I’ve decided I’m sticking with the flute, and will want to get a really nice flute in the next year or two, which means ordering now. I’m not all that into session music, but play about 1/3 jigs and reels and the rest sort-of parlor music – O’Carolan, airs, Cahan, stuff out old tune books. Also, I much prefer small-holed flutes now.
But who knows what I’ll be playing and wanting in the year+ that I’ll be waiting. The one thing I do know is that I much prefer boxwood over blackwood or rosewood. Not 100% sure about mopane.
I’m just off the phone with Patrick Olwell, placed an order with him for a boxwood of some description. He said I can wait several months to decide which style of flute I want. I didn’t know that he made Rudalls. Has anyone played an Olwell Rudall? Does it play more like an Olwell or a small-holed flute?
I’ll definitely be ordering another flute. When I had my heart set on boxwood and Rudall-style (assuming that Patrick only offered Pratten and Nicholson), I had narrowed my choices to Peter Noy and Terry McGee. (I had crossed a couple of other makers off my list for different reasons.) But I’ve recently been thinking about Mopane, which would also put Dave Copley on the list.
So, any thoughts about mopane vs. boxwood? I want a warm sound, though it doesn’t have to be as buttery as boxwood.
I’ll most get the Nicholson or Pratten from Olwell, so does anyone have any comments on the Rudalls from Noy, McGee, or Copley? I’ve seen a lot of compliments on Noy’s craftsmanship, but not as much about how his flutes play. Also, a lot about Copley’s Prattens, but not about his Rudalls.
Chas, I think Noy Rudall-derived flutes are champs. Don’t know if you caught my humble review of his work, but check it out; it might help. Although I covered some workmanship and options, my main concern was comparing the headjoints he sent for me to try.
At last check, the wait time was about one year for both keyless AND keyed flutes. His website covers his prices if you’re interested. As he becomes more known, the wait time will no doubt increase.
My advice is to stick with the flutes you have and get good with them and then when you’re a real capable flute player you will be ready for any flute and then you’ll really know which one you want without having to buy em all and clog waiting lists. My 2 cents.
Chas - I would go by maker rather then by the wood.
Since you want smaller holed flute, I’d go with Nicholson.
The head and embouchure is so important, why not ask Peter to send you a flute with deferent heads to try and see what works for you? his embouchure cut is deferent then Olwells, in fact McGee cut is deferent as well.
All the makers you mention are great makers, but there flutes are somewhat deferent from each other.
I’m sure that the wait for keyed Noy is at least a year and a half.
I’d love to say…stick with flute you have and get good with it, like the sage advice given earlier. that’s true and probably the best Buddhist advice (end desire!)…but it’s no fun!
So back to what we’ve been doing on this forum for the last three years: giving our gratuitious opinions about flutes so people out there have something to look forward to.
Any Olwell flute is a great flute. Get one if you can. You can always sell it for more money if you really don’t like it or find a more suitable flute for your lips.
The Noy contemporary flute is a real nice flute, great tone, but much less of a honking and barking flute than an Olwell pratten-style. he comes to Irish flutes from a 20-year career making baroque flutes, and his flutes reflect that sensibility to my ear–warmer, expressive, great tone and clean. Nice honk on the low D, but not a honking flute, per se, like the Olwell Pratten style. I’ve never played an Olwell Rudall, but his Nicholson flute is a winner–a flexible compromise between two extremes.
The Noy is in fact warmer in the sense that the headjoint is mostly unlined, but still has impressive volume. It feels rudall-esque, like a larger holed Rudall in its sensitivity. I’ve played his Rudall flutes, a few ofthem, and they are very good Rudall copies, but not great Rudall copies like a Grinter. Have Noy send you one to play.
I wanted to say one of the flutes suck, just to irk the middle-class, but alas, they are truly top-notch.
Enjoy thinking about them and practicing on the flute you have.
I have a Noy keyless from EBay (no waiting!..see hash on this list last year about multiple orders.. )…Noy definitley has the best workmanship I’ve seen…sounds as good as the other top flutes (to me)…one of the easiest to sound (generally agreed)
Nano, I had read your Noy review, which was one of the things that set my heart on his flutes, but I somehow forgot about it. I just re-read it, and it’s a fine piece of work and exactly what I was looking for. I’ll be on the phone to him this afternoon to order a Rudall-style.
Those of you recommending holding off till I’ve outgrown my current flute or I’m competent enough to appreciate a new flute, it’s a point well taken. But the wait for an Olwell is 12 months, and for a Noy, 18 months. I think that a year from now, I will have outgrown my current flute. If I haven’t by then, somehow I doubt I’ll regret having two topnotch flutes. Plus, I think the thought of these flutes will be a real motivation to improve.
I’ve played mopane; it has a warm sound, but I
think boxwood is both warm and fine, a more
interesting sound.
If it were me, I’d go with boxwood over mopane.
I’ve gotten the impression that mopane is a cure looking for a disease. It sounds like some turned to it under the impression that there’s some kind of shortage of blackwood, or danger of a shortage of blackwood (which there’s not).
I have a couple of bellows-blown pipe chanters made of mopane, but I have no idea how it would perform as a mouthblown tonewood.
Jim, I didn’t mean to imply that Copley makes Rudalls, just that if I wanted mopane, I could get a Copley, and without as long a wait as many makers have. (The post does read that way, just a little poor planning on my part.)
Stuart, I haven’t played any mopane flutes, but do have a couple of whistles made from it. I know that some people have pushed it as an environmentally friendly alternative to blackood, and I’m with you, I don’t quite get it. I guess it may be like blackwood in being very naturally oily, but some of its characteristics seem to be quite different to me in its sound and the finish it acquires. May be totally inapplicable to flutes, though.
I haven’t played a blackwood flute, but my Burns beginners flute is made of mopane and, I think, has an excellent voice. I’d be really interested in the opinions of those that have played both. Maybe it’s just the design of my flute, but I can get bright and mellow sound or I can change my angle of attack and get more reedy sound…
Yes, less oily, means less stable with moisture in the bore. Probably a great wood for chanters though. It’s supposed to be very stable after turning. With a dry air instrument that would be a perfect match. I don’t know of any pipemakers offhand using it. Blackwood is not necessarily endangered either, from what I’ve read recently.
Many countries are managing it now. Also, it’s more of a matter of Blackwood that is actually suitable for instrument making versus trees that have imperfections in the wood, such as lots of knots etc.
To get back on topic, I’ve played a Noy contemporary before, was that you at Boru’s that time Jack? I was impressed with it’s playability and ease of tone formation. The only thing I didn’t like, which is just a pet thing, was the length, I like a full D foot, just feels more balanced to me. Also make the flute look lean and mean!
Yeah, that’s what I meant. I said D just because most of the flutes out there don’t go to C, so technically it’s a D foot, even if it used to be a C foot. Works for me anyway.
I confirm all tht you said about mopane; I’ve got a Rose flute, and let you know the followings:
the work is very, very fine; the brown colour is wonderful, and becomes quickly darker with light, like cocus. The inside of the flute (conical bore) is very nice, but I find that moisture disturbs the blowing after few minutes of playing. I haven’t this problem with my ebony flute.
the sound is clearer and lighter than ebony sound (probably blackwood also).
I find the upper octave closer to a silver flute than a wooden one.
The headjoint is very thick, but the other part is very thin. I don’t think I ever saw such a thin flute in other wood.
I’m sure my next flute will be blackwood. I’d like cocus and boxwood too.
My experience is that mopane flutes are durable
and tough–these can be good flutes. My impression
is that blackwood is harder and sounds somewhat
better. Mopane isn’t much less good, and it’s cheaper.
I’ve never seen a mopane flute with a metal
slide, or a lined headjoint, and I wonder
how it would sound. Best
One note added in proof…because the Noy is nice and light, its more sensitive to the dry weather. The rings loosen easily when it gets too dry…the trick is to feel the loosest one each time you play and humidify the case when needed…this is particularly bad in New England of course!
Plus, I think the thought of these flutes will be a real motivation to improve.