Flute Center — Local services in New York

My experience with the Flute Center of New York (and Chicago) has been just phenomenal! Since I live in Chicago, I first stopped by the Chicago store and chatted with the flute technician on site (can't remember her name unfortunately). I wanted to know if there was any point in fixing the student flute I'd been playing on for decades but that was sounding worse and worse (couldn't get out any notes past a low G). I wasn't sure if my problem was my fault (bad technique) or the flute. She took a look at it and concluded it was not worth repairing, since it would be cheaper to buy a new one. Although she wasn't a sales person (no one else was manning the store at that time), she was very helpful in letting me try out a bunch of flutes in my price range and giving me advice. Turned out, the problem wasn't me, it was my ancient flute! I ended up taking home a Trevor James Chanson on trial that day at no cost to me. A few days later I called the Flute Center with some questions and my call ended up at the New York branch, where I spoke with Caity. She offered to send me 4 more flutes to try out for free (free shipping and everything!). I loved all of them (each of them sounded infinitely better than my poor old Gemeinhardt), to the extent that I wondered if I might like flutes in a higher price range even better. It just so happened that I was going to be in NYC briefly, so I arranged to stop by the NYC store in person during my stay. Caity wasn't there that day, but Alex helped me, and was super helpful as well. I spent a delightful couple of hours trying out different flutes in a higher price range ($4500-$6000), picked out my favorites, and Alex mailed me a new batch of flutes to try back in Chicago afterwards. They didn't even ask me to send back the first batch first! Eventually I went with the Yamaha 677h, which I adore. Playing such a lovely-sounding flute has made me fall in love with the instrument all over again and inspired me to practice 10x more than I ever have before.

I am floored by the amazing customer service I got from everyone I encountered at both Flute Centers. It seems that everyone who works there is an experienced flutist, so their advice has been extremely helpful. But even more amazing is how generous they were in allowing me to try so many flutes at once and for a considerably longer period than the supposed 1-week trial. I could not ask for a better experience. I highly, highly recommend this business to anyone interested in buying anything flute-related. I will be a loyal...

Order #3715 invoice #164053 I would like to make a public apology to the entire FCNY staff and to FCNY’s creative and talented community. I ask the owner of FCNY Mr. Phil Unger and especially the FCNY’s sales director Mrs. Caity Massoud to please accept my apology. Yes, my initial experience with FCNY was complicated and caused much personal distress. After having the opportunity to speak with Mr. Ugner I now acknowledge that an array of complications outside the control of FCNY complicated my order. I did in fact receive excellent customer support from Mrs. Massoud and she went above and beyond what I expected. Mrs. Massoud intervention was a gift. Caity was able to take control of the situation in a very professional manner and upgraded my nieces’ flute at FCNY’s cost to ensure that I was a satisfied client and that I would remain a client for life. As I stated there were complications with the order and unfortunately the item did not arrive on time which lead to a very unfortunate experience for me. I was upset and I initially placed blame on FCNY’s staff. I was wrong to do so. Mr. Unger prompt response to the situation was assuring. He was very persistent in making it known to me that he was extremely sorry for the complications, complications he nor anyone involved with FCNY had any control over. Mr. Unger kind words assured me that FCNY would be there for me if ever I needed any further assistance. My adolescent behavior in overreacting and engaging in harmful blame should not be overlooked or forgiven easily however, Mr. Unger assured me that all is well and that he has spoken with Mrs. Caity Massoud and has expressed to her my regret and apology. It was never my intention to misalign Mrs. Massoud character; however, the words I choose in my previous reviews apparently did just that and for that I once again want to publicly apologize to Mrs. Massoud. Despite my harmful reviews Mr. Unger has accepted me into the FCNY community. Phil’s kindness and understanding has been overwhelming. I do not mind expressing that I do not feel worthy of the amount of understanding that I have received from Mr. Unger. I am looking to forward to working with Mrs. Massoud again soon and I know that despite my childish behavior and harmful words Caity will treat me with undeserved dignity and kindness. Once again, I apologize to the entire FCNY staff and their extended community.

Order #3715 ...

Whether you are local to NYC or not, FCNY is a must-consider seller if you are in the market for any kind of flute, used or new, professional or beginner. They have such an exhaustive inventory that you really will have a hard time NOT finding the perfect instrument for you. Even if you end up being so picky that they don't have what you want in stock, they will contact the manufacturers if they have a specific model that you're interested in. Other sellers will push you to buy only what they have on-hand, but FCNY bears that extra cost of overhead so that us buyers are not limited in our choices!

Over the past year I've trialed dozens of flutes and purchased two Brannens and a Song headjoint from Flute Center of New York. I was not studying with a teacher at the time so it took me a bit longer than most to finalize my first pick, but Agata and the rest of the FCNY team were more than generous with both the in-store and at-home trials.

Even after COVID-19 lockdown and all the logistical difficulties that came with it, they continued to still send flute trials and I actually made my second instrument purchase post-lockdown. So even if you cannot make the trip to NYC, don't rule them out because you can also do everything via phone/email. They also JUST overhauled their website and instrument catalog so you can now search and filter based on really specific criteria like drawn vs. soldered tone holes, trill key/roller options, tubing thickness... I'm fairly certain no other seller has their inventory cataloged in a way that customers can search with such specificity.

Besides their instrument inventory, they also have the best collection of flute sheet music, accessories, cases, bags, etc. Combine that with their repair and maintenance services, their entire staff's expertise and willingness to help musicians of all levels, and you get the magical, next-level one-stop shop that is Flute Center of New York.

I've ventured and trialed with various other sellers this past year, both large and small, but in the end I only made purchases with FCNY because of the extent of their inventory and ease of setting up trials. You don't have to take my word for it though, you'll soon find out for...