The magical sound that a flute produces has brought a large number of people to love it, always more people wondering about learning how to sound it, but there is an important question that is always asked, and it is, how much does a flute cost?
The purchasing price for a beginner flute ranges from $400 to $1000; more high-quality flutes or intermediate flutes cost somewhere around $1,200 to $2,500, while professional flutes may cost more than $2,500.
There is a considerable variation in the cost of flutes, this is mainly due to some variables that should be considered, and some of them are the Material, condition, Brand, Case, service. This is what we are going to see in the next part of the article.
Table of Contents
Flute Instrument Overview
Before jumping on the most detailed cost-guide , it is good practice to look at the flute instrument itself, analyzing some of the characteristics that make this musical instrument so unique.
The flute musical instrument has ancient origins; in fact, it was present since the Paleolithic era. Furthermore, the flute tradition was spread worldwide; during the years, a crescent number of flutes was found in different parts of the world: China, Europe, and Peru.
The traditional flute model was made of Bamboo, discovered in historical records present in many dynasties.
How does flute work?
A flute produces a sound when the air that a person blows crosses inside the instrument, creating a vibration of air at the hole.
Changing the pitch, the flautist changes the flute’s sound; producing the sound that makes the flute so beautiful.
Flute cost by Purpose
The first subdivision on which the flute is divided is regarding its Purpose. To facilitate the path of growth for a flute students, the producers had divided the flute into four categories:
- Beginner
- Intermediate
- Student
- Professional
Beginner flutes cost
Beginner flutes are perfect for people that would like to learn how to sound a flute; the price for beginner flutes will not be so high we are speaking in a range that goes from $200 to $650, anyway, it is possible to found some very low-quality flutes for a beginner at a lower price, by purchasing it by secondhand.
It is always good to start learning flutes with a beginner flute and then progress with the quality by purchasing higher flutes quality.
Intermediate flutes cost
For intermediate flutes, you will have to spend more money because the quality of the material and the sound will be better here.
Be ready to spend something around $1000 to $2,500. Having an intermediate flute will guarantee you better performance and a better feeling, which you need to have once you are on that stage.
Student flutes cost
If you are getting serious on the learning path of flute, the student flute is a perfect category of flutes that you need to own.
It may be a difficult task to find the proper flute because in that case, you need a flute good enough for practising and suitable to perform well in the band. The cost for a student flute goes from a minimum of $850 reaching $2,500.
Professional Flutes cost
To choose a professional flute, you need a lot of patience and time because they are costly, and if there is something that you don’t want to do, it is to purchase the wrong flute. The research of a professional flute is usually performed together with other professional musicals to have a double vision of the musical instrument.
The cost for professional flutes is very high; in facts, some of the flutes model can cost you something that goes from $2,500 to $10,000.
You might be interested:
Flute cost by material
The flute is made of different kinds of material; the most common materials used for building flutes are nickel silver, silver, gold, platinum.
As you can think, the material used for the flute building will influence its final cost.
For example, the cheaper version of flutes is made of nickel silver, and they are most used among the beginner’s students.
While the most expensive category of flutes are made by gold material.
Silver flute cost
Silver is the most used material for the construction of flutes. Therefore, the cost of silver flutes will be influenced by the percentage of silver present in it. In general, the more the quantity of silver is current in the flute higher will be the prices.
Gold flute costs
Gold is one of the most privileged materials present on the earth; it is used for different types of Purpose and building flutes.
The cost for gold flute will be higher than others types, and in particular, more quantity of gold will be present higher will be the cost of it. The sound produces by a gold flute is a warm tone.
Platinum flute cost
The platinum material is one of the most researched and loved among all the musicians. The sound that it produces is clear and fresh, but the cost will be higher due to the rarity of the material.
Grenadilla flute cost
The name Grenadilla may make you confusing.
Grenadilla is a popular Blackwood that has been used for many years to manufacture musical instruments.
It is a dense wood, and it produces a sound very similar to a metal flute. The price look to be very expensive, in a website it is presented with a cost of $16,000 due to its rarity.
Bamboo flute cost
The bamboo is another widespread material used for building flutes. This material has been used for thousands of years. Bamboo flutes are very common in India; they give a flexible and rich tone; the cost is meagre; in fact, it is common to found it with less than $10 in most of the market.
Flute cost by Brand
As for other types of things, the Brand has an important influence on the overall cost of the flutes; brands like Yamaha, Miyazawa, Gemeinhardt, Pearl and Altus are known to be the best producers of flutes.
In this part of the article, we will look at the average cost of flutes by Brand.
Yamaha flute cost
We cannot start our list without naming the Yamaha brand.
Yamaha is a very famous brand that produces a huge number of things; among this, there are also musical instruments.
By statistics, Yamaha is the largest producer of musical instruments.
Among all the musical instruments that Yamaha produces, there are flutes too.
The cost of the Yamaha flute is higher than the majority of brands because the brands have a huge experience in the field, and we know that experience brings high quality.
| Models | Price |
|---|---|
| Yamaha 222 -Student Level | $1,015.00 |
| Yamaha 362H/382H – Intermediate LEVEL | $1,477.99 |
| Yamaha 462H/482H – Intermediate | $2,255.99 |
| Yamaha 577H/577HCT Pre-Professional | $2,969.99 |
| Yamaha 587H/587HCT Pre-Professional | $2,969.99 |
| Yamaha 677H/677HCT Young Professional | $3,999.99 |
| Yamaha 777H/777HCT Professional | $6,929.99 |
| Yamaha 800 Series- Artist Level | $14,339.00 |
| Yamaha 900 Series 9K Gold – Artist Level | $26,999.00 |
Pearl flute cost
If you are already inside the world of flutes, for sure, you will know that Brand Pearl, they started the production of flutes in 1968, inspired by the rising demand for it.
The headquarter of pearl is situated in Chiba, Japan, where they specialize in making handcraft flutes.
Due to the high-quality standard that the company maintained during the years, it has gained enormous success in selling flutes.
The strong point of that company is that it tries to improve the quality of flutes by research new materials. This is the primary variable that differences a high-quality flute from a low-quality one.
The cost for purchasing a peal flute is slightly above the average; you can expect to pay a good quality flute around $1000.
| Model | Price |
|---|---|
| Pearl PF-505E – Student Level | $732.00 |
| Pearl PF-765 CD3K Vigore | $3,503.00 |
| Pearl CD925 | $6,447.50 |
| Pearl MD925 | $8,015.00 |
| Pearl MD997 | $9,019.00 |
Miyazawa flute cost
Another very important Japanese company that had and still have a huge success is Miyazawa. The strong point of that company that produces flutes is that before inserting the product in the market, there are many tests that the flute should pass.
The company allows choosing among a vast number of flutes, all different regarding the use of material.
The cost is on average among the other big competitor.
| Model | Price |
|---|---|
| Miyazawa 102 | $3,195.00 |
| Miyazawa 202 | $6,445.00 |
| Miyazawa 402 | $7,845.00 |
| Miyazawa 602 | $8,445.00 |
| Miyazawa 9K Gold | $29,145.00 |
| Miyazawa 14K Gold | $35,345.00 |
Gemeinhardt flute cost
The gemeinhardt is not huge as Yamaha Company, but it found a good reputation during the last years. It produces different types of flutes, specialized for students, professionals, solo etc…
The gemeindhardt flute is usually the first choice done by students at the beginning of their careers.
The quality of the flute is very high, as well as the sound. A Gemeinhardt flute is not so expensive, and almost anyone can afford it.
| Model | Price |
|---|---|
| Gemeinhardt 2SP | $479.00 |
| Gemeinhardt 2SPCH | $679.00 |
| Gemeinhardt 2SH | $819.00 |
| Gemeinhardt 3SHB | $1,039.00 |
| Gemeinhardt 33SSB/33OSSB C1 Crusader | $4,699.00 |
Altus flute cost
Our list end by naming another important Japanese brand, the Altus.
The flute produced by Altus has an exciting quality of sound and other good technical capabilities. Although they come with different materials, the producer tries to differentiate himself by varying the materials and tubing.
The cost for an Altus flute is high; below, you can take a look at the average cost by model.
| Model | Price |
|---|---|
| Altus 807 | $3,295.00 |
| Altus 907 | $5,650.00 |
| Altus 1107 | $7,295.00 |
| Altus 1207 | $9,750.00 |
| Altus 1207 Atsui 18K | $13,145.00 |
| Altus 1207 Atsui Platinum | $16,300.00 |
What are the factors that affect the price of a flute?
The main factors that affect the price of a flute are the material, durability, the Brand, and level. As you saw during the first part of the article, the material plays an important role when dictating the cost of a flute.
This is connected with durability, were high, quality flutes produced with top material will have a long life compared to low-quality materials.
Other factors, such as Brand and level, will play a good role because famous brands with more experience will ask for a higher price, while the flute level depends on what you are looking for.
Conclusion
I hope that you found that article helpful and have a clearer idea about the cost of purchasing a flute. Some of the flutes may be more expensive than others, but they will have more durability and guarantee you a higher performance. All that is a matter of what you need. Make your evaluation and purchase it.
