Hi everyone. I am a newbie here and of course have a few questions. My daughter plays the flute and she has a cleaning quesiton. She was told by her tutor to wipe it down with alcohol for cleaning. My question is-How often should she do this?

I have been reading some of the back topics and see that she is using a not so popular Gemeinhardt. I actually got it by bartering so to me it was a good deal. Obviously now that I know better we will have to upgrade in time. She thinks she wants an open hole but I'm thinking she should try one out first.

I recently got my neice a Bundy from e-bay. (yeah I know but is better than a chinese flute right?) The school didn't have any flutes for her so they gave her a clarinet. I had to do something!

I am also thinking about taking lessons myself. I played trumpet and tenor sax back in school but always wanted to play the flute. (the trumpet belonged to an uncle and the sax was a school freebie) I'm thinking now is my chance. I see Yahama is popular here. I will probably just borrow daughters and schedule my lessons the day she doesn't need hers at school.

And last: Does anyone have experience/opinions about the old Cleveland King flutes?

Thanks in advance.

I think alchool may be used sometimes to clean the headjoint, where there is a contact of the mouth, at the lip plate for example.
Wiping the entire flute may cause damages to the pads, or even get the oil off the mechanism, if a drop of alchool reaches inside the rods. I would care about this, because a ruined pad can cause a lot of trouble, mostly to beginners that cannot tell if there is something wrong with the flute or with themselves.
I don't know the age of your daughter, but it's also dangerous to handle alchool in a liquid form, particularly if you will use a solution with more than 90 degrees purity.
What I do recommend is cleanning (not polishing) the flute at the end of a playing day. It has two desirable effects: to avoid dust to stick at the fingerprints locations, and to give a good impression to the player when he/she gets the flute on the next practice session, as the flute will be clean and shiny.
cheers,
Zevang

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... sorry, it's alcohol :-)

>>She was told by her tutor to wipe it down with alcohol for cleaning. My question is-How often should she do this? <<

Rarely. I never did it until recently, and I've been playing since 1974. And, I did it because I put a cushioning pad on and then wanted to move it. You really shouldn't need more than a soft cloth most of the time, and you want to be careful getting liquids of any sort near the pads.


>>she is using a not so popular Gemeinhardt.<<

There's absolutely nothing wrong with a Gemeinhardt student flute. At that level, as long as it's a decent name brand (I'll reserve opinion on Bundy) , you're fine. Taking it to a good repairperson and having it cleaned, oiled, and adjusted will ensure that it's set correctly, though.

>>She thinks she wants an open hole but I'm thinking she should try one out first. <<

The best flute is the one that plays best for you. How old is she?


>>And last: Does anyone have experience/opinions about the old Cleveland King flutes?<<

Not with the flutes. However, my silver piccolo is a King, vintage between 1940-45. It's been a nice instrument. Are you looking at buying one? I'd have it checked by a repairperson. King flutes/piccolos are basically antiques at this point, so they need a bit of loving care. I would say that they'd make a good marching band instrument, though--they were designed to be sold to military bands, and they are pretty sturdy. I've never had a problem with mine, despite several years of marching band and several Mardi Gras--although it now needs overhaul. That said, I got it in 1982, so I guess it did A-OK.

--Judy

Thanks for all of your time and answers.

My daughter is 11 and has been playing going on her 3rd year. Her first year was private lessons only. I did take her flute in for an overhaul when we first got it. I will also do the same with the Bundy when it arrives.

Thanks for the advice about open hole flutes. I will steer her away from them for now. When she is older she can buy whatever she likes.

Thanks for the cleaning advice. I must have mis-understood the tutor. My memory isn't what it used to be.

My question about the Cleveland Kings was curiosity. I love older things (maybe because I am headed in that direction myself and think many are better made than newer. I found an info website about them and thought they seemed very nice.

Excuse my comment about the Chinese flutes. I was refering to the cheazy ones on e-bay.

Another question. How do you tell by looking if a flute has is an inline or an off set G? Are most made one way or the other? (I have small hands and know I should get an off set)

Thanks again.

You can tell by looking at the positions of the keys. If it's an inline G, all the keys will be in line with each other. If it's offset, the key you put your 3rd finger (left hand) on, and the key just below the G# spatula will be at a different angle from all the rest of the keys. There are illustrations of each type in Fluteworld's glossary at http://fluteworld.com/index.php?action=strona&wart=13#Offset%20G%20key%20flute Keep in mind that just because you have small hands does not necessarily mean that you need an offset. Which is more comfortable depends on the size relationship between LH3 and LH4 more than overall had size, so try both, and whichever feels better is what you should go with. Neither offers a better tone or affects intonation at all. Up until recently, most student flutes used an offset G, and most professional flutes an inline. However, now there is a huge upsurge in sales (and thus production) of professional offset flutes thanks to the relatively recent revelation of repetitive stress injuries and carpal tunnel. My primary flute is offset, but I can play inline just as well.

>>My question about the Cleveland Kings was curiosity. I love older things (maybe because I am headed in that direction myself and think many are better made than newer. I found an info website about them and thought they seemed very nice.<<

I only recently found out how old my piccolo is. The info wasn't really out there a few years ago (although I could have written to King, I suppose, if it really mattered), but the serial numbers are now posted to their site by date of manufacture, along with an early history of the company. Isn't the internet a wonderful thing? It makes me curious about who its previous owners were. My parents bought it from a local repairperson who had overhauled it, but I don't know where it was before that.

Wow, Thank you for that website! That explains so much. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you.

Yes I also love thinking about things that had previous owners. One of my hobbies is spinning my own yarn and everytime I do it I think about how back in the day people HAD to do it and now we chose to as a hobby. I also wonder if any of my own ancestors were spinners. But I digress.

I am excited about learning to play again! Even though I wasn't very good at my previous instruments to me it is about fun. There is nothing quite like hitting just the right notes in a favorite piece of music and "feeling" it. But I'm sure I don't have to tell you all that.

Thanks for all the advice and help. This is a great forum and I will be hanging around soaking up the knowledge.

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P.S. What is the advantage here in becoming a subscriber vs a registered user?