I'm not out of tune. You are!

Well, that depends on your point of reference, really.

I play the Irish whistle (which in itself isn't always a well-tuned instruments, especially the cheapies) and it's been hard getting the rest of the mini orchestra I play in for church to accept it. Nice as it sounds, I can't seem to match the pitch with the other instruments on a note-by-note basis. Some people tell me that every note is a little "out of tune" and has to be handled differently from other notes in order to play in tune, if at all possible. "Some people", I say, because there are others who tell me that the instrument is not tuned to the Equal Temperament tuning system which pianos and most other orchestral instruments use. There are whistles that come in Equal Tempered tuning, of course, but others use Just Intonation. The latter differs from the former on a note-by-note basis and could be the reason why my whistles seem out of tune with other instruments.

But Equal Temperament is a compromise system, so, in a sense, you can say they are out of tune. In an effort to create a tuning system where music can be easily transposed to different keys without sounding out of tune, Equal Temperament was developed. It is most prominent in pianos, which need to be able to play in all different keys without the need for retuning (which could be helluva lot of work!) between playing different pieces. It is a compromise because in order for it to work, some notes are tuned in a way that they don't sound "perfect" (they may be sharp or flat based on other tuning systems).

So too bad for me. I can't control my whistles that perfectly as to vary my pitch to match the other instruments for each and every note (and my hearing isn't trained to that level yet to be able to tell pitch differences very well), if at all possible. And I can't afford the more expensive whistles that come in the imperfect Equal Tempered tuning. Maybe the problem is everyone else is "out of tune" with me. Haha... But I guess in this case, the majority wins.

(Some information on tuning systems here).

How Flutes Are Made

Pronomos Flute (aka Complex Flute) - quartertones and all

Ok, I know I have an interest in flutes, but this one takes the cake.

I subscribe to a flutemakers Yahoo group and often get updates from people who make simple flutes (6-hole flutes, usually Irish flutes). Here is one of the more recent posts:

The newest addition to the Boehm flute world is the Complex Flute designed by Istvan Matuz, improved by Julian Elvira, and built by the British flutemaker, Stephen Wessel. It can be played as a regular Boehm flute, but it also enables quarter-tones, multiphonics, and sound vocabularly of many types of non-western flutes and flute-like instruments. Elvira refers to it as "an advanced instrument, taking the Boehm instrument to its limits." It is now known as the Pronomos flute. For more information about the flute see:

http://www.wessel-flutes.co.uk/complex_flute/a_brief_history/

-  Susan Maclagan, "A Dictionary for the Modern Flutist," Scarecrow Press, April 2009.

 As if mastering semitones on a Boehm flute isn't hard enough, here's one that offers you quartertones!  I'd sure like to see James Galway play this thing. Lol!

Handmade Bamboo Flutes

How to Make a Carrot Ocarina

For those of you who like playing with your food and making music, why not make music with your food? Lol!

Merry Christmas (with some broccoli)

Four days late, but I just came across this, so Blessed Christmas anyway! :)

Quena Headjoint for Boehm Flute??

Ok. This must be the strangest thing I've seen recently, and yet it makes me go: "Now why didn't I think of it?" The end-blown headjoint at 1:00 of the video is from the South American quena flute. Makes me wonder what other types of headjoints can be attached to a Boehm flute. How about the Chinese bawu flute head, or some single or double reeds? Hmm...



In case you're interested in getting a quena headjoint, here's where you can get it: http://www.educci.de/gb_index.html