Adrian
Your observations regarding the keywork problems ...which I have not
personally encountered..are most likely due to the fact the company was
originally located in Taiwan but has moved to Japan, where the standard of
engineering and quality control is much higher.
I am sure they were some of the first ones to arrive here, I kept seeing
the same ones with the same recurring problems. I remember the same thing
with early Oston Brannen flutes, the keywork was very poor quality.
Certainly if anything happened to my Louis Lot...like you stealing it
<<GG>>
I would immediately buy an Altus over the counter.
What happened to that Lebret I heard you play at Top Wind?
I suspect however, after
trying his recent flutes, that Stephen Wessel is probably making the best
sounding instruments...with a stainless steel mechanism which ought never
to
wear...and the William Bennett scale.
Stainless steel ought to be a lot more popular than it is. I guess it's not
as pleasant to work with.
He is the only modern maker to my
knowledge who spends time preparing the actual body tube...annealing and
tempering and bashing it...just like Lot did over a hundred years ago.
I hope he continues to do it. I know some headjoint makers gave up on
seamed tubes because they take so much work. I am sure Nick Crabb will work
on the tubes, I think he really enjoys the physical aspect of it.
Martin
hoffman@...
Hartford, Cheshire, UK
