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....
In flute making, I’m particularly fond of equatorial hardwoods, for their beauty and voicing. My tools are never fond of them. Ever. This is Hawaiian curly Koa. It has a 1” bore diameter, and is tuned to Gm. I had other...
I decided I wanted to defy the laws of physics, and build a flute with a 7/8” bore diameter…over two ft. long, tuned to E4m. Shortly thereafter, I decided there are some rules of acoustics that have no work around. I...
So while I was downstairs in my shop fashioning the fetish block for my latest instrument, my bride, Ms. Denise was up on our deck, taking random photos of the storm clouds brewing out over the ocean. When she came down to show me the result, the cloud formation in...