Currently, beginners' flutes are made of nickel, silver, or silver-plated brass. Professional flutes are often made of solid gold, silver, or sometimes platinum. Some professional flutists use wooden flutes that are made of African Blackwood, with keywork in gold or silver.
Earlier flutes have been made of vulture bones and ivory from mammoth tusks. In certain areas, flutes can be made of bamboo or even jade. Each material used to make a flute will produce a slightly different tone and it is up to the person playing it to know how to accommodate the changes.
Most flutes are made of metal whereas less expensive flutes, intended for students, may be made from other metals like nickel alloys. More costly flutes may be plated with silver. The pads attached to the surface of the keys to cover the holes are made of felt and cork.
The springs that provide tension to keep the keys firmly against the holes are made of gold, bronze, or steel. Steel pins and screws that hold the apparatus together. Finally, the mouthpiece, containing the hole into which air is blown, is usually made of the identical metal as the rest of the flute or perhaps another metal like platinum.
