Wooden Flutes by P.G. Bleazey UK

Flute Catalogue Protective cases
All my flutes are supplied with care instructions, a fingering chart and a soft protective case, hand made from beautiful wools or linens. Alternatively a hard case is available for the D flute

The keyed flutes with tuning slide and one to six keys
The basis of these flutes is the Rudall Rose model which has proved extremely popular with players over the years and so was the obvious choice. They are supplied with, from one to six keys in any combination. The keys are block mounted as were the originals. At the moment I have no intention of making the extended foot with C# and D holes.

6 key 110505

The keys are each individually hand made by me from brass for superior strength and silver plated with pure silver which gives better tarnish resistance than sterling silver. The touch plates are kept, where possible, on the centre line of the key to avoid the twisting moment of the traditional offset ones, alignment of the key with the players fingers being made by cutting the blocks in the right place to start with. Each block is lined with a solid brass channel to promote freer movement, wear resistance and, most importantly, to make the block much stronger than the old unlined ones which are liable to distort and cause jamming or excessive movement of the keys. Should the unthinkable occur and a key be damaged by, for instance, dropping the instrument, the fabricated brass key can be easily straightened with no risk of breakage and the block with its brass liner can be rebuilt to its original condition.

The secret of good tone and volume in flutes is the reduction of acoustic impedence which is increased whenever the vibrating air has to pass a sharp corner or if it has to bounce off a baffle type surface such as the pad on a key. The tone holes under the keys on my flutes are lined with a machined brass seat which flares out like a tiny bell under the pad. The pads are as small as practical in cups which curve on the underside like the pads on your fingers. This combination gives low impedance at the tone hole exit promoting good tone and volume, proof of this is in the fact that if you remove a key from the instrument the pitch and volume produced from the open hole remain unchanged. On some older flutes I have worked on the change can be as much as a quarter tone- a nightmare to the tuner who must replace the key to check the result after each adjustment, I have much less trouble in this regard. In all cases the volume produced by the keyed holes equals that of the adjacent holes.

The springs are screwed in place making replacement straightforward. Both springs and screws are stainless steel. Each spring bears on a Teflon pad sunken into the body of the instrument to reduce wear and friction.

Pads are made from "pnumatic lamb", which is not an inflatable farm animal but is the skin used on organ pallets. This material is readily available to instrument makers, who will all be familiar with the technique of bedding them into the cups with shellac.

Keyed flute prices

Keyed flutes	GBP	Euro (rate fixed since 2000)
one key	£539	€900	USA Currency Converter
two keys	£725	€1230
three keys	£835	€1240
four keys	£945	€1605
five keys	£1,055	€1790
six keys	£1,165	€1980

All credit/debit card payments are taken in £ stirling
KEYED FLUTE PRICES INCLUDE A HARD CASE

Keyless flute in D with tuning slide (pitch A=440)
An Instrument developed from a Rudall & Rose 8 keyed flute dated 1837

	GBP	Euro (rate fixed since 2000)
Keyless flute with soft case	£350	€590	USA Currency Converter
With hard leather covered case	P.O.A.	P.O.A.
Hard case alone	P.O.A.	P.O.A.

All credit/debit card payments are taken in £ stirling
Keyless flute in D with tuning slide

This simple system keyless flute breaks down into three pieces with cork lapped joints. It has a silver plated tuning slide and mounts and is surprisingly powerful for a flute with small tone holes, which are easily reached especially as the left and right hand joints can be rotated in relation to each other. Advantage has been taken of the ease with which this instrument can be played by people with small hands and limited reach, by making it light and really well balanced. The embouchure of this flute facilitates good tone development with minimal air consumption.

Keyless flute in G with tuning slide (pitch A=440)
Bleazey flute in G

Bleazey flute	GBP	Euro (rate fixed since 2000)	USA Currency Converter
With soft case	£175	€295

All credit/debit card payments are taken in £ stirling
Keyless flute in G with tuning slide<

A two piece instrument of my own design, with a silver plated tuning slide, a range of two octaves, and a rich powerful tone.

Keyless fife in Bb with tuning slide (pitch A=440)
Bleazey fife in Bb

Bleazey fife	GBP	Euro (rate fixed since 2000)	USA Currency Converter
With soft case	£125	€210

All credit/debit card payments are taken in £ stirling
Keyless fife in Bb with tuning slide

A much changed fife from the earlier model I made some years ago. The new model has a siver plated tuning slide, narrower tapered bore, smaller embouchure and a head cap. This all resulting in a more powerful instrument with clearer tone and more accurate intonation

Timber
We use timbers which are not endangered and which come from managed sources, ensuring a sustainable supply for the future. We normally work in the following woods: African Blackwood, Boxwood, Mopane and Yew.

Irish Flutes
Players of Irish music have long favoured two types of flute from the 19th. century, namely the Rudall Rose & Pratten. Many of these "Irish flutes"had the keys removed and the associated tone holes blocked up to facilitate sliding between notes and other techniques (probably more familiar to players of renaissance flute) which are the soul of Irish flute music. A characteristic of the Irish flute is the foot joint with it's two open holes left by the removal of the C & C# keys. After many years of making these flutes I have yet to find one which is improved by this redundant joint. Consequently my "Irish flutes" carry my own design of foot joint, which, sadly, means that the Morris dancers have no where to tie their ribbons. I'm sure no one else will mourn the loss.

For a list of currently available used instruments please E-mail or telephone