Description
Jonathon Landell Handmade flute #16 in solid silver – Open holes, Inline G, C# trill and C foot
For sale is a rare used Jonathon Landell flute #16 in solid silver. This instrument holds historical and musical significance. It was originally commissioned by Douglas Townshend in 1977. Born in pre-War Bristol, Douglas Townshend joined the Hallé Orchestra as second flute in 1960. Three years later, he became principal. In April 1967, Townshend left the Hallé to join the BBC Welsh Orchestra. Later, he became a flute professor at the Welsh College of Music.
Jonathon Landell is a renowned master flute maker and founder of Landell Flutes. Additionally, his career spans decades of excellence. He began studying flute performance at the New England Conservatory under James Pappoutsakis. Simultaneously, he apprenticed at Powell Flutes to hone his skills. Furthermore, mentorship from William Bennett and Albert Cooper shaped his craftsmanship. In 1972, he created the first Cooper scale flute in the United States. In 1976, Landell established his workshop in Vermont. There, he handcrafted over 180 custom flutes.
Jonathan Landell Flute #16
This flute, handmade by Jonathon in 1977, is made of solid silver with soldered tone holes. It features French pointed key arms, open holes, inline G, C# trill, Split G variant, and a C foot. Furthermore, it is in superb condition, having been completely overhauled and repadded.
The headjoint has a specially fashioned lip plate with tapered sides. Additionally, Cooper’s new lip plate design included a sudden radius change. This adjustment pushed the outer lip plate down and away from the player’s airstream. The East and West riser walls also had a broad “over-cut” radius, improving response. Although Jonathon does not recall creating this specific headjoint design, the adjustments were likely tailored for Douglas Townshend. Despite this, the headjoint performs exceptionally well.
The headjoint, body, and footjoint have a wall thickness of 0.14 inches. Moreover, this adds to the flute’s tonal qualities. The Split G key variant connects the upper and lower G keys. This feature allows the high E to be played with the pinky pressing the lower G key. Overall, this design highlights Jonathon Landell’s meticulous craftsmanship and innovation.
Features:
- Handmade used flute by renowned flute maker
- Solid Sterling silver throughout
- Soldered tone holes
- Open Holes
- inline G
- Split G key variant
- C# trill
- C footjoint
This is a rare early example of Jonathon Landell’s work and he has confirmed the provenance and specification.
