I thought I’d share a few thoughts with you all concerning my new Hamilton flute, which Hammy shipped to me just in time for Christmas. I wanted to have a couple of weeks to play it in before rushing to judgement. So, having done that, here goes.
This is, as Conal O’Grada has said about Hammy’s instruments in general, “a mighty flute.” Nothing dainty about it. It is a big, raspy, honking session flute that gets great harmonics and overtones. It can be pushed to get a great bell-like punch when you overblow it a bit in the upper octave. Although it’s blackwood, to my ear it has a cocus-like brightness to it. I am a bit surprised at how easy it is to fill, since I was anticipating more of a challenge in this regard. Compared with the Olwell bamboo I’ve been playing, it’s actually less demanding–probably due to the conical bore. The embouchure hole is slightly smaller than the Olwell’s, although I don’t know how it compares with those of other makers. The tone holes are sharp-- crisp may be a better word. You feel like you get a nice tight seal with them when your finger hits the flute.
It also looks fantastic. The blackwood still has streaks of brown in it and the slightly oversized round, silver rings are beautiful. Hammy also sort of bevels off the foot end, rounding it slightly–it is a fantastic finishing detail. The whole package is very elegant.
This is certainly a flute I can grow with. I’ve gotten sounds out of it that I love but can’t produce consistently–not yet, anyway–but I am happy nonetheless with the overall quality of the tone I am able to produce.
I still can’t believe Hammy is able to do this for about $650 including express shipping and a hard case. The wait was longer than the 5 months he originally estimated (it took about 8.5 months), but it’s still a relatively short wait and a tremendous value. Hammy is also a real gentleman to deal with.
So, no complaints here. I know a few others on the C&F board have also gotten new Hammys recently and I’d love to hear your impressions. I couldn’t be happier with mine!
Paul
