Gemeinhardt

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Gemeinhardt Musical Instruments LLC
Founded1948
FounderKurt Gemeinhardt
Headquarters
Elkhart, Indiana
,
United States
Key people
David Pirtle, president and CEO
Products flutes, piccolos
Parent Angel Industries Co. Ltd
Website http://www.gemeinhardt.com/

Gemeinhardt Co. is a manufacturer of flutes and piccolos. [1] These musical instruments are developed by this company for all levels of musicians, beginners to professionals. It is owned by its major supplier, Angel Industries Co. Ltd of Taiwan, widely acknowledged as the premier manufacturer of woodwind musical instruments. [2] The Gemeinhardt Company is headquartered in Elkhart, Indiana, where many of its instruments are still made. [2]

Contents

Ownership

From 1993 to 2011, Gemeinhardt was owned by investment bankers under the corporate name Gemstone Musical Instruments. In June 2011 Gemeinhardt was acquired by Angel Industries Co. Ltd of Taiwan, a manufacturer of instruments and business partner of Gemeinhardt for several years. David Pirtle, president and CEO of Gemeinhardt, says that the acquisition by Angel Industries will allow Gemeinhardt more freedom to make decisions and run production in order to best serve the market. [3]

While many musical instrument brands are made overseas, the partnership between Gemeinhardt and Angel Industries is unique. Gemeinhardt manufactures the flute components (headjoint, body, footjoint, keys) in Elkhart, Indiana USA then sends them to Angel Industries to assemble them. They are then returned to Elkhart, Indiana for testing and adjusting in the Gemeinhardt workshop. David Pirtle, president and CEO of Gemeinhardt, asserts that this is because the parts can be made better in the Gemeinhardt workshop in America. This differs from most brands, which have their flute components manufactured overseas. [3]

History

Kurt Gemeinhardt was brought to the United States from Markneukirchen, Germany, by George Bundy of Selmer USA company, which had recently relocated to Elkhart, Indiana. Working with Philip H. Marcil in the Selmer flute division, they copied the typical Louis Lot metal flute design for its flutes. [4]

Founded by Kurt Gemeinhardt, a 4th generation flute-maker in Germany, the Gemeinhardt company was established in 1948, 20 years after Gemeinhardt’s immigration to the United States. Initially crafting only very fine hand made flutes for professionals, the company expanded in 1952, moving to Elkhart Indiana to produce all levels of silver flutes. Beginner student flutes were developed at this time as well. It was these flutes that eventually became the bread and butter of the corporation as Gemeinhardt’s reputation for fine beginner flutes became a hallmark of the industry.

Kurt's father had studied under Emil Rittershausen, who had been trained by Theobald Boehm, and so the instruments the company produces can trace its lineage back to the creator of the Boehm system. [5]

The Gemeinhardt Company is very popular in the music field, although it hasn't always followed the mainstream. In the mid 1970s Albert Cooper modified the placement of toneholes on the flute so that it would match the common tuning of A at 440 Hz. Before this many flutes were still designed with an older A435Hz tone hole placement (scale), despite being designed to play at A440Hz through the use of a shortened headjoint. [6] Many flute companies recognized this change and therefore his scale and decided to make their flutes in the same way, but the Gemeinhardt Company was slow to modify its design. This in turn makes notes played in the higher register on an old Gemeinhardt flute sharp and the lower register flat, which can cause issues for beginner flutists if they are playing an old Gemeinhardt (pre-21st century), but with practice they can learn to play the flute so that the notes are correct. Otherwise, they may consider buying a newer Gemeinhardt flute.

However, the design of Gemeinhardt's flutes have changed often since then and have been updated and redesigned accordingly. [7]

In 2014 the Gemeinhardt Company introduced a new line of flutes named the Kurt Gemeinhardt Generation Series at the National Flute Association's annual convention in Chicago. [8] Consisting of entirely American-made conservatory and professional flutes, this line was developed by Tom Lacy and Dave Siekman. [9] These flutes utilize the RS2012 Scale invented by famous flutists Trevor Wye, William Bennett, and Eldred Spell. This scale design is claimed to be the most accurate on the market. [9] [10]

In 1997, Gemeinhardt acquired the Roy Seaman Piccolo Company. [11]

In addition to flutes and piccolos, Gemeinhardt also has a line of saxophones and clarinets.

Products

Flutes

The Gemeinhardt company sells its flutes in different categories: Student, Conservatory, Professional, Kurt Gemeinhardt Generation Series (American-made conservatory and professional flutes), Alto flutes, and Bass Flutes. It also sells headjoints separately.

Piccolos

All Gemeinhardt and Roy Seaman Piccolos are made in America, except the 1P Piccolo [13]

The Gemeinhardt company also sells piccolos under several categories, which are composed of composite, silver, wood, and the Roy Seaman brand. The composite piccolo is made out of a synthetic material with some wooden texture to it, metal piccolos can be silver-plated or solid silver, wood piccolos are made of grenadilla wood and are rarely used outside because the wood can crack, and finally the Roy Seaman Piccolo sub-brand of conservatory and professional piccolos.

Saxophones

Clarinets

Related Research Articles

Saxophone type of musical instrument of the woodwind family

The saxophone is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to produce a sound wave inside the instrument's body. The pitch is controlled by opening and closing holes in the body to change the effective length of the tube. The holes are closed by leather pads attached to keys operated by the player. Saxophones are made in various sizes and are almost always treated as transposing instruments. Saxophone players are called saxophonists.

Woodwind instrument Family of musical wind instruments

Woodwind instruments are a family of musical instruments within the more general category of wind instruments. Common examples include flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon, and saxophone. There are two main types of woodwind instruments: flutes and reed instruments. The main distinction between these instruments and other wind instruments is the way in which they produce sound. All woodwinds produce sound by splitting the air blown into them on a sharp edge, such as a reed or a fipple. Despite the name, a woodwind may be made of any material, not just wood. Common examples include brass, silver, cane, as well as other metals such as gold and platinum. The saxophone, for example, though made of brass, is considered a woodwind because it requires a reed to produce sound. Occasionally, woodwinds are made out of earthen materials, especially ocarinas.

Piccolo Small flute

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A fife is a small, high-pitched, transverse aerophone of Portuguese origin, that is similar to the piccolo. The fife originated in medieval Europe and is often used in Fife and Drum Corps, military units, and marching bands. Someone who plays the fife is called a fifer. The word fife comes from the German Pfeife, meaning pipe, which comes from the Latin word pipare.

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C.G. Conn Ltd., sometimes called Conn Instruments or commonly just Conn, is a former American manufacturer of musical instruments incorporated in 1915. It bought the production facilities owned by Charles Gerard Conn, a major figure in early manufacture of brasswinds and saxophones in the USA. Its early business was based primarily on brass instruments, which were manufactured in Elkhart, Indiana. During the 1950s the bulk of its sales revenue shifted to electric organs. In 1969 the company was sold in bankruptcy to the Crowell-Collier-MacMillan publishing company. Conn was divested of its Elkhart production facilities in 1970, leaving remaining production in satellite facilities and contractor sources.

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References

  1. ↑ "The Gemeinhardt Story".
  2. 1 2 Gemeinhardt Company Director of Marketing Blog
  3. 1 2 Odendahl, Marilyn (15 July 2011). "Gemeinhardt acquired by Taiwan-based company". The Elkhart Truth. Archived from the original on 22 January 2013. Retrieved 19 June 2012.
  4. ↑ Powell, Ardal (2002). The Flute . Yale University Press. pp.  231. ISBN   0-300-09341-1.
  5. ↑ Gemeinhardt History
  6. ↑ Albert Cooper
  7. ↑ "eBay Guides - Gemeinhardt 2SP Flute - Everything You Wanted to Know" . Retrieved 25 May 2012.
  8. ↑ "Experience a Revolution at NFA 2014!".
  9. 1 2 "Kurt Gemeinhardt Generation Flutes".
  10. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2015-02-12. Retrieved 2014-12-05.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  11. ↑ "The Gemeinhardt Story".
  12. ↑ "Gemeinhardt Musical Instruments".
  13. ↑ Gemeinhardt Company Director of Marketing Blog
  14. ↑ "Gemeinhardt Piccolos : Plastic, Metal and Grenadilla Wood Piccolos".
  15. ↑ "Roy Seaman Piccolos : The preferred grenadilla wood piccolos for 30+ years".
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