summer humidity in michigan is a HUGE problem. starting in about april, i cant walk through doors right because my hair turns into an afro. in july, it gets so muggy that one has to carry around a pair of shears just to cut thorugh the air so one can walk down the sidewalk. this girl played her picc outside everyday for at least 7hrs a day for about a week. my guess is that the rain hammering on the poor piccolo (the crack was right along the wood surrounding the ring where the head fits over the body) was the last straw. but as far as i know no one took it out of its case and stomped on it or anything... and i bunked with her. let me tell you, it was a long 6 weeks.

Yes, it DOES get very humid in Michigan! I live on the lake in Ohio for 12 years and my Aunt lived in Michigan. It is like a Sauna outside today in Arkansas, but I love it! It is great for swimming and good as long as you have the central air cranked up.

i hate humidity... i love the cold winters and i love the hot summers, but the humidity has GOT to go! it messes with my pads too much.

...and my hair

lol! Get straubinger pads on your flute. I have had no problems with mine changing at all in the humidity. Or... move to the west like Idaho. It is really dry there. Too dry!

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Now you have got to put a picture of you hair for you avatar so we can see! If it is anything in Michigan like it is here today then you should be having hair problems. I like the humidity with mine because it just curls loosly, but in Idaho it goes straigh. Yuck!

Okay her is the scoop. I got the Sonare piccolo. It is out of adjustment a bit but it still playing without leaks. Judging by this I am not sure if it would be a fair assessment on my part but.. I am not very thrilled with it. Maybe I got a dud, but the mechanism feels cheap to me just like the Sonare flutes do. I had an Emerson piccolo that to me felt like it had a much better mechanism. The intonation is a lot better on this one though, so that is one of the biggest most crucial thing to me. Sound wise is so so but if I am only playing it outside then I don't care too much. I am having another one sent to me tomorrow so maybe that one will be better. Maybe I am just really spoiled by my Burkart, but I don't care for the Sonare much at all. I went ahead and ordered a Pearl even though it is more then I really wanted to spend. If the next Sonare comes back in adjustment then I most likely will buy that one unless the Pearl is super amazing compared to it. There has to be a BIG difference though for me to spend that much more money.

when i actually decide to go outside, i will most definitely get a picture of the 'fro. my hair is curly as well, but here it goes from nice and volumnous curls to an old frayed brillo pad within minutes. haha

and what you claim of the sonare piccolo... the one i tried actually seemed to have a decent mechanism. it wasnt the best, but it was certainly better than any other plastic piccolo ive tried in its price range. i was nervous about the mechanism, but it was better than i anticipated. it probably just needed a good tune up.

Okay, I received the Pearl piccolo today and the only word I can say to descride it is.. WOW!!!! It blows away the Sonare! It is amazing!!!! The sad part is, is that I acutually think I like it better then my handmade wood Burkart. No joke! It is worth it to me to save up the extra cash to buy this one. Who knows.. I will give it plently of play time but I may just sell my Burkart. There is not need for me to have a wood piccolo if I can not play it all the time. I would rather have something that I don't have to worry about craking and temperture changes. A lot less stress free. If I find the scale to be good then it is a no brainer for me. I am going to give it the ultimate test and take it to community band practice tonight. If I can keep it in tune with them, then it will be good. lol!

*chants* told ya so told ya so

lol!! I just don't know what all the hype is about the Sonare picc?

its cheap. end of story

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kara, if i were you, id check your messages.
:-)

The hype is about prestige and price. The headjoint is handcut by Powell and the body has the Powell scale. And, as already pointed out, it's cheap. The bubble style headjoint makes it look higher end.

But there are cheaper piccolos with better mechanisms and headjoint cuts. Jupiter comes to mind, as do Emerson and Armstrong.

But there are cheaper piccolos with better mechanisms and headjoint cuts. Jupiter comes to mind, as do Emerson and Armstrong.

I tend agree on that one too. Except they don't have the Powell scale which is a very good selling point for these Sonare piccs.

Well, I can't afford the Pearl picc unless my Miya flute sells which is out on trial right now. Then I am going to give it a good month or so before considering selling my Burkart.

i thought the sound of the sonare beat the wood emerson i play on now. and i havent really tried an armstrong piccolo, unless you count the ancient one i played on in middle school... but the mechanism pretty much, well, sucked on the sonare

Well I did get the other Sonare piccolo which is in good working order and it does play better but still not close to the Pearl. I need a piccolo now though because I have another outstide concert in two weeks, so I most likely will have to purchase the Sonare. That is unless by some miracle happens and I sell that Miya. *Crosses fingers*