Beginners/Professional Indian Bamboo Transverse Flutes (C Tune) Bansuri Musical Instruments Woodwind 48 CM

Great!

Firstly I should say that I am a complete novice with bansuri. I purchased this because I am serious about learning to play, so I am well aware there is a steep learning curve involved and also aware that many bansuri teachers say it might take 6-12 months to be able to make pure tones and commit the fingering to muscle memory. I received a fairly light weight flute with different colour threading to the picture shown (it actually looked nicer, IMO). On inspection it became evident that the threading was tied too tightly so that it has warped the bamboo ever so slightly - something which my research indicates is meant to denote a poor quality construction as the shape needs to remain consistent to attain pure tones (I may be wrong here, but this is what my reading has suggested).I have experience with other instruments and while playing this bansuri I often had a nagging feeling that there was something not quite right about this flute. Ma sounds ever so slightly off pitch no matter what I do, and it really annoys my ears, but I thought perhaps it is my technique being so early in my learning.In order to test this out properly I bit the bullet and bought a flute from JAS Musicals in London (really great guys) from their website after speaking to them about this problem. The flute was a little more than twice the price of this one, however it is made by one of the most respected bamboo flute makers in India - Subhash Thakur (Punam flutes). With this Subhash flute I am able to achieve much purer tones with so little effort in comparison, and I was not too surprised to find that Ma sounded as I would expect. The flute also sounds far less 'breathy' when played, just after picking up the new flute I was able to make much more consistent and wonderful sounding tones with far less effort. Also the construction of this flute is FAR superior, perhaps not surprising given the increased cost, the bamboo is thicker and the flute is probably twice the weight. The threading is tight but has not warped the bamboo at all. The shop where I bought my new flute also sells their own flutes for only a tenner more than this, and I feel confident that it would also be a league above this one in quality.Overall I would say that this flute is not awful, and perhaps played by a master it would sound beautiful, however I felt as a beginner (which this item clearly lists itself as suitable for) I wanted something which was tuned a lot more accurately so that I have a strong foundation to my learning. It really seems as though the flute purchased here was mass produced with inferior quality materials, considering the price I paid for a flute made by one of the most respected craftsmen in this field was a little more than double the price of this 'warehouse' flute I really feel that this one is more of a novelty item perhaps best suited to engage very young learners with the instrument before they find a better flute to actually learn with, or perhaps as a decoration piece and as such seems over priced.In my opinion if you are serious about playing this flute then go straight to a music specialist such as I have mentioned, and save yourself the headache of always wondering if there is something not quite right about this one.

Words cannot describe how terrible this flute thing is, I bought this for a present and I was so embarrassed when I saw it, it's not even a solid piece of bamboo its rolled up like a saggy joint. It took about 6 weeks to come too.

DIDN'T RECEIVE THE ITEM AS ADVERTISED. STRONGLY DO NOT RECOMMEND.