Julius Zimmerman Blackwood 8-Key

A well-crafted instrument from the late nineteenth or early twentieth century, this flute is a low-pitched instrument that settles at A=440 once fully warmed up with the headjoint pushed all the way in. The intonation is voiced for classical fingerings: the Eb key should be vented when playing E, as the note tends to run flat without it. The keys respond exceptionally well and the feel throughout is consistent with a restored, well-maintained antique.

The body is blackwood with eight keys. The tone holes are small, characteristic of this style of German simple-system construction. The headjoint carries a sealed hairline crack on the top left side; this has been bonded and is visible in the listing photographs. Fresh tenon cork and new pads have been fitted throughout as part of recent restoration work. The instrument comes in its original case, complete with a skeleton key.

About the Maker

Julius Heinrich Zimmermann (1851-1923) was a German musical instrument manufacturer and music publisher of Mecklenburg origin. His firm traces its roots to a shop for German musical instruments near the Nevsky Prospekt established in 1876; in 1886 he took up residence in Leipzig and founded a music publishing house there. Branches followed in Moscow from 1882, Leipzig in 1886, London in 1897, and Riga in 1905. In 1895, Zimmermann founded a factory in St. Petersburg dedicated to the production of all types of instruments, bows, and accessories, employing skilled workers, some of whom came from Saxony. While three Boehm flute models imported from France were listed in the firm's 1899 catalog, many models of wooden conical simple-system flutes were offered. Traditional designs like this one remained popular in Eastern Europe. In 1901, Zimmermann was bestowed with the Order of Saint Stanislaus by Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, and became exclusive purveyor of brass instruments to the Russian army.