I'm Getting a Piccolo Soon... What kind? HELP.?

Question:I am currently an active member of my high school's marching band. Which flutes are generally better to work with? Or easier? Wooden or silver? Any kinds of suggestions are welcome!

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: I am currently an active member of my high school's marching band. Which flutes are generally better to work with? Or easier? Wooden or silver? Any kinds of suggestions are welcome!

If you're going to be playing piccolo for marching and pep-band, then I'd highly recommend one that's either silver plated or plastic. Silver piccolos tend to be very bright in sound and work well for ensembles. Plastic piccolos often have a more mellow sound, so they may work well if you're also looking for a beginning piccolo to play in an indoor ensemble (concert band, youth orchestra, etc).

Wooden piccolos are an absolute no-no for marching band due to the changes in weather conditions that can happen, which can cause cracks in the wood.

Brand wise, you have to try them out to find what best suits you. I generally do NOT like Gemeinhardt. I find their piccolos to be way too shrilly and the mechanism leaves a lot ot be desired IMO. Jupiter and Pearl piccolos also tend to have major intonation issues. I would also stay away from the $100 piccolos that you can buy from places like ebay, sam's club, walmart, and even your local music store. They will NOT hold up and sound like crud. You'd be better off with trying piccolos from other major flute makers such Armstrong, Emerson, and Yamaha. You can out sites such as www.fluteworld.com for other brands of student line piccolos that would be worth trying. You might also be able toget some additional answers through Larry Krantz's FLUTE email list (www.larrykrantz.com) or on James Galway's site through Yahoo! Groups.

Hope this helps and good luck!