Keyed Flutes

Blockmounted flutes have the keys mounted between blocks which are an integral part of the wooden flute body. Post mounted flutes have small silver posts which are screwed into the wooden flute body, and the key axle runs between these.

Many people are confused about the difference these two styles of mounting might make to the flute and it's playability. There is also some doubt about the authenticity of the post mounts as opposed to the block mounts on a traditional flute. Curiously, keys mounted on metal "posts" attached to the wooden body of an instrument pre-date the block mounted method by several hundred years! However by the time ( late 17th century) that keys to provide the semitones of the scale began to be added to woodwinds such as oboes and flutes, all makers used the block mounted system. This became the standard method of mounting keys until the mid nineteenth century, when post mounting as we know it today, began to be used on some flutes. When normal single action keys, such as the long C or the G#, are in question there is really no difference between block or post mounts...given that both are well made. One factor that puts some players off the post mounted system are the " German Flutes"....mass produced factory instruments which in many cases were poorly made...resulting in an association between post mounts and poor quality. Those who have only seen post mounts on such instruments should remember that some of the finest English and continental simple system flutes of the mid to late ninteenth century were also post mounted.

Which style you choose is largely a matter of personal preference, both styles are equally mechanically efficient. With the lower foot joint keys.....the C# and C, somewhat more skill is required to use the blockmounted keys, and careful maintenance is required to keep them in top order. Post mounted foot joints...in the same style as one would see on the foot of a standard Böehm orchestral flute, are more mechanically efficient due to the much shorter arms that the keys operate on, and make the playing of the low C# and C easier.

(WE HOPE TO HAVE DETAILED PHOTOS OF BOTH STYLES UP ON THE SITE SHORTLY)

The number and location of the keys is the choice of the player, and we can make flutes with any combination of keys, however I would encourage a minimum of three...those for C natural, F natural, and G#. The following key combinations are, we find, the most popular.

The Four-Keyed Flute

This has keys giving C natural, G sharp, and two keys for F natural. These are the semitones most often used in Irish traditional music, and this model is very popular. The second F natural key ( the long F) allows the player to go directly from D to F natural, a move which occurs fairly often in traditional music, and which is impossible with only the short F. Four keyed bodies carry the block for the B flat key in anticipation of increasing the number of keys as a later stage.

The Six-Keyed Flute

This has the same keys as the four-keyed, plus a B flat key, and an E flat key, thus making the instrument fully chromatic. The foot joint carries the E flat key.
 

The Eight-Keyed Flute

The majority of old wooden cone bore flutes that one comes across have eight keys. These would have been the six mentioned above, and two keys on the foot joint which extend the range of the flute down through C# to C, a full tone below the normal bottom D.

We make flutes with these keys, but would ask that you contact us to discuss ordering an eight keyed flute, as there is a degree of confusion and discussion among players as to just how useful these extra keys are, for Irish music in particular.

This keywork is expensive, and we want to ensure that customers fully understand the potential that the footjoint keys will give them.