……So this last flute for the year, is built from Pau Ferro, also known as Brazilian Ironwood. As you might have guessed, it’s a hardwood tuned to Gm. The most unusual thing about this instrument is probably the fetish block. Unlike the birds I fashion, I carved this...
This F#m flute is built from Hawaiian curly koa, and took just North of 90 hours to complete. Given the pedigree of the wood, I chose to forgo the southwest Native American accents, in favor of materials more aligned with the islands of the Pacific. The bird is...
So I found a local furniture maker who was willing/able to rip and rout 12 blanks of material for me, so I can continue building flutes for another year….God Willing. This mud brown material is another example of what the wood peddlers call “Rainbow” poplar. Highly...
So, I have one more flute left to build after this one. Each instrument takes about a month, and both of my heavy lifter apprentices have moved on in their careers and retirement, and at 77 years of age, dragging out a table saw, and router/table, will require...
Neither you, nor this flute will ever want to find yourselves together at a Woodland Native American community gathering. Ever. The snake is very powerful medicine for these folks, and not welcome outside the confines of their ceremonies. This instrument is 20-7/8” in...
About 14 years ago, I was introduced to the artistry of Zuni fetish carvers, and began incorporating the work into a few of my instruments. One artist in particular, Garrick Acque, for me, stood out from the rest. I thought it fitting to incorporate one of his carved...
Many builders and players love eastern red cedar flutes. I am not one of them. This instrument has a nice, respectable voice for a cedar flute. However, it is not a cedar flute. Folks can purchase red cedar for around $0.50 USD per board foot. This flute is built from...
Hi. This flute is built from Oklahoma red cedar and tuned to G#4. It has a bore diameter of 7/8” and is 18 inches in length. Overall, it’s a nice cedar flute, technically correct, nicely voiced, and not one of my favorites. The only reason for that is because it’s...
Meet Whimsy 2.0 I began building this block from scraps, and it is the second build with this cast of characters. The flute wood is SE Asian paldao, with accents of dyed/stabilized box elder burl. The fetish block is somewhat fragile, so this flute would not be your...
This material is known as Ambrosia Maple. I thought ambrosia was a fruit salad, and I was wrong. It’s a tiny bug that loves eating maple wood. If a flute has a pin hole from one of these bugs, the flute will know it, and sound like a duck call instead of a flute....