Best Flutes for the Money
The first step to getting a flute is to determine what level you are in playing. Flutes are made for different levels. Some are designed to cater to student beginners, while others are for advanced students and professionals. Once you know where you belong (which isn’t hard to do, really), the next step is to decide whether you want a metal or a wooden flute. It is highly recommended, though, that you go for the metal. But make sure you choose one that’s within your budget, because some metals can cost a lot, such as rose gold and platinum. Anyway, here are some of the best ones in the market today.
Top-Rated Closed Hole C Flute
Our best pick for a closed hole flute at the key of C is the Glory Closed Hole C Flute, because it has been trusted by so many beginners already. But that’s just one thing. This instrument actually prduces wonderful tone, thanks to its real cupronickel (or copper-nickel) construction. This is an alloy of copper that contains nickel and strengthening elements, such as manganese and iron. This makes the instrument highly resistant to corrosion. This is the main reason of the Glory flute’s high durability. Customers are raving about how beautiful it sounds, and it is worth more than the price. This is available in in 20 different colors!
Top-Rated Nickel-Plated Flute
For beginners, one of the most recommneded flutes is the Hallelu HFL-200 Flute. It is designed to surpass the test of time while offering good tone and decent performance that will make beginners familiar with how to play flutes. Since the keys are nickel-plated, you can expect them to be sturdy enough to hold up to your demanding practice. All this for a very affordable price. But low price doesn’t always mean compromising the quality. In fact, the musical capabilities of this instrument is more than one can expect from looking at the price tag alone. It boasts double-skin pads that give it the ability to produce nice, clear sound.
Since this is constructed with students in mind, a thorough instruction on how to take care of it is included in the package. You may need to upgrade the headjoint, though. Using a different headjoint on this flute should give you better tonal results. And as you advances, you wouldn’t need to buy another flute; you only need to buy an upgraded headjoint so you can have more subtle control over the dynamics of the instrument.
Best Flute for Students
Another flute great for beginning students and even for advanced ones is the Yamaha YFL-221 Student Flute. Yamaha has been known for building quality musical instruments, and this same quality can be expected from the YFL-221. It is made from durable nickle-silver, so it can withstand the rigors of any starting player who needs a lot of practice. This is one favorite of most flute teachers because of its playability, thanks to its CY headjoint with specially designed embouchure hole. This headjoint tends to be more restrictive — which means there’s a little control as to its dynamics and expressions — without taking away the ease of playing. The restrictiveness of the instrument isn’t much of a concern to beginning students; they are more focused on being able to make the flute sound.
If you’re ready to step to the next level of playing a flute, you won’t need to throw the entire flute into the garbage. Since 70-90% of a flute’s sound quality comes from its headjoint, you would only need to upgrade this particular part to get into the next level.
Best Silver-Plated Flute
If you’re an advanced player, a silver-plated flute is the best choice. This is because it has more brilliance in its sound compared to one constructed from nickel. Silver tends to be richer in tone and has better response. And you can expect all these from the Jupiter Plateau Offset G Silver-Plated Flute 511S. Surprisingly, this model is very lightweight, making it easy to hold and does not strain the hands for a long period of playing. There is also no denying that it does look and feel expensive! And the official logo of Jupiter on the instrument is a nice touch.
Best Professional Wooden Flute
Again, wood is a preferred material when it comes to most musical instruments, and flutes are not an exception. A wooden flute gives richer, more solid and powerful tone compared to those made of metal. However, it requires tighter and more work on the lips for the blowing style. This is why wooden flutes aren’t usually recommended for students; they can be easily tired out with this type of flute.
Our best pick of wooden flute is the Carrotmusic Model CD301 Alto C Professional Level Dizi Bamboo Flute. The main body of the instrument is made of bamboo with thread wraps around it between holes. There’s also an engraved calligraphy near the head of the flute, a nice additional touch for how gorgeous it already is! The flute has a range of about two octaves. This instrument is tuned to the diatonic western scale with a good full sound in the lower register and a bright upper register.
