ALTUS Japanese Handmade Flute | 1407 - 35 Year Anniversary Model (Limited Edition)
Special Limited-Edition Engravings
Sterling Silver Headjoint, Body & Mechanism
14K Gold Riser
Soldered Toneholes
B Footjoint
French Pointed-Arm Keys
Split-E Mechanism
Offset G
C# Trill Key
Open Holes
Each Altus flute comes with a hard case, soft carry cover, cleaning rod, inside cleaning cloth and outside cleaning cloth.
35 YEAR ANNIVERSARY MODEL
Flutes & Flutists first started operating 35 years ago and the very first brand that we carried was Altus. To celebrate, we collaborated with Altus on the creation of the very special engravings found on this limited-edition model.
We wanted a design that was symbolic of our two country’s connection and eventually settled on the Golden Wattle, being the national flower of Australia. It is also part of the acacia family, which contains many subspecies that can be easily seen around Nagano prefecture in Japan, where all Altus flutes are lovingly handcrafted. After working with Alice Coffey on the design, we sent it off to Altus and we couldn’t be more thrilled when the flutes finally arrived.
You’ll find a large golden wattle engraved on the C key with a chain of leaves dancing around it. A stream of golden wattles can also be found on the G# lever, D# lever and the Crown. We absolutely adore how these turned out and look forward to passing them on to some very lucky owners.
ALTUS
For over 30 years, Altus has hand-crafted flutes that embody the ideals of vintage inspiration and modern technology. Created by Master Flute Maker Shuichi Tanaka, each Altus flute reflects his passion to combine the finest playing flutes with the finest materials and artistry. The meticulous design of the Altus flute and its acclaimed Altus/Bennet scales offers excellent intonation, carefully tuned harmonics and balanced registers. The masterfully hand-sculpted headjoints and precision tubings produce the remarkable sound of the Altus flute.
Silver Series
Altus offers a wide range of tonal colours with the variety of silvers that are used. With the options that are available, each flute carries a personalised sound for every individual player. The Altus 1407 comes with soldered tone holes rather than the more common drawn tone holes. The benefit is that the thickness of the tone holes can be consistent with the tube, if not thicker, which helps with resonance and projection (when you draw the metal out of the tube to form the tone holes, it makes the tube and the tone holes thinner by necessity).
Sterling 925 Silver – Comprised of 92.5% silver, Sterling has long been the industry standard for making high quality flutes.
What We Like
In terms of sound, we find Altus flutes to be extremely malleable, colourful, and offer great projection and evenness throughout the registers. Perception of sound is subjective though so you will need to try them and see if they suit you.
What is not subjective is how good their mechanism is, and it is one of the best there is. You really need to run your fingers over these keys yourself in order to appreciate it. Unlike a lot of other companies that have switched over to a pinless mechanism over the years, Altus never did, and we believe it is because they simply never found a reason to. They have absolutely perfected their mechanism. It is quick to respond, light, silent and if setup properly and looked after well, stays in adjustment for an extremely long time. It completely satisfies even some of the most technically demanding and proficient flutists in the world, and best of all, they’ve included the same design on all their flutes - from their entry level professional quality flute, the model 807, all the way up to the venerable model 1807 (AL). The only thing lacking is a fancy name to help market it better. Oh well, you’ll just have to try it and see for yourself.
