Beaumont Piper Flute

The Beaumont Piper has really made waves in the entry-level flute market and has proved popular with teachers and technicians alike. Each instrument is fully set-up and regulated in Beaumont's UK workshop before distribution. The quality extends beyond the construction and durability - the Beaumont Piper really sings beautifully.

 

Recommended Retail Prices

Mark I £199.99  (limited stock please enquire)
Mark II £249.99
Curved Head I £259.99
Curved Head II £299.99

 

Nickel-silver body, silver plating

The most durable construction for a beginner flute

Extra thick plating resists scratching and tarnishing

 

Hidden Adjustment Screws

The Piper II has hidden adjustment screws to prevent contact while playing. Aesthetically preferable and far more durable.

 

Double-ringed stylised keys

This unique feature offers greater grip and encourages correct finger positioning - aiding the transition to open-holed flutes

 

Cork bumpers

Cork, not plastic bumpers and trills for a quieter and more stylish mechanism

 

Soft shoulder carry case

A fully padded and sturdy shoulder carry case

 

Cleaning rod and cloths included

Review by Stephen Howard - Woodwind Repairer and Restorer, author of Haynes Saxophone Manual

"This flute, the Beaumont Piper II, comes in at £249 and has all the usual features you'd expect, such as a silverplated nickel-silver body and head, ribbed construction, rolled tone holes, low C foot joint and a split E mech. The body and fittings are nice and neat, with none of the jagged edges that seem to crop up on the very cheapest flutes, and the plating looks to be very even. A close examination of the tone holes reveals nothing untoward - they're all neatly finished and, most importantly, level. Both the head and foot joint tenons slide easily into their corresponding sockets, with just the right amount of stiffness to ensure a snug but easily adjustable joint. Not a bad start then, but to be honest I've seen similarly well-built flute bodies on slightly cheaper brands - it's in the keywork where the money starts to run out. And in the case of the Piper it appears that the money has been well spent. It really is impressive...

Best of all, it's almost entirely devoid of free play. For sure, if I'm really, really picky I can point to a microscopic touch of end-to-end play on the F key, but certainly not enough to be concerned about and definitely not enough to affect the playability of the instrument. That's pretty good going - I'm applying a standard I'd use on a £500+ flute to one that costs a couple of hundred quid. It's astonishing, in fact. Even better, I found no free play at the pillar where the lower stack meets the upper stack. It's very common to find a spot of free play here, and it can have a dramatic effect on the accuracy of the lower stack action as well as making the forked Bb very hit and miss.

It made very short work of a number of cheaper (but nonetheless respectable) flutes, and although double the price of these competitors it gave more than double the performance. The lower end is remarkably powerful - a lot of flutes run out of steam in this range, with the notes becoming quieter and indistinct, but the Piper maintained a nice crispness right down to low C. That's easy enough to do if you make a flute bright, but that often mean the upper register will make your ears bleed. Fortunately the Piper's brightness remained tempered and even across the range. The upper register just sings - it's clean, detailed and smooth where a lots of cheaper flutes tend towards gritty and harsh - and it wasn't until top B that the money ran out and the flute began to kick back and ask the player for more breath support. Perhaps the best aspect of the Piper is its tonal variability. You really have to go some way to push the notes over the edge. You can take it from piano to fortissimo in an instant and the tone remains rock solid. This feature prompted one tester to exclaim "By 'eck! This is good!"- high praise indeed when you consider that her own flute cost around half the price of a small car... this flute sets the benchmark for £250 - and I really don't think you'll beat that in a hurry...unless you're prepared to spend close on £500."

For the full review please see here