A keyed Olwell just came up for sale in the US, for 8K plus.
Who do people consider are contemporary flutemakers who produce work of similar quality, but at a more reasonable price?
Morvan in Britanny is making fabulous flutes these days.
I agree Stephane Morvan is one of the leading makers of today, along with; Patrick Olwell, Michael Grinter and Chris Wilkes.
Out of interest hpinson, where did you see this Olwell advertised?
In defense of Olwell, he does not charge more for his flutes than other makers charge for their flutes. In fact Olwell often charges less for his work, though there is often a wait for the flute. This is also the case with such other esteemed makers as Chris Wilkes, Geoff Woof, and Colin Dipper. The instrument is worth waiting for. But if you can’t wait, and decide to pay more on the secondary market to avoid the wait, then the premium goes to the seller and not to the maker.
BTW, there’s a 6-key blackwood Olwell at the Irish Flute store for $8,500.
Not knocking Olwell Julia Delaney - just that they are rather difficult to acquire with a long wait, and come at a premium from third parties. Interested what the 2017 alternatives are if you want a top notch flute.
Maybe I should check what the wait is. I had assumed years - or books closed to new orders.
Yes - it is at Blayne’s Irish Flute Shop. It just came for sale yesterday, July 14, 2017.
I highly recommend John Gallagher’s flutes - I own one and know John personally and can guarantee that his flutes are just as good (if not better than) ANY of the top makers!
Pat
Another alternative is to buy a Victorian simple system flute such as a Rudall & Rose, Rudall Carte, Wylde, Hawkes, etc., and have it serviced by a professional, new pads, key springs if needed. Much cheaper to buy these days than a keyed Olwell, Wilkes etc. A good simple system Rudall for example, in tune with itself at A=440, is as good as it gets. Can be accquired for £900-£2500 ($1200-$3300) (€1000-€2900).
During Willie Week Jon Dodd, Miltown Malbay, serviced two R&R flutes for me, new pads, two new key springs, new cork, crack in one head joint stabilised. Jon takes €275 (two flutes) for this and did a top notch job. The two flutes are now like new, so easy to play, in tune, strong bottom D. I’m over the moon. I strongly recommend Rudall & Rose, Rudall Carte flutes
I am with Steampacket on this one, when it comes to value for money, antique eight key flutes are the absolute best value.
I’d have to agree with this 100% (although I don’t know John as well as Pat having only met him in the flesh once a few months ago). Although there are plenty of fine makers on this thread; it really comes down to personal preference, I’ve never played an Olwell I liked as much as my flute from John but people who own Olwells haven’t always been that fond of my flute when they have tried it.
(FWIW all of the D and Eb flute recordings in my signature links are on my flute [set] from John if you want to hear one in action. [Except the youtube playlist with videos of me posted by others some of those, anything pre-'11, are on the Martin Doyle I used to have])
True, but my experience was much better with the Morvan Pratten model than the Rudall.
By other hand not all the Olwell´s are the same for me.
Should get in a word for Bryan Byrne in VT, USA for consideration.
And where would folks put Peter Noy in the heirarchy?
Best wishes.
Steve
Well, I’m a total fan of Noy myself, but the OP asked for top-end sticks at lower prices, so I didn’t say anything. Noy runs high. You know the saying: “You wand it good, fast, and cheap? Pick two.” Noy’s good, and he’s fast, and that plus the quality of his work and materials is where a lot of the cost comes in. Still and all, if you’re in a hurry and have the funds, I’d otherwise wholeheartedly recommend him. It should be pointed out that he works more along the lines of following historic examples than his own designs, because he caters largely to those who specialize in historically informed performance.
My two Noy flutes took 18 and 24 months (he was spot on with delivery time for both).
I love his small-holed Irish flute. It has a really flexible sound and is fully chromatic with one key.
You could add Hamilton and Windward to that list, no?
You could add Copley (I would) and others, but I’ve tried not to so far because topics like this always end up as, well, just lists of what people play rather than what was asked. But, since I basically love my Copley special more than any other instrument and had such a hugely positive experience with Dave developing it for me, of course I think he belongs in such company. Which he probably also does objectively as a maker offering top quality at less than top prices!
Which, yes, is what I am asking about.
One of the problems I’ve had evaluating such flutes like the Copley and Windward, living in a somewhat remote location, is trying them in person is not an option, and I have to rely on video demos that either the maker puts forth, or individuals create. Often these videos are of relatively mediocre players with the instrument, and that is not so helpful.
The Copley is a good example, where it has a great reputation, but I can find no video or recording that really backs the claim up - and mainly it is because the recordings available are not of [what I consider] top notch players with the instrument.
The Windwards are a little better - most of their recording are mediocre, but a few exist of Sylvian Barou that really make the instrument shine, and I can tell they make a good flute. I’m actually tending towards the Windward. Really want it to be the last flute I buy.
This all has been helpful - in that it gets some names out there to consider beyond the star makers.
Always an interesting discussion. I am also a mandolin player, and see similar threads in that context. There are about three makers generally accepted as the “top” makers, whose instruments sell at a premium. Getting a new one from them generally involves a very long waiting list. There are, many very good makers at more reasonable prices. “Best” is a relative term that depends on your particular criteria and changes from person to person. You usually wind up with a discussion of what instruments people have, play, and are happy with.
That said, the OP asked about very good flutes sold less dearly. Let me just toss in my personal favorites of Glen Watson, Martin Doyle, and Solen Lesouef. I am fortunate enough have a keyless Olwell and one from each of these makers, and they are all great in their own way. They are all flutes well above my ability.
I think the least known of the group would be Solen Lesouef from Brittany, so let me share a recent example.
I think it is a Golden age for both flute and madolin players, as there are so many excellent makers out there.
Excellent example - Aoife Granville really does justice to the Solen Lesouef flute.
Hanz Araki has been playing a Windward for a number of years (at least since 2012) so you may want to look into his recordings.
All of this is subjective of course, plus it is hard to describe what makes a really super flute that super verses some that is just quite good. This is how I would describe the difference between my J. Gallagher and the Copley delrin D/C set I currently own and the wooden Eb I used to have. I can’t quite explain what it is that makes John’s flute that much better but the difference is certainly there, maybe it’s attention to small details maybe it’s just something else altogether that can’t be spoken. Dave’s flutes are quite nice and he is one of the easiest makers to work with plus his wait is usually fairly short but I just don’t think they have the same character as some of the other makers out there. I would put Casey Burns’s flutes and customer service on a similar level as Copley’s; although I’d say Casey’s flutes probably have a bit more character! Really good flutes, no doubt, but lacking a little something that might make me say they are excellent flutes.
A friend of mine got a Glen Watson flute not too long ago and it is quite nice, I found the low E spoke shockingly easily, but I haven’t spent enough time with any of those flutes to really compare.
Perhaps the question to ask is: can a player really notice all of the subtle differences between X maker and Y maker before they’ve reached a certain level as a player?