Sam Murray Boxwood 4-Key, D

A fantastic player, very light in the hands, and the flute fairly buzzes in your hands when you play it. The voice is strong throughout and can really be pushed and leaned into, with a nice strong bottom D and excellent intonation. The head joint is unlined.

The four keys are long F, G#, Bb and C, and the G# and Bb keys have lovely fiddle-shaped touches. The flute is in excellent condition with no cracks. The body has a slight bow, which is common in boxwood flutes as the wood settles over time and does not affect playing, and there is a small chip at the bottom end of the foot joint, as pictured. It was made around 2014 and has had a single owner.

About the Maker

Sam Murray was born in Sailortown in north Belfast and worked at Belfast Central Library and the Folk and Transport Museum before devoting himself to flute making, which occupied him for more than forty years. He moved to Galway in the early 2000s. He worked in African blackwood, Persian boxwood, mopane and chacate, with sterling silver for rings and keys, and his flutes were played by musicians across the Irish tradition. He died in 2024 at the age of 74.