Are the followng flute brands good?

Miyazawa
Muramatsu
Pearl
Sankyo
Trevor James

Also what piccolo/alto brands would you recomend?

I know this type of queston has been posted on here before but i need advice specifialy on these brands.

Thank you

They`re all well known brands so you`re not going to get totally ripped off. Out of all of them I`d place Miyazawa , Muramatsu and Sankyo at the top, but this is mainly personal.

They`re all very nice flutes. Many prefer those brand over any other. I actually own a Muramatsu and love it. Almost bought a Miyazawa... i loved it. Im not too fond of Pearl as i found the sound too confined, but many people love it and many professionals play on them.

As for piccolo brands, I hear Yamaha is nice for a cheapy... Burkhart is well known... Um............... And for Alto, my teacher owns a Dimedici and it sounds nice, my friend owns a trevor james and she loves it and my other teacher owns a yamaha and it sounds great. Look around. Im sure you`ll find something you like.

I think all of those flute brands that you mentioned are good, but I would place Miyazawa, Muramatsu, and Sankyo above Pearl and Trevor James. You might also want to look at Powell and Altus flutes, they are also good. It`s just my opinion, but I think Pearl and Trevor James aren`t up to the professional level. I know for piccolos if you`re looking for a reliable cheap one you should look at Yamaha. For more professional wood piccolos I would look at Roy Seaman, Powell, Burkart. Hope this helps!

Gemeinhardt is also a good flute brand, Its just the pro flutes they make the keys feel funny to me. Thats why I still have my student Gemeinhardt flute.

I`m sorry if I sound rude but Gemeinhardt is NOT a good brand. If your looking at the tone you could get on a Gemeinhardt it doesn`t even compare to one that you could get from a Muramatsu or a comparable band. Everyone should stay clear of Gemeinhardt`s even students.

I have a Yamaha Piccolo YPC-32 and it is very good for a student. As well, I wouldn`t see a difference between the professional plastic piccolo they have (I can`t remember the number) but, the Yamaha YPC 32 is a smart choice for a piccolo.

I have another option. You can go to www.wwbw.com and look through the flutes/piccolos they have and read the Customer Reviews on the flutes you think are suitable for you.

Good Luck

Gemeinhardts are not that bad, Its the head joint that is bad cuz my head joint is a J1 and my flute is a 22SP, and J1 head joint is the one with that ugly sound. They sould have different head joints for gemeinhardt flute cuz when i whent to there web site they had different head joints.

http://www.gemeinhardt.com/accessories/headjoints.html

I believe that Gemeinhardt makes "ok" piccolos for students, but all of there flutes, in my opinion, are not good. I have a Gemeinhardt 4S, and it has a very nice sound for a student piccolo, but I will soon be upgrading to a Burkart-Phelan Global. For a student piccolo I would reccomend Yamaha or Gemeinhardt. But for a professional piccolo, I would go with a Burkart or a Powell. I hope this helps.

Cameron, Ashley want to know about flutes not piccolos.

Oh. Sorry didn`t see that u wanted to know about piccolos and alto flute. Just try them befor u buy them. Cuz some flutes are heaver then others,and Am not talking about alto flute or the flute that u have. cuz some metals are heaver then others, and to me when I had my emerson and got a buffet It was A little hard to play cuz the emerson was heaver then the buffet and It felt like the buffet was a piccolo unsted of flute. So just try them befor u buy them

Plus the only piccolo I played was a Gemeinhardt and In Tucson,Az almost all the peolple I know play One and plus there are some teachers I know that even have them.

The tone you can produce on Gemeinhardt`s standard J style headjoint can be comparable to that produced on a Muramatsu headjoint, at mf. Galway even demonstrated that he can produce his distinctive tone quality on a standard student flute.

Because of the design of the Gemeinhardt J model headjoint hole (small & round) it is incapable of the dynamic range that you can produce on a professional headjoint. The increase in volume and power you can achieve once your embouchure adjusts to a professional headjoint is simply AMAZING. Going back to the standard J headjoint the limitation becomes starkly apparent.

What is a very interesting comparison is putting a Muramatsu headjoint on a Gemeinhardt flute and comparing it to an actual Muramatsu flute. Comparing the tone of notes... at extremes. You may find the flute body can play a very minor role in tone production.

I`m very happy with my Solid Silver Gemeinhardt 3SB with handcut Natsuki head. Sure the headjoint costs as much as the flute, but it was a much cheaper and wothier investment than a lower professional model.

I am still intent on upgrading my flute n the future, but rather than pay couple thousands for a silver plate instrument that does not far surpass my current flute I plan on investing 6-8k on a completely solid silver flute that will out live me.

Always remember, try before you buy.

Hi

Don`t forget Altus, very good for the $$$$

www.patrickandfriends.com

I know many people who do not like gemeinhardt flutes and I am not sure why. I play on a Gemeinhardt KGM Limited and it plays wonderfully. It also depends on the player himself to create a good tone, not just the flute. I am a flute student and I can get a fairly good tone out of a Gemeinhardt 2sp which is over 20 years old.
If you are looking for a good professional flute, definitely go for a Miyazawa. If you are unsatisfied with the headjoint try looking at http://www.drelinger.com/ This company makes custom headjoints that will get you exactly what you want.
If you are looking for a cheaper flute with a professional sound, go for a Gemeinhardt KGM standard or limited or a KG Limited. Also you could consider looking a www.wwbw.com for good deals on flutes.
I hope this was of some help to you.