…But don’t buy something that’s not designed for a beginner We recommend that you should budget between £250 – £500 for an entry-level flute, although rental schemes, Take It Away and buying second hand can help to reduce the up-front strain on your wallet. Our own-brand budget flutes may be priced a fraction higher than the very cheapest flutes available – but they have been designed by flute players (us!) and will give a student a good start. We see so many players on the verge of giving up because they thought they were just no good at the flute – when in fact the problem was caused by a poor-quality instrument. In our experience, these flutes should be avoided: while the quality of Chinese flutes has undoubtedly improved since this article was originally written, there are still many poor-quality, cheap flutes around, and while the initial outlay is low, the running costs can quickly overtake the price of a good branded flute.Īs well as the high running costs, cheap flutes are not as easy to play, and can be difficult even for an advanced player to make a decent sound on. Some supermarkets, high street chains and online-only warehouses sell their own brand of flutes. Be careful of flutes which look too cheap… If you already have a flute teacher lined up, they should also be able to offer their own advice on what to buy.
The ABRSM Viva Woodwind forum has a lot of helpful information from players and teachers, detailing some good and bad brands. Do plenty of research on the different brands available Below, we’ve compiled our top tips to help a complete newcomer decide on a new flute. This article was first written in February 2011, and has been updated in February 2018.īuying your first flute can be daunting: there are so many different makes, models and types of flutes available, and the variations in price can be hundreds of pounds.