So you haven't heard of Michaela Petri? Guess she's danish though, but a great deal in the real world to :D

I have always hated the recorder but this lady does a hell of a job :
http://www.michalapetri.com/

OF COURSE recorder is a real instrument and OF COURSE there are professional musicians who play it.

I play descant, treble and tenor (because I don't have enough money for a bass, contrabass or sopranino, and besides there's no possibility of me being able to form a quartet, unfortunately).

My descant is an old battered piece of wood which I have taken everywhere I've been, I think it's seen even more of the world than my doll… hehe. My treble and tenor are not mine and are Dolmetsch plastic recorders at which I often go very mad. I'd like to get wooden ones soon, but they are quite expensive; I'll have to think a lot about it.

And how many holes do they have?

I own a Moeck C soprano which is half wood, half plastic, and a fake mahgony no-name one still from the German Democratic Republic whose "a" is 12 Hz higher than it should be (claims my guitar tuner).

Pardon my English now, I hope I can make myself understandable: There are several types of the same recorder size, which are fingered differently. Some have two tiny holes instead of a big one for the right hand fingers no. 4 and 5. Does anybody play one of these? And are they advisable? I want to buy myself a new one, too.

Thank you very much,
Aleysha

I think that all the difference is that with the two holes it's much easier to play C# and D# (that is, on a descant recorder). I'd say this is all.

Hello,
has anybody seen or heard one of these in real life?
http://www.mollenhauer.de/Shop/de/p_21716.html
Looks - well, interesting!
Aleysha

Yes - and veeery expensive

Aleysha

ok chaps,
well although i have other (much nicer, wooden) recorders. the instrument that i play most often is my plastic Early Learning Centre descant. i love this lump of plastic!!!! despite what you might think about the make it is actually a really nice recorder with a really sweet tone...and i love it cus i can throw it in my bag and take it everwhere with me. i dont feel i need to worry about her cus she is can look after herself (if i have a more expensive recorder with me i have to worry about her all the time that she is ok)

This recorder really has had some abuse during its time with me but it is still as perfect as the day i got it...i get the feeling it is indestructable!

its like if you are going to the savoy you take a posh girl that can talk proper like...but if your going to the chippy you take a cheap, dirty, girl! does anyone else think i have a slightly unhealthy attitude towards my babys?

moeck for stage and studio
ELC for bashing band mates round the head when they play wrong!

Why would you take a cheap dirty girl to the chippy? I'd rather have fish and chips than go to the Savoy any day!

I've got a Mollenhauer tenor, a Meoeck German fingered tenor, and a plastic Aulos tenor, and the plastic Aulos gets the high notes as good as the Moeck and better than the Mollenhauer (but not the low notes). I've got a Moeck Rottenburg soprano and a plastic soprano, Gill, I think, and an Aulos alto which I don't know how to play very well. I just bought a little red plastic soprano (off eBay) for a 2-year-old relative, and it plays great. He won't appreciate that fact, tho, probably just bang it on something and break it right away............

I´ve got one soprano and two alts. The best one is a "Fher" (buxbom -correct english?) It has a very good sound.

I have a moeck descant in ebony, moeck 440 treble in boxwood and Morgan 415 (semi-tone lower) treble in boxwood, Bolton Haka (kind of like ganassi) and a plastic Yamaha tenor...which i highly recommend.

THe reason some of you prefer plastic to wood is that cheap wooden models are worse than a good plastic model. you have to pay for a decent wooden recorder. Usually the hand made recorders are beautiful, eg. Fred Morgan, Philppe Bolton, Adrian Brown etc.