If you are practicing a beginner’s or intermediate flute for some time and want to get into a professional one, then you must be thinking about which brand you should choose and how much does a professional flute cost? Cheer up; you are at the right place. Here, in this article, we will let you know what exactly a professional flute means and will discuss its cost and features along with a few recommendations from the top-selling brands.
What is a Flute?
A flute is a musical instrument that has a tube-like structure with holes that a player stops by the fingers or keys by holding it vertically or horizontally. The flute works on wind technology where the player breathes passes through the tube to create a mesmerizing sound while controlling the holes with the fingers. The horizontal flutes are also known as transverse flutes, which a player played in a modern orchestra. These flutes are made of metal and come with a set of keys.
Flutes can be categorized into 3 types depending on the level of the player; beginner’s flute, intermediate flute, and professional flute.
What is a Professional Flute?
A professional flute is a flute with amazing features that meet the requirements of a professional flutist. These instruments are equipped with high-grade metal and great quality features.
A professional flute is purely hand-made. They are made of different metals; most of the professional flutes come with silver plating. They have also got silver keys and soldered tone holes. However, there are also gold and platinum flutes available in the market.
You can play this type of flute in recording studios or in front of a live audience. Professional flutes are not cheap rather they are super expensive and really hard to afford.
How much does a professional flute cost?
A professional flute is quite expensive for the quality of the material it uses. Moreover, it is purely hand-crafted. So it takes a lot of patience and effort to create such a masterpiece musical instrument. These are the reasons why a professional flute is highly-priced.
The highest quality professional flute costs you around $1000- over $4000. However, you can get cheaper options available at a low cost depending upon the material they are made of. Some professional flutes from renowned brands will cost you around $800-$1000.
There are also some cheaper options available in the market, which may cost you around less than $100-$600.
Different types of professional flutes and their cost:
A professional flute is crafted with the highest standards of craftsmanship. Even an entry-level professional flute uses high-grade material and top-notch features to produce a warm and enchanting tune. Professional flutes come in different varieties from different brands. Hence, their prices also vary accordingly. Let us discuss various types of professional flutes and their cost.
A professional flute can be made of higher costly metals like silver, gold, or platinum; it is obvious that they vary in prices because all these metals have different costs.
A solid silver flute features a solid silver head-joint as well as a solid silver body and costs you around $200- over $10,000. Usually, it has a heavier build than a nickel silver flute.
Gold flutes come in four varieties; 24k, 18k, 14k, and 10k. They may cost you $50,000- over $10,000 depending on the quality of gold alloy.
The flutes made of the most distinguished and intrigued platinum material are really expensive. These flutes do have a very intricate design that showcases the perfect extravaganza.
However, the most popular entry-level flutes are made of a mixture of copper and nickel; known as cupronickel. These flutes are then coated with silver metal. This type of flute is the most durable and affordable. They may cost you around $400- over $2500.
If you buy a pre-owned flute, then you may get it at a cheaper rate. But, we recommend you to do a proper inspection of the quality and the features before purchasing it.
However, there are a few local shops other than the high-grade showrooms from where you can purchase a professional flute at a cheap rate. Again it is advised that you should thoroughly check the product that you are buying for fulfilling your music desire.
Best Selling Professional Flutes:
We have curated a list of entry-level professional flutes that belong to the best-selling brands. They come in different price ranges depending on the different brands and the quality. Let us check the cost and the features that you will get for your money.
1. Pearl 525RBE1RB Quantz Series Flute
This professional flute from the brand Pearl is pretty affordable and will cost you $958.50. This product belongs to the Quantz series by Pearl. The flute is purely handmade and it has got pinless mechanism and One-Piece Core-Bar construction. Let us check the features.
Flute Features:
- Dimensions: 18 x 5 x 3 inches
- Weight: 3.29 pounds
- B-foot joint with silver lip and riser
- w/Split E mechanism
- Silver-plated,
- open-hole keys-offset or inline g
2. Yamaha Professional 677H Series Flute Offset G C# Trill Key Split E, Gizmo Key
The professional flute from Yamaha comes with combined brilliance of nickel silver keys and warm colors of a sterling silver head joint and body. It costs you $3,499.99.
Flute Features:
- Dimensions: 19.3 x 5.3 x 4 inches
- Weight: 3.6 pounds.
- Hand-finished sterling silver headjoint
- You will get the sterling silver body and foot joint
- Silver-coated nickel-silver keys are included in this package.
- The wall measures 0.43mm in thickness.
- The flute features Straubing phoenix pads that facilitate a lighter touch and quicker action.
- It has got annealed headjoint, body & footjoint.
3. Pearl 505RBE1RB Quantz Series Flute
The flute comes from the Quantz series of the brand, Pearl. It will cost you $835.00. It is purely a handmade product and is easy to play with. The flute is perfect for entry-level professional flutists. The flute works on a pinless mechanism and features one-piece core-bar construction.
Flute Features:
- Dimensions: 18 x 5 x 3 inches
- Package Weight: 1 pound
- French-style case and cover included in this package.
- B-foot joint
4.Lazarro Professional Silver Nickel Closed Hole C Flute for Band, Orchestra, with Case, Care Kit, and Warranty, 120-NK
Lazarro has manufactured this affordable entry-level professional flute that will cost you $79.99. The package includes a flute, hard case, gloves, cleaning cloth, cleaning rod, screwdriver, and grease. These flutes are perfect for lessons, concerts, bands, and orchestras.
Flute Features:
- Dimensions: 16.8 x 5.1 x 2.6 inches
- Weight: 1 pound
- The flute is made of cupronickel quality material
- C foot with split E,
- Keys come with closed-hole
- Tone: C – 16 keys,
- It comes in a beautiful silver-nickel color.
- Low maintenance, easily replaceable pads and parts,
- Easy playing with a vibrant open sound.
- It has got a durable hardwood leather-like design of the case.
5. Gemeinhardt 2SPGLP 2SP Flute Gold Lip Plate
This flute comes in a lovely silver-coated finish and costs you $479.00. You will receive a hard-shell plastic case to protect your valuable musical instrument. Let us check what features you are getting for the money you pay.
Flute Features:
- Dimensions: 2 x 2 x 26.5 inches
- Weight: 1 pound
- The flute has got a plateau model (closed hole).
- Offset G key is included in this package.
- Triple coated silver plated finish gives it a royal look.
- Professionally padded to give a clear and warm tone.
- The package includes a hard-shell plastic case and a cleaning rod.
- Stainless steel springs
Conclusion
Last but not the least, If you are thinking about upgrading your intermediate flute and step into the professional one, then you must consider a few important features before buying one.
You can choose a flute depending on the quality of the metal. Again we will recommend you to check your budget before choosing the material of the flute. The flute should come under your budget.
Always make sure to check the head joint (top portion) of the flute. If you want to buy a quality product then the head joint should be of high quality. It will help to enhance the quality of the sound.
The flute comes with both open and closed-hole features; we will recommend you to choose open keys if you are a professional. But if you are an intermediate player and want to switch to a higher model, then choose a closed-hole flute. Orchestra players use open-hole flutes.
Footjoint is another feature that you must consider before buying one. It is the end portion of the flute; a player uses the pinky finger to control it. A professional flute should have extra keys on the footjoint for amazing sound quality.
The lip plate is one of the most important parts of the flute that a player holds to the lip. The material of the lip plate can change the tone of the instrument. So, you should go for the sterling silver metal for the lip plate for creating mesmerizing tones.
Besides all these factors you should consider the warranty period that the manufacturing brand offers for the instrument because it is really a costly music instrument. So, you should get assured that you are getting a great quality product for the heavy bucks you are paying for the same.
