Q: What flugelhorn should I buy?
A:
I've attempted, rather than to describe in detail the specifications of each horn, to link where possible this page with the manufacturer's page for each of the horns. Occasionally the flugelhorns do not occupy a single page, so one must scroll through other brasswinds to find the flugelhorns listed.
A note about pricing: The prices here quoted are primarily from the Giardinelli 2000 catalog. Giardinelli is a large mail order discounter in New York state that publishes annually a very extensive catalog that is a valuable research tool even if you never order a thing. Giardinelli also publishes a Bach and Yamaha price list which other retailers never do--though you must specifically request the separate price list when you order the catalog. It is for this reason that they have been chosen for the benchmark prices. There are numerous other national retailers whose prices are similar or even below that of Giardinelli, and as with most everything else in life, it pays to shop around.
A note about flugel bore sizes: With the exception of the Yamaha YFH 631 and 731, the flugelhorns below break into one of two camps, those with small (e.g., 0.415 inch) bores and those with larger more trumpet like (0.453 - 0.460) bores. This is a staggering difference considering that trumpets range from medium bores of, say, 0.445 to large bores of about .464, a difference of 0.021, compared to the more than doubled 0.045 difference in flugels. The small bore flugels play quite differently from the larger bored horns and one should really try one of each, if at all possible, to see which group feels the better to you. The large bore horns, though still sounding like flugels, play more like a trumpet. They have less resistance, take more air easily and are capable of more volume (though I am not sure how important volume is in a flugelhorn). The smaller bore horns tend to be easy to play but can get stuffy when pushed at all. At least when I play them.
Few folks seem inclined to spend the kind of money (or the kind of trouble) on a flugel that they spend on a trumpet. The consensus, courtesy of Chase Sanborn's Brass Tactics, seems to be that
The flugel is your friend,
The trumpet is your spouse,
Don't mix them up or
You may lose your house.
As a result, the market for pro flugelhorns is probably dominated by Yamaha. They make high quality products that are priced reasonably and benefit from the market saturation of Yamaha dealers (i.e., they are easy to find, try and buy). Yamaha has three pro models. The YFH 631, has a 0.433 inch bore, a rose brass bell, and clear lacquer. Its introduction dates back to the days when Yamaha product numbers had only three digits and 6xx meant lacquer and 7xx meant silver plated. This horn lists for $1,571, but is priced at $960 at Giardinelli. Yamaha describes the horn, with a rose brass bell and clear lacquer, as having "a clear light sound". The companion horn, the YFH 731 is silver plated and has a yellow brass bell, but is otherwise identical to the YFH 631. The 731 lists at $1694, but is street priced at $1035. Yamaha describes it as "somewhat darker sounding than the 631," though silver plated, rather than lacquered. Many feel that silver brightens a flugel so flugels are more popular in lacquer than are trumpets. As mentioned above, the Yamaha 631/731, with its 0.433 bore appears to be a medium bore flugels and is unique in that regard, when compared to all the other models.
Most of the Yamaha pro model brasses are made in Japan though a couple of models are made in the United States, including the YFH-631 and -731 flugelhorns. You can tell what is made in the US by the serial number. If the number has an "A" following it, the horn was made in Grand Rapids. No "A" would indicate it was made in Japan.
The current top of the Yamaha line is the YFH 6310Z, a small bore (0.413 inch) flugelhorn companion to the YTR 6310Z trumpet with design assistance by jazz trumpeter Bobby Shew. Most believe that this is Yamaha's finest flugel to date and it is clearly a high quality well designed instrument. It is a copy of Shew's personal old Couesnon flugelhorn, with Yamaha engineering and manufacturing quality. It lists in silver at $2009, in lacquer at $1885, and bears a street price of $1228 and $1152, respectively. The former Yamaha top of the line model is the YFH 635T, a copy of an older F. Besson small bore flugel. This horn is also a very fine horn, costing more than the current YFH 6310Z, and is very popular among professional players. It would be a great value in the used market.
Given that the Yamaha prices are clustered between $960 and $1228, the quality of the horns is roughly similar as well. Many folks find one of these adequate for their purposes and thus their market domination.
The best alternatives to Yamaha at about the same price are from the House of Kanstul, including the newly released Kanstul Chicago, the Kanstul Custom Class CCF 925, and the F. Besson small bore Brevette with each having a 0.415 bore and 6 inch bell. The CCF 925 and the Brevette horns share a unique direct airflow design through the valve casings, and are otherwise identical with the exception of water keys and the tuning bits (the Brevette has traditional waterkeys and a French taper tuning bit; the CCF 925 has Amato water keys and the more common Maurice tuning bit). The Chicago model, another Couesnon copy, has the traditional staggered valve port design. Kanstul also makes two larger (0.460 inch) bore flugels, the F. Besson Meha (perhaps discontinued at this point) and the Alan Colin designed, Max Flugelhorn, with horizontal valve slides, first and third slide rings, and the direct airflow design of the Kanstul CC and Brevette. Each of these five models is priced at between $1150 and $1250 in lacquer, with silver costing about $100 more, with the exception of the F. Besson models, which tend, unlike the trumpets, to cost more than the companion Kanstul versions.
Holton/LeBlanc recently introduced the F357 Arturo Sandoval Model, which appears to be a copy of the heavy wall copper bell Kanstul Signature ZKF 1525 (see below), the same way that the Sandoval LeBlanc T357 trumpet is an obvious copy of Arturo's Schilke X3. Priced at about $1220 in lacquer (list $2125), the flugel appears to be competing directly with these horns and has had initially good reviews as to both sound quality and intonation. Whether the Holton quality control is sufficient to warrant its inclusion on the long term with the horns made by Yamaha and Kanstul is still undetermined. The other Holton flugel, the F101 Artist, is undistinguished and cannot be recommended.
(street priced between $950 and $1250)
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Yamaha YFH 6310Z |
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Yellow brass |
3 spit valves |
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Kanstul Chicago |
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yellow brass |
2 spit valves |
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Kanstul CCF 925 |
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Yellow brass |
3 Amato spit valves |
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F. Besson Brevette |
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Yellow brass |
3 traditional spit valves |
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LeBlanc F357 |
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Copper bell |
3 Amato spit valves |
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Yamaha YFH 631 |
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Red brass bell |
2 spit valves |
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Yamaha YFH 731 |
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Yellow brass |
2 spit valves |
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F. Besson Meha |
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Yellow brass |
3 traditional spit valves |
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Alan Colin's Max |
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Yellow brass |
Horizontal valve slides |
Flugels that cost more
For more money, there are two flugels that are often thought of as the best available. The Kanstul Signature ZKF 1525 heavy wall copper bell flugel (0.420 bore) and the French made Courtois 154G rose brass bell model. They each have small bores and have a very dark flugel sound, but maintain better intonation and response throughout the horn than some of the less expensive. These are each priced around $1500 and very popular even at that price point. Many feel the cost difference is justified over the more popularly priced models above.
At the even higher price points, the recently released small bore Callichio flugel plays as well as the trumpets and is a model of craftsmanship, as is the uniquely designed large bore Callet Jazz flugel, made for Jerry Callet by Kanstul. These are both priced near $1800. For still more money, Calicchio makes its same flugel out of all copper for $2500.
Also at that price point are the Smith-Watkins flugels, made in England. These, I am told, play very much in tune and have a tone suitable for British-style brass band, with slotting of pitches and ease of response similar to a high quality trumpet.
Another unique English flugel is that made by Andy Taylor. Much heavier than others, similar to Taylor's trumpets, with a unique lacquered brushed brass finish, it plays very well with some of the same similar projection qualities of the more popular heavy weight horns. The one I recently tested was perhaps the most satisfying and enjoyable flugel I've ever played. Aside from the sound, I particularly liked the little cloisonne images of Mickey Mouse on the valve buttons (an extra cost option, I was told).
There are still a couple of even more exotic European flugels that I have heard about, but have not yet seen or played.
The Spanish company
Stomvi has
introduced a flugelhorn that is very highly thought of, though they
are very rare still, and which embodies a unique approach. The Stomvi
Master, street priced for introduction at $1995, comes with two
interchangeable bells (one brass for a brighter tone,
and one silver for a darker tone), three interchangeable
lead pipes, 3rd slide trigger, heavy bottom valve caps, gold plated
body, Amato water keys, Stomvi mouthpiece (probably close to 3C or 5C
Bach) and accessories such as cleaning kit, extra valve springs,
felts, etc. The photograph of the horn at the Stomvi site does not do
it justice, so I've included one of the whole package here.
The Swiss craftsman Thomas Inderbinen makes the "Wood" model Flugelhorn, currently being played by Roy Hargrove and Randy Brecker. The craftsmanship is said to be peerless as is the intonation. They also have a unique, not to say unusual, look. The horns are not officially distributed in the United States but can be purchased direct from the company through the web site for $3200.
There remain a class of European rotary valve flugelhorns that are uncommon in the United States and about which I know next to nothing.
Overall, as you can see, the influence of Zig Kanstul permeates, as each of the above non-Yamaha horns, with the exception of the Callichio and the European and English flugels, is copied from, designed, or manufactured by Kanstul. In addition, two of the most desirable used flugelhorns, the orphaned F.E. Olds and the large bore Benge (Los Angeles), were also designed by Zig Kanstul.
Other used horns which are good choices are the French made Couesnon flugels that established in the 50's and 60's the popularity of the flugelhorn as a jazz instrument. These were popular with players of the time because of their nice sound and inexpensive price. They were also notorious for poor intonation and somewhat cheesy construction. Today the classic Couesnon flugel is something of a cult horn and their prices are often higher than other used flugelhorns that are made better and play as well. The Couesnon factory burned down a few years ago and the company ceased or greatly decreased operations. However, Couesnon is now again in production, on a much smaller scale, and high quality handmade flugels are available, at least if you speak French. For more information take a look at this.
Although Bach makes a flugel horn (priced at $1217, in lacquer), like the Bach piccolo trumpet, it is not a popular choice, even by those who love Bach trumpets. Getzen makes both a three valve and a four valve Eterna pro quality flugelhorn, with larger more trumpet-like bores, street priced at around $842 / $917 and $953 / $1028 (lacquer/silver), respectively, but they are rarely played by pros because they are of uneven manufacture and poor intonation. Though now longer in productions, UMI made a Benge flugel that is cosmetically similar to the Benge flugels made in Los Angeles, with the larger bore, right down to the horizontal first valve slide with saddle, but the horn is not the same and does not play as well as well as the California horns..
Finally, although a good used pro horn is usually a much better investment and more satisfying to play than an inexpensive new flugel, the Jupiter 846L, is a good Taiwanese copy of the Yamaha YFH 631/731, available in lacquer (from Giardinelli) at $467, in black lacquer (!) for $496, and in silver plate at $624, and many feel to be worth the money. The quality of Jupiter horns has been remarked by many to have been greatly improved over the last few years reflecting the recent investment of millions in dollars by Jupiter to upgrade and improve their manufacturing facility and techniques.
Schilke once made an eccentric flugelhorn but it was laughable and was discontinued.
© 1999 - 2000 by James F. Donaldson
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