Surprise!

You probably came to this page expecting to see a list of famous flutists and at least a few strategically placed pictures. Instead, we have a message for you. Please read on.

When the term "artist" is coupled with a company's name, it usually refers to those flutists the company hires, in one way or another, to sell and/or endorse its instruments. The compensation may take many forms, including a free instrument, commissions on instruments sold, payment for masterclasses or concerts, support of travel, etc.

We have never had such "Brannen artists."

We believe strongly that a flutist - any flutist - should choose to own our instruments for only two reasons:

• A Brannen Brothers instrument is the best available instrument to meet that flutists' individual needs.
• No company can match the excellent service our company provides, both during and after the warranty period.

We cannot figure out why you would believe that, if some other flutist, famous or otherwise, plays one of our instruments, it must necessarily be the right instrument for you. You will be able to determine that only by actually playing Brannen instruments.

In truth, there are a whole host of flutists who own Brannen instruments, and many of them are, indeed, well known, even world-renowned. You will find them in most major orchestras, both in this country and abroad, and on the faculties of many college-level teaching institutions. Many of these Brannen players publicly endorse our instruments, verbally and/or in print. For that, we gratefully thank them, but we do not pay them. Whenever you hear a flutist speak glowingly about a "Brannen," you can be assured that it is based on that flutists' experience and conviction; it is never based on compensation received from us.

We also appreciatively acknowledge the many fine flutists - soloists, orchestral players, teachers - who, while they do not play one of our instruments, routinely recommend that their students include our instruments among those they try when searching for a new flute. They, too, are valued friends. And once again, such recommendations come solely from their personal beliefs that our company produces some of the finest instruments available in the world today.

So, what do we do with our "marketing" dollars? In 1994, we established The Brannen-Cooper Fund to thank the entire flute-playing community for our success. Since that time, we have donated well over $400,000 to flute clubs, flute choirs, high schools, colleges and universities, and a variety of other organizations in 40 states and 15 foreign countries. Our funds have helped these organizations have flute masterclasses, concerts, flute choir coaching, lectures and workshops. To date, we have contributed to the commissioning of countless pieces of new music for the flute or piccolo. We hope you will agree with us that, as a flutist, you will benefit more from The Fund's activities than you could benefit from a list of paid endorsements.

However, we do realize that some prospective customers might, for a variety of very valid reasons, like the opportunity to talk with one or two Brannen instrument owners. If this is true for you, please feel free to contact our Customer Service Representative. We will make very effort to put you in contact with one or two of our customers in your general area who would be willing to share their Brannen experiences with you.