As some of you may know from my whining thread up in the General Music forum, my sister and I are without instruments at this present moment in time. I'm pretty set on the oboe I want, but Shannen has asked me to ask your invaluable opinions on what a good diploma-level flute would be for her. Without a teacher, she has been trying to make the choice herself, but knew that it would be easier to ask other flautists.

So, any ideas floating around out there?

I'm not a flautist but I think that at this level (and at any upgrade point) the best thing is to try as many instruments as you are able within your budget. What suits one may not suit someone else.
I'm sure that someone flutey will be able to give some suggestions of what might be worth looking at as options.
Good luck with your instruments.

Thanks I'll pass on the message! She's hoping to try some flutes out this weekend.

I play the flute & I would totaly agree with sbhoa. Firstly know what your budget is and try out as many as you possibly can with in that range. It does not have to be a brand new instrument as you can buy some top brand names for sale at reputable suppliers that have been reconditioned & also come with some form of guarantee. I am currently playing on a Yamaha 574 with b foot & find it great but thats not to say that you will. It is a quality flute but are expensive new. The yamaha 574 is one that I would recommend. Check out Just flutes website, they are based in London.


I play the flute & I would totaly agree with sbhoa. Firstly know what your budget is and try out as many as you possibly can with in that range. It does not have to be a brand new instrument as you can buy some top brand names for sale at reputable suppliers that have been reconditioned & also come with some form of guarantee. I am currently playing on a Yamaha 574 with b foot & find it great but thats not to say that you will. It is a quality flute but are expensive new. The yamaha 574 is one that I would recommend. Check out Just flutes website, they are based in London.

Best of luck with finding the right one.

Thank you As I said, she's hoping to try some out this weekend, but she also wanted a few ideas of what other people would consider a good flute.

At Diploma level, you really need a flute with a Solid Silver Headjoint, and if you can afford it, a solid silver body too, purely to improve the tone of the flute. Some flutes of this description such as the Sankyo CF201, Yamaha 311 (or higher), Pearl PF695 "Dolce", Altus 907 and Miyazawa PB202 spring to mind, and those are just a few of many. I agree with what has already been said that she she definately go and try out as many as possible. Tell her to take a look at this site for a better idea on Intermediate flutes and where to buy them:

Just Flutes Homepage

Thank you! We just had a look at Just Flutes and there are some good ones there, but she will try some too.

I wouldn't necessarily agree with this: the material alone isn't the key factor. The Mizazawa 101 and Altus 807 are both plated models which are superior to solid head Yamaha and Pearl models. And Sir James Galway's recorded demonstration of his 16 flutes resulted in the Murumatsu EX (solid head: plated body) as the second favourite model of viewers despite the number of gold and platinum flutes in the test.

I play an EX body with a solid Nagahara head, and the lighter weight suits me better than a completely solid model (my other flute is solid head and body).

I'd suggest your sister takes a friend with a good pair of ears with her, and blind tests as far as possible - get the friend to pass her the flutes so that she can't be influenced by the label.

Well, I'll be the friend, so I'll make sure to take that on board Thanks!

She tried flutes today and settled for a Miyazawa

Edit: But she hasn't got it yet!

OOOh, nice