I agree with you, Tibbycow. I never liked Gem.'s personally; I had one once and it did cost me a lot in bills, but it was very old, too. But, I know a lot of people do well on them too, and it all depends on the musician on how well a sound they can get out of a flute... if everyone played the same, we wouldn't have different brands, now, would we?

Well, If I were the teacher, i would have preferred being in on the selection. I think that the Yamaha would have been a better choice for tone tuning and mechanism/durability BUT...since the student has an instrument now it is better for a teacher not to harp about it at every chance. Time to get on with the teaching and the learning.

Flutes are disposable to the extent that it isn't necessary that one gets attached for their life to one instrument or brand. A smart person can always sell one and buy another.

~Bilbo
N.E. Ohio

The teacher did say something interesting, though. She said that the other brands would increase her sound 80% while the gemeinhardt only increased it about 25%. That's still an increase correct? I also believe (as an avid disliker of Gemeinhardt's) that the transferring of flutes brands with Gemeinhardt only works one way, and not both. If you start out playing ANY other brand of flute, you can still sound good on a Gemeinhardt. Yet, I believe that if you were to start out on a Gemeinhardt you would have to do a semi re-training to be able to play on any other brand. The keys and setup are kind of different on a Gemmy compared to the others. It is quite rough and box-ey. Since your daughter is doing well with this flute, if it were me I would tell the teacher where to stick it, and remind her that you pay the bills, and this isn't your daughter's last flute. Lastly, I wouldn't upgrade the headjoint next. In a couple-few years I would just upgrade to an intermediate flute. Headjoints can be a little expensive, and if you just saved up a few more hundred dollars you could get a nicer intermediate flute. I would rather see her move up in brand of flute than keep playing on a Gemeinhardt even with a new headjoint. Intermediate flute-wise...get a Yamaha. Do Not Get A Pearl. Eventhough that's what I play on, I like their student flute, but not their intermediate/upper flutes.

-Dennis

they should upgrade once they get their current flute to sound terrific.

i agree with patrick.

there are lots of better brands but since your daughter already has a flute,it's okay. she should learn to sound terrific first before she upgrades.
if the teacher keeps bothering your daughter, i advise you get another teacher because your daughter might lose interest in music.
good luck

how could a teacher say a flute will increase a students sound by a certain "%", how does she know that. It depends a lot how the student plays

Thanks again for the advice so far. But now you ahve me worried a little in my choice.

1. I thought I HAD gotten her an intermediate flute getting the 3SH conservatory flute.
2. No one has posted that they like Gemeinhardt's or that model. maybe I should have waited and saved up the extra 500 for a Yamaha 361 ?

One of my concerns was that on her original crappy e-bay flute she had to deal with a bad allergic reaction to the metal. But she never complained even being broken out under her lips. When I saw conservatory series/and solid silver head, maybe I pulled the trigger too fast.

Anyway you are all awesome for supporting me and my daughter. I'm going to get her registered on here so she can ask any flute-shop questions she may have. She has to work on her chromatic scales(whatever that is) to get into Honor Band next year. She had a spring concert last ngiht and was recognized as being the Most Improved member of the 7th grade band.

<Added>

hindsight...

Gem 3SH 1500 retail, most sites listed for 900, got at 123Music for 579 --and Bfoot!
Yam 361 1300 retail, cheapest I could find was 1000.--

She wants to do this as a profession. I know she has only begun to walk down that long road and may change her mind but I want to give her the best. So I'm already thinking on next upgrade or should I calm down.

Where at in Texas are you located? If you're anywhere near Dallas, I would highly recommend you take your daughter to the Carolyn Nussbaum flute store when it's time for another upgrade - http://www.flute4u.com . You might not want to actually purchase a flute from there, as the prices are a little high, but your daughter will find the widest selection of flutes anywhere near here to play test. At least she could pick the flute she liked the most, and I'm pretty sure they'd price match if you found it somewhere cheaper.

Don't worry about our opinions on Gem.'s. A lot us us have been playing for years and years now and some of us don't play on Yamaha, either! If your daughter is having a reaction to the silver (I have a bad reaction to silver myself) then you could get the mouthplate covered in a gold plating. I know that Kara, one of the forum members, does this and you can find a lot of other people who can do this, to. It doesn't cost TOO much and it should put a stop to the silver reaction. (Gold plating has been the topic of a few heavy arguments/discussions!)
If your daughter likes her current flute, don't change! You probably did a very good job in helping pick it out for her. That music teacher is just trying to either sell another flute to you or is trying to force her opinions on you and your daughter... neither one of those things is really that respectable in the music world. I can see trying to sell, if that is the case, but going over the edge like that is just not right.


<Added>

We would be very happy to have you and your daughter as forum members! :);):)

It's okay!..although gemeinhardt isn't the BEST brand compared to others..your daughter can still do AMAZING stuff with it. I wouldn't get too woried, she's only in 7th grade. A lot of ppl i know played with a gemienhardt through their highschool year.
Well, this is what i have to say..

First of all, Lera, I can't beleive you have the guts to keep on posting in this forum! I am sorry if that seems rude, but I am a bit irritated with you. And for heaven sake, please write in English so that we can understand you for once! How long have you been in the US?

Okay, now that I got that off my chest....

lostintexas, don't worry about it. I made it though High School without any problems on the same model of flute. It is good enough for a High School student and certainly a LOT better then some. Yamaha may be always talked as being superior, but it really is just preference when it comes down to it.

Here, here, Kara! I always have to read the posts twice before I get what is being said... I don't mind Lera, even in light of recent circumstances, but it's frusterating to not understand what is being said...
Sorry...

1)Spend your money on a good flute teacher. You'll get much more for your money than trading this flute for a Yamaha 361.

2)Your daughter can get an upgrade, maybe at age 16 or so, to a pro-level flute, provided that she continues with the flute and still wants to do this. That gives the two of you time to save up the $3500 or so to get her a really, truly outstanding flute. And providing you have an appropriate flute teacher, his/her opinion should be considered in the purchase.

The Gemeinhardt flute, if she likes to play it, shouldn't need replacing. If she is trying other peoples' flutes, and notices a big difference in response, tone quality, ability to easily play in tune- THAT is the time to go flute shopping again.

okay, the spelling can be way off..but if you just take a second to think you could see what she's saying. do you want me to translate what she said? i know it's annoying to see the spelling way off, but it's ALSO annoying for everyone to say that to her...what's your point? do you want her to never to come to this forum. sry, it just sounds like that....not to be mean, but we're always bringing this conversation over AND over again...

I definitely agree with schoolgirl. I think y'all are being cruel to lera.

Also, as far as gemeinhardt goes, I always found them to feel particularly ergonomical and responsive. I never owned one but I know any time that I tried a friend's, it seemed fine. I have a problem with brand loyalty. I need to try the actual flute I'm buying, not just another of the same model because there is always the possibility of a manufacturing flaw. It's a personal preference. So to me even if you find a flute that you love, be it something as disrespected as "first act" or something as praised as "powell," go for it. what the heck

I am not meaning to be cruel to Lera. Sure, no one is perfect, but I just think that it is pure ignorance on her part. I also have a right to be ticked off after what she did. If you remember correctly, I was the one that stuck up for her in the first place and she continued on lying about it. So no, I no longer have any respect for her. I don't buy the whole spell checker thing. She has lied in the past, so why would I beleive that too?

Sorry, I didn't mean to go off topic here.