How do the different types of wood affect the tone of a Piccolo?

Question: How do the different types of wood affect the tone of a Piccolo!?

I had my solid silver piccolo stolen recently, and I'm planning on replacing it with a wooden one since I only play in an orchestra now!. I've seen different models made out of different types of wood such as grenadilla (which is the most common I've seen), ebony, rosewood, and Iron wood!. Does the type of wood really make that much difference in tone or is one type better than the others!. I haven't tried out any yet, but when I do I want to be informed!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:

Extensive test have been done on ALL materials used in flute and piccolo construction!. Far and away, it is the design of the instrument ( the headjoint in particular) that affects the tonal quality of the instrument!. Unless you are a professional player, and committed to working one-on-one with top builders, and spending well into five figures to do so, then I would advise getting a good barnd of a wooden instruments, and trusting that they have optimized that instrument!. I have NO idea at what level you play - student, college major, pro - and what your budget is!. You could look at www!.fluteworld!.com, JLSmith, Jeff Weissman, Carolyn Nussbaum, Phil Unger - all of them would have fine instruments for you to try!. The convention of the National Flute Association is this August in New York City - EVERYONE who is anyone in the flute world is there, and you could at least do some preliminary investigations at that point, and then arrange to have instruments sent to you on trial!. Good luck with your picc shopping!Www@QuestionHome@Com