I play flute. Mac's advice is good.

The student Gemeinhardt flutes are also good, and there are a lot in that price range. The model 2s are OK, the 3s better because they have more silver. The more solid silver (as opposed to silver plate) the better, starting with the head joint, which is by far the main determinant of the sound you will get.

If you find a good deal on an open-hole flute, you can still buy it and plug the holes with cork or even little plastic buttons made for that, while you are learning. Then, when you get good, you can pop out some or all of the cork. I still like to leave one in, for a finger that doesn't always hit the right spot.

The B foot costs more and you will hardly ever need it unless you become really serious with classical literature. Funny, but I've played a B foot flute for over thirty years and only two days ago had to use the B foot for the first time ever in a concert, on the Theme from Black Orpheus, which goes down to that low B.

Also, you may find some flutes with an inline G and some with an offset G. The offset ones are much easier to learn on. There is no significant difference in the sound. If either of you has really long fingers, you might prefer the inline G, but almost everyone will find the offset G easier.

I didn't like the placement of the Bb key on the Yamaha student flutes. Too easy to hit Bb when you want B natural. But that's personal preference from switching to other woodwinds.

Let us know what you buy. Don't forget to get and use a cleaning cloth swab after every use. The swab will also tell you where the tuning cork in the head joint should be. Write back if you need to know more. If you need to add cork grease to a loose cork, be careful to always push the cork out through the base of the head joint, never out the end that it is on.

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