I was going to manage the Burns, even longer for faster tunes. I switched back to whistle for a day or so as soon as my hands showed the first signs of tiredness from the stretch.
I appreciate the thought David but it’s not me, it’s the wifey. She’s pretty sure she’s not gonna do the keyless thing. Who am I to argue… 
If I weren’t working on learning a rim blown anasazi and a MellowDog D I’d keep it around and maybe one day give it a go. I can get a tone out of it and the fingering isn’t much more difficult for me than the whistles but I’m not gonna do that.
In that case I see three options: modern metal flute, antique wooden keyed, or modern wooden keyed.
I separate the last two because of the likelihood of a huge price difference. Those new modern wood jobbies at their most basic can set you back $14,000.00 USD, easy. The antiques you’ll have to do a bit of searching for, but IIRC they aren’t going to normally cost near as much as the modern. As for silver, there are esteemed ITM players on record, but few take it up for the purpose. Noel Rice and Joanie Madden would be two such.
Thanks Nano… we’ll not be wantin a 14,000 flute for sure. We may end up with her just gettin an Eb or something she can handle. Thanks again.
Steve
Setting aside your wife’s preferences for a moment,
the Casey Burns small hands flute is as easy to finger as a fully keyed flute
and probably easier. Casey specializes in this sort of thing and
does it very well. That will solve the practical problem, in fact.
If she doesn’t want to try it, maybe it’s better for her not
to play ITM on a flute.
If you’re after a more “wooden” tone, well, some people like keyed flutes with wooden headjoints. Some don’t think they sound wooden enough but then there are lots of other people who have metal-lined wooden heads on their wooden flutes, so … I think a lot of it’s in the embouchure cut (usually a little more oval than a modern metal flute’s) and most of it’s in how you blow the thing.
I’ve played a couple wooden-head retrofits and they’re very nice. A friend bought one of David Copley’s, and she sounds terrific.
So yeah. Whistle for now, flute later: burn the “Irish-sounding” bridge when you come to it. Heck, I’ve been honking away on wooden flutes for years and still don’t sound like my favorite Irish players ( 
). Meanwhile, IMO she needs to be having fun and learning tunes. At this stage, that’s enough.
Good luck!
Another possibility that may be attractive, given that she likes low whistles, would be a tapered-bore low-G whistle, or a G flute. Phil Bleazey makes both. The holes in these are both small and close together. And they’re fine instruments. Jon Swayne is another possible source.
You could get the Burns for yourself and then cheat your wife into trying it 
I have a wooden flute by “Buffet, Crampon & Co.” of Paris which is “simple system”, but also has 6 individual keys over the 6 finger holes. A friend found it in a dustbin [ !!! ] and gave it to me around 1973. I haven’t come across any other flute like it, so I think it’s quite rare, but they do exist.
Without being patronising or condescendant i don’t understand how 12-year old girls can play the ‘D’ “concert flute” keyed or unkeyed makes no bigger difference since the distance between the open holes as well as their size is the same (at least on the ones i have seen)
Wife must have Guinness book of records-material hands 
Quite honestly if i wasn’t able to play a “usable” key instrument i’d rather, though reluctantly choose another as i don’t see choosing higher pitched, smaller flutes an option.
That said, the smallest holed D-flute i have come across recently is the Dixon tapered body “proper” flute. It didn’t sound half bad either!
If she can’t manage that, i’m out of ideas short of playing something else.
All the best!
Mr. Blackwood I think there are two issues at hand. One: My wife has trouble covering the holes with her small hands (notice I said she does, not everyone including 12 year olds). And Two: I don’t think she’s really interested in pursuing the traditional Irish simple system keyless flute at all costs. It was something she wanted to try as I play the whistles a little. And as far as the keyed flutes goes, you can actually miss hit the key and the pad will still cover the entire hole so there is something to be said for that as opposed to covering the whole hole on a keyless. Unless I’m mistaken. I do appreciate everyone’s input though.
I’m glad you didn’t take it the wrong way. I guess i approached the question too much from my own P.O.V.
Good luck with choice of instrument regardless what it turns out to be!
(btw i think everyone have problems covering/finding the holes at first, be it a uilleann chanter, low whistle or concert flute, if it’s not the size, it’s the placement )
Once again, there is no practical problem. There are good small-handed flutes made that your wife should be able to play
easily, very small holes placed closely together. I’ve played them. They work. Probably easier to finger than
a keyed flute and also a good deal better for Irish tunes, especially for beginners.
http://www.caseyburnsflutes.com/faq.php (check ergonomics)
Casey is a lovely and helpful fellow with who will create a flute that works for your wife. If it doesn’t she can return it.
But it will work. You can talk to him on the phone.
We’ve done what we can to help with the practical part of this problem. Good luck!
Having seen Joanie Madden in concert last night and in sessions, I think I can say that an Irish sound can, indeed, come from a silver flute! If she must have keys, there’s really nothing wrong with getting her something she can play and enjoy.
Pat