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Yamaha YFL-211
by MelanieLH
I wanted to start learning the flute and my first instrument was a battered second hand thing and the pads would stick, so I did not get very far. I saved up and bought a new instrument, I cannot remember the name of it now, although this was easier to play it did not sound nice, so again I started to save up. I did more research this ... time and the general consensus was that Yamaha YFL-211 SL made a great beginners flute. At £400 I was hoping they were right as I did not want to go through another poor quality instrument. I tried it out in a shop first but in a large noisy room its hard to really hear the tone properly, but I took the plunge and ordered one from Normans online.
It arrived in a solid flute case with a canvas over the shoulder carry bag. It is made of durable nickel silver and coated with silver plating.
It fits very comfortably into my hands and produces a very nice sound. It is far superior to other beginner flutes I had tried in the past.
I have had it for two years now, play regularly and have developed no problems with it.
I just play for pleasure and am self taught so I personally do not know how this flute holds up when it comes to grades, however I have heard of people using this flute and passing their grade six with it.
The disadvantage with all instruments it the cost. I have tried to compromise with price in the beginning which lead to me wasting my money. However I have not been disappointed with my Yamaha YFL-211 and feel it was money well spent.
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Miyazawa PA-402E
by mizzy
The Miyazawa PA 402E is a fantastic flute that I used to own. It was stolen from my student house last year, and I was very upset until I got my new miyazawa with the new brogger system.
This miyazawa flute has a solid silver head joint and body, the keys are silver plated.
This flute is for the advanced player, as ... it has open holes, which allow the player to feel the vibrations through the flute. They also mean that you can do extended techniques, and jazz is often easier to play with slides being made possible through the open holes.
You can expect to pay around £2600 - £3200 depending on where you buy it. I would also make sure you buy insurance whilst still in the shop as its an expensive purchase to leave on a bus or to get stolen.
The tone is really great, you can make a lot of different colours, and the great thing about this flute is that its so easy to play. If you make an effort whilst playing you will create a great sound.
What I like about Miyazawas is that every one sounds individual. Not one sounds the same to me. They make the player sound different to those playing say a yamaha or a murumatsu (they are just loud!) I bought another miyazawa after this one got stolen as I love the brand, and the headjoints are often hand finished.
The best thing to do is try them out, try several different flutes of the same make, to see which one suits your playing and that you think you can get the most out of.
Then take them on a weeks approval, so you can try them out in your own practice time, play them to your teacher and your friends and get their opinions.
A good shop that allows you to do this and stocks miyazawas is allflutesplus.com in London on warren street. They are really helpful and I have bought both my miyazawas from there.
Flutes arent just pretty silver sticks, they are great things that can create such different sounds according to the player, and miyazawas allow that creativity more than other flute makers.
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Yamaha YFL-211
by alex-jade
The Yamaha YFL211s is probably the worlds most popular student flute. Solid, reliable and they hold their value well. I play the flute myself and used to work in a music shop where the Yamaha 211 outsold all other student flutes 5 to 1.
You will pay more for a Yamaha but there are several reasons why this is worth doing: ...
- The Yamaha comes with a 2 year manufacturers guarantee whereas many others such as Jupiter and Pearl come with 1.
- The silver plated body is sophisticated and durable enough to out live the student head joint - what I mean by this is that usually when a student player progresses to grade 5/6 standard they usually need to upgrade to a flute with at least a solid silver headjoint (to allow for a better tone and sound). For players on a budget, this is tricky but an option with the 211 is to just replace the headjoint and keep the existing body.
- Yamahas hold their value second hand so if the player gives up or upgrades, the flute will be easier to sell on.
I had a Yamaha 211 and found it really easy to play and to maintain. They sound sweet and pure and the lip plate is comfortable too. All round a top quality instrument.
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