How to choose a professional flute?

Question:I'm thinking of getting a professional flute soon. I've been playing for 20 years, and I've outgrown my intermediate flute. How do I choose which brand to buy? I don't want to go to Elkhart, IN or Boston and visit the factories until I've already made my decision. Should I go to a music store and compare mouthpieces of the different brands on the student flutes to see which one fits my embouchure better? I've been playing a Gemeinhardt for the past 20 years, and I had no choice in the matter. That's why I'm not sure how to proceed.

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: I'm thinking of getting a professional flute soon. I've been playing for 20 years, and I've outgrown my intermediate flute. How do I choose which brand to buy? I don't want to go to Elkhart, IN or Boston and visit the factories until I've already made my decision. Should I go to a music store and compare mouthpieces of the different brands on the student flutes to see which one fits my embouchure better? I've been playing a Gemeinhardt for the past 20 years, and I had no choice in the matter. That's why I'm not sure how to proceed.

Your music shop can help you with this one!

Music shops often collaborate with company dealers. Much like avon or mary kay, instrument companies have representatives that take instruments all over the country for players to test out.

Go to your music shop and tell them what you need, and they can recommend brands and tell you if they have a dealer from that specific brand---Emerson, Gemeinhardt, Yamaha, etc.--that could bring in an instrument for you to try. Pro instruments are not going to be in stores, but they help musicians find pro instruments because it generates revenue for them.

If you have brands in mind, you can find stores that are authorized dealers for the certain brands just by searching for them online. I did this with Yamaha and got a fantastic deal through my local music shop--for the price of shipping, if the dealer cannot bring it in, you can try out the instrument for a week or so and then bring it back with your decision.

I warn you, though---some STORES--not reps--have a policy that if they bring in an instrument for you to try, they will attempt to tell you that in order to test it, the store has to purchase it first. They ask that you pay a deposit/downpayment. It's a ripoff. DO NOT AGREE TO IT. If a store does not let you speak with the dealer representative, do not do business with them.

Good luck! I see you're making the wise decision to try out instruments first, so you deserve a handshake:)

Go to http://www.fluteworld.com they will let you try their flutes before you decide which one to buy. You just have to pay for shipping. A dear friend majored in music and the flute is her main instrument; this is where she went and highly recommends.

You need to figure out your price range first of all, which I assume you've done. Professional flutes generally run $8,000+ so unless you plan on paying that much, 'professional' is perhaps not the best word choice. 'Intermediate' or 'advanced' imply flutes less than that.

But regardless of how much you want to spend, you need to try out flutes. There's no need to go to the factories to try them out. Places you can try them include music stores, directly from the company, and at flute fairs.

The music stores one is pretty obvious: Simply go to a local music store and ask to try out their flutes in your price range. You're not as likely to find professional flutes here.

There are some companies that let you mail-order flutes to sample for free or almost free, such as J.L. Smith (http://www.flutesmith.com/flute-trial-pr... or I believe fluteworld.com lets you as well. I got my flute from J.L. Smith personally.

If you're a member of the NFA (National Flute Association), then you should be aware that they have yearly conventions. Flute makers from around the country show up and let members who attend the convention try out all their flutes for free.

What you need to do is do one of the above three choices (or perhaps try all three which is what I would recommend seeing as it's such a big purchase you're making!), try out flutes, and decide what you like. There's a ton of variables you need to consider:
1. Playability in all octaves
2. Tone (this includes quality and the different colors you can get out of it... you don't want a flute that always sounds the same, you want to be able to affect the tone to sound like what you want!)
3. Pitch (bring a tuner!)
4. Dynamics
5. Response (stiffness or easiness in playing)
6. Warranty... maybe you want one
7. And lastly... do you enjoy playing it, and do you feel it can help you grow as a player?

Consider all that and take your time before you make a decision. You shouldn't feel ripped off or let down!

Good luck!