What is the best flute for you?
The most comprehensive guide on how to choose your perfect flute!
We cover the basics of how to choose your perfect flute in the Custom Design your own Flute page.
Below, we offer our recommendation of specific flutes for specific purposes. We are always happy to hear from you about your preferences too.
Watch our tutorial on how to choose your perfect flute
Watch our guide for selecting the best flute for you from our range. Todd discusses each type of flute we have at Southern Cross Flutes, going over their subtleties and beauty.
A FLUTE FOR EVERY OCCASION…
What flute suits you best for where you’re at now?
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Just starting your journey into flute playing? Here’s what we recommend
FLUTES
People always wonder what the best native american flute for beginners might be. My recommendations take into consideration the hand-ability of the flute, durability, affordability and ease of breath control.
The Black Walnut Love Flute in A minor is soft sounding and easy to play, making it my choice for a first flute.
If you want something a little more exotic, our Ancient Kauri Love Flute in F# or G minor are a superb place to begin learning the Native American Style Flute, with easy to reach finger-hole placement, easeful breath pressure, sensuous to listen to, and light and durable.
These flutes are in the Alto range, and prices start from around $680.
RESOURCES
Learn to play with Enchanted Journeys – The Essential Guide for the Native American Style Flute. This comprehensive product brings together all the tools the beginning or the advancing player requires in one package, with multiple additional e-features to optimize learning on your tablet, e-reader or laptop – whatever is easiest for you.
Jam Tracks
Native American Flute Accompaniment Music – Jam Tracks in a selection of keys, are a collection of “play-along” songs for jamming, improving your playing, performance, and fun on Native American Flutes. Each CD has between 20-24 tracks over 80 minutes. Amazing! Produced by Clint Goss, from Flutopedia. I love these CDs, highly recommended as they lend themselves so perfectly to accompanying on the flute!
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Have you been playing for some time (or naturally musical) and want a new challenge? Here’s what we recommend
Resources
Or book a flute lesson with Todd. Topics we can explore include:
- Flute technique – mastering the basics of dual chambered flutes
- Learning songs – I’ve got a great selection we can practice
- Scale exploring – test out the various playing patterns and scales including Mode 4
- Duets – yup, that’s playing together on our flutes
- Jamming – a bit like playing together, but we can use loads of other instruments as well
- Songwriting – want to write your own flute piece?
Costs and timings:
30 minute lessons: $60 NZDAre you wanting to perform with your Native American Flute? Then you may like to check out the Native American Flute Musicians Public Group | Facebook page – a page for Native American Flute Musicians & Flute Makers. Feel free to post photos and videos.
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Native American Flutes have a natural affinity with healing and meditation circles.
Flutes
These are our most popular requested flutes for healing and meditation circles
- Ancient Kauri Grandfather Contrabass Flute in F# minor
- Ancient Kauri Grandfather Flute in A or B minor (432htz)
- Ancient Kauri Mayan Temple Flute in E/B minor
If you’re wanting a flute for this purpose, consider adding some unique touches such as gems or your animal totem. See our Custom Design your own Flute page to add an embellishment.
Resources
Within our own Southern Cross Flutes community, we feature a few wonderful beings who are using their talents and energy for healing and well-being.
Sika Rose
Sika Rose is another special person to experience. He is a pioneer of sound journeys, his work reflects a lifetime of listening to the rhythms of nature. Sika’s music is strong and rhythmic, haunting and ethereal, Sika’s ancient sounds transport you to a different place and time.
Seek out Sika at his website here.
Carolin Nobles
I’d like to introduce you to Carolin Nobles, a delightful person who has a special affinity for sound healing, singing light language AND Native American Flutes.
Seek out Carolin Nobles at her website here.
Kailash Kokopelli
Kailash Kokopelli is another beloved in our community. Kailash is recognized as a mystic flautist, a cross-cultural bridge-maker, medicine person and humanitarian artist. As a sacred world music producer, multi-instrumentalist and expert in Sound Medicine he offers his instruments as prayer tools and keys to initiate self-healing processes and expanded awareness.
Seek out Kailash at his website here.
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Want to take your flute traveling? Here’s what we recommend
FLUTES
Almost pocket sized, the Heart Rimu G minor Forest Flute is a go-anywhere flute. It’ll set the birds dancing and send echoes down the mountain valleys. Also a Most Popular Flute, the Black Walnut D minor Forest Flute is handy enough to slide into a small backback, and reverberates with clean precision and uplift.
Deep enough to induce quality meditation states as well as to impress other wanders, the Black Walnut Love Flute in A and G minor are fabulously durable choices.
Resources
World Flute Society — All flute players travels a similar path, being inspired with an eagerness to learn how to play, to improve upon playing ability, and/or to engage in fellowships with like-minded individuals. Musical companionship and partnership is an integral part of the flute journey, whether professional, amateur, or enthusiast. Check out more at the World Flute Society page on Flute Circles, Clubs & groups.
Native American Flute “Enthusiasts” Public Group | Facebook — The Native American Flute “Enthusiasts” group was created to connect all members related to the Native American flute. Flute makers and players, as well as flute enthusiasts are all welcomed! We also encourage using this group to bring awareness to flute circles across the globe.
Here in Aotearoa/New Zealand we have our local flute community, an annual residential Flute Camp, and flute circles growing and developing in Wellington, Auckland, and Christchurch; be sure to check our website for updates, as well as our Facebook pages: Southern Cross Flutes and New Zealand Flute Circle.
Have a Listen
Listen to samples of the Southern Cross Flutes range and see what appeals most for you.
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After listening, you can view our selection of Forest Flutes available either in-stock or made to order. Todd discusses each type of flute, going over its subtleties and beauty.
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"G minor Forest Flute"
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"C minor Forest Flute"
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"D minor Forest Flute"
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"B minor Forest Flute"
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1:25
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1:49
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1:49
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1:31
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After listening, you can view our selection of Love Flutes available either in-stock or made to order. Todd discusses each type of flute, going over its subtleties and beauty.
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"A minor Love Flute"
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"G minor Love Flute"
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"F# minor Love Flute"
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"F minor Love Flute"
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"E minor Love Flute"
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"A Hijaz Love Flute"
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"G Hijaz Love Flute"
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"F# Hijaz Love Flute"
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"F Hijaz Love Flute"
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1:29
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1:25
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1:25
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1:25
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1:25
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1:46
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1:46
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1:46
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1:46
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After listening, you can view our selection of Grandfather Flutes available either in-stock or made to order. Todd discusses each type of flute, going over its subtleties and beauty.
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"D minor Grandfather Flute"
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"C minor Grandfather Flute"
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"B minor Grandfather Flute"
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"A minor Grandfather Flute"
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"G minor Contrabass Flute"
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"F# minor Contrabass Flute"
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"F minor Contrabass Flute"
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1:22
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1:22
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1:35
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1:35
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1:50
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1:50
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1:50
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After listening, you can view our selection of Dual Chambered Harmony Flutes available either in-stock or made to order. Todd discusses each type of flute, going over its subtleties and beauty.
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"G Hijaz Drone Flute"
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"E minor/B minor Mayan Temple Flute"
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"D minor / A minor Mayan Temple Flute"
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"F# minor / C# minor - Mayan Temple Flute"
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"G minor Temple Drone Flute"
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"F# minor Temple Drone Flute"
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"F minor Temple Drone Flute"
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"E minor Temple Drone Flute"
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"D minor Temple Drone Flute"
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1:49
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2:06
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2:06
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2:06
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2:32
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2:32
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2:32
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2:54
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Compare Flutes
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Love Flutes
From USD $370ShopLove Flutes are our mid-octave (alto/tenor) flutes, being melodious and with warm tones. These easy to play and versatile flutes are the most commonly played Native American Style Flutes.
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Forest Flutes
From USD $280ShopForest Flutes are our high-octave flutes, they are sprightly and easy to play. They are great company on a forest hike, and fit snugly into your pocket or backpack.
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Grandfather Flutes
From USD $493ShopGrandfather Flutes are our lowest-octave flutes – sonorous and deep flutes – they slow you down & soften the soul. These bass Native American Flutes are available in a selection of keys, and perfect for meditation.
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Drone Flutes
From USD $610ShopNative American Style Drone Flutes are dual chambered flutes, playing a drone through the left chamber, and melodic playing on the right – a hybrid Native American Indian Style Flute.
The Woods We Use
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Ancient Kauri
As a flute wood, Ancient Kauri has a voice that is rich and sweet, giving it great acoustical properties for the lower as we ll as the higher pitched notes. It's a fantastic Native American Flute wood, ancient and beautiful. Typically Ancient Kauri is darker brown in colour with a depth of grain that holds shimmering highlights within. This wood has been recovered from swamps in the far north of New Zealand/Aotearoa, where it's been naturally preserved for between 10,000 to 40,000 years!
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Black Walnut
Black Walnut, as a flute-wood, has a voice that is bright, clear, and strong, due to the hardness of the wood. The wood colour is typically a swirling combination of browns and blacks. This is often a highly figured wood, with knot inclusions and other wild grain patterns. Black Walnut is native to America and is grown in New Zealand.
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Heart Rimu
Rimu, as a flute wood, is hard and dense, providing a bright tone and clear sound. It has patterns of yellow, brown and green through it, making it one of the most decorative woods in Aotearoa/New Zealand. Rimu grows throughout the country; the largest concentration of trees is now found on the West Coast of the South Island.
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Maple
Hard maple is strong, heavy, hard, and straight grained with a fine texture. The colour is cream with fine red/brown bands. This fantastic tone wood is more commonly found in violins and guitars, showing its proven track record as an instrument wood.
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Puriri
Puriri (Vitex lucens) is a beautiful spreading tree of New Zealand’s native bush and is found in coastal and lowland forests in the Northern half of the North Island. It’s a member of the Verbenaceae family so is related to teak. It can grow up to 20m high with a trunk of 1.5m encased in thick bark. As a flute wood, Puriri creates a very bright and clear tone, it’s vibrant and resonant and firm in the hand.
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Red Beech
Southern beech is a highly decorative hardwood with a natural sheen and lustre. This Southern Beech has a very resonance voice and a lovely medium weight.
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Rewarewa
Rewarewa, not only the name for a delectable N.Z honey, but also a lowland flute wood with the look of a savannah wild cat. As a flute wood, it is hard and smooth, providing a bright and full sound.
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Rosewood
Australian Rosewood is a richly hued timber, dense and strong, this wood is world renown as a quality instrument timber. It has an even woven like grain, is medium density timber which provides the player with a good 'feel' for the flute being in the hands. The sound is clear, bright, and resonant, yet soft and full.
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Western Red Cedar
Western Red Cedar is the quintessential Native American love flute wood. Very light to hold, this flute-wood produces a classic warm, rich and resonant tone. Being a softwood, it is very absorbent which helps in reducing moisture buildup within the flute while playing. It is typically a light brown colour with a sweet woody aroma under the nose. Traditionally known as the “long life maker” or “tree of life”, Western Red Cedar is native to the American Pacific North West, and to this day has extensive applications among First Nation peoples.
Tell Us What Sort of Flute You’d Like
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