Baroque flute in the style of Scherer, from about 1720

[rod]

Just adjusting the final voicing and tuning on this flute, a model I am asked to make often and based on a solid ivory original made in Germany by Scherer, but now in an Edinburgh Museum. This ebony flute is bound for Germany tomorrow. Key in bead-blasted silver and flare cut. Already, I see what to alter for the next one. Back in those days, there was no definite playing pitch, but always lower that the A440 we are used to, so this one has two interchangeable middle joints which shift the pitch from A392 to A415 Hz. The little telescopic extension on the keyed joint is called a foot register and allows a bit of low D tweaking when changing from one joint to the other. Critiques always welcome!

Rod

 

[Roger Bleile]

Rod,

Your engraving is perfect for a baroque flute I expect you are the only baroque flute maker who does your own engraving.

Cheers,

Roger

 

[Sam]

That is stunning, Rod. What a beautiful engraving job you did. Probably the prettiest I've seen from you. Bravo! A masterpiece of flutesmanship! :biggrin:

 

[rod]

Roger and Sam,

Thank you for your encouragement.

I am gradually seeing what will look appropriate on a old flute, and like stepping stones across the river, yourselves have given me a leg up to improve, as have many generous masters on the forums and other meeting places. Roger, your published article on flare cutting was a boost. I may indeed be the only flute maker who engraves, but I know a really good flute player who engraves at a much higher level, and that is our colleague, Tira! Her instrument of choice for music is the silver flute, of the kind that Brian engraves.
We can be sure that in the old days in Europe the flute maker would never engrave, and if he ( no she's allowed then) did, they would be slapped in irons for trespassing into another Guild's territory . They probably were not even allowed to make the silver keys, as that would be the silversmiths turf. Today, we are free to dabble in it all, and from what I have learned in Rogers book, no Guild officials were roaming the sparse populations of America checking out your ID, hence a crafts person could turn their hand to many skills, mostly of necessity. It could have been different in the Eastern parts on America. The Guilds were strict, but then again the skill level and training was very good, and you guarded your turf. Just as an amusing example of how the traditions continued: At age seventeen, and in the third year of my apprenticeship with Rolls Royce, I won a medal from the City and Guilds Institute for what was called "Workshop Technology" ... basically in the exam you were given a drawing of a chunk of machinery, and asked how to go about making it, write down each stage in order, and what needed to be done. As an aside, I was in hospital after getting kicked in the gut while playing rugby for Rolls Royce. The company supplied a car to drive me to the examination. At that time I did all my traveling on a rusty one speed bike, so I felt like royalty. Anyway, I won the prize, a nice bronze medal, and certificate issued by the ..wait for it.. "The Armourers and Braziers Guild" ! The medal had emblems that went back to the 1300's, and this was for a young fella working on aircraft jet engines. So this is just a little example of how tenaciously old Guilds still carry clout in Europe, and comparisons of European and American engraving traditions diverge. Roger's new book makes this point very clearly. Excellence may be reached by many different paths.

Okay, I know I am digressing...

best

Rod

 

[Marcus Hunt]

Superb craftsmanship Rod and please don't knock your engraving efforts, they look great! Fabulous history lesson as usual, too.

 

[Andrew Biggs]

Hey Rod

Looks great!! Perfect engraving for the canvas. Well done.

In hospital after playing rugby!!!!. An All Black would have just carried on. No wonder we keep beating you

Cheers
Andrew

 

[SamW]

Interesting and beautiful work Rod. I think I asked this before but never checked for an answer. I am told the Library of Congress has a huge flute collection. Is this true?

 

[BrianPowley]

Rod, a very nice instrument. The engraving is spot on and makes a great addition to your flutemaking skills. A perfect little accent.
Being an instrument without a definite pitch, I bet an ensemble spent a great deal of time before a performance just tuning to each other.

I enjoyed the short history lesson as well. I'm fortunate to have a unique, dual perspective of being a first generation American whose parents were born in Scotland. My parents tried to explain the "rules of the road" that were employed in the various trades in the "Old Country", but growing up in America only gave me a perspective based on my experiences. Everything that wasn't what I was dealing with was just a story. As I've aged, I fully understand how we've taken our freedoms for granted and how blessed we are as a nation.
(As a young lad, my mother couldn't understand why I had so much trouble learning "only" 200 years of American History. She had to learn about 1500 years of Scottish history by her senior year, the equivalent of our 10th grade)
Not only did I get educated about Paul Revere, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson,et al, I also learned of William Wallace, Robert The Bruce, and Mary, Queen of Scots. I've no doubt squandered the gleanings of those lessons and will forever regret not paying a little more attention. C'est la vie.
We do have the gift of exploiting all of our own talents, don't we? My ancestors, went to their grave fairly happy about their "lot in life", but were very happy and excited about my good fortune to be an American. I had no idea why they made such a big deal about it then---I do now.

 

[rod]

You are all so very kind, compadres!

Sam W, indeed the Dayton Miller flute collection is in the basement of the Library of Congress, and has many instruments, but almost no funding to keep them in good order. I have spent many an hour there:

http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/dcmhtml/dmhome.html

Brian, you and I are bonded at the hip, with your very close connection with Scotland, and Glasgow in particular. I think Jay Leno's mum was also a Scot, and Craig Ferguson, host of the TV comedy nightly show is another home grown Scot, My goodness, I forgot that a Clyde side Scot, Baird, invented the first viable television and later color TV, so we are to be blamed for that, and also the invention of the telephone. The Buddhists invented silence, which may outlast other good ideas, in the long run? Brian, thank you for your personal history and some very good insights to ponder!

Marcus, thanks! Tune up that mandolin, I will fire off an mp3 of a song that just wont let me alone.." I feel Like Hank Williams Tonight". I bet Weldon knows it?

Andrew, as a callow youth not carrying enough weight, I suspect it was a future All Black 300 pounder who bore down on me during the Rolls Royce rugby match, but maybe just a ship yard worker. Anyway, he kicked my gut open inside, after I regained consciousness, I got up and finished the game, went home on the bus across Glasgow and collapsed at home. They finally cut me open in hospital and found me five pints down, but all still inside. A good needle and thread man sewed me up and I recovered. Dangerous sport. I gave it up, bought a used motorbike, and took up rock and ice climbing and went off to explore the Arctic. Dumb and dumber. I survived it all and many more brushes with death so that I could bore you with stories over a whiskey at the Reno Show last January, then go up to my hotel room, and fall over to bash my head open on the wash basin faucet ( was not drunk!). Please do not put this last mal-adventure in my obituary? Don't build your pedestal too high, you could injure yourself falling off it.

aye!

Rod

 

[Christopher Malouf]

That's a wonderful creation Rod. Hope to see one of your flutes up close someday soon!!!

 

[rod]

Thank you for staying in touch, Chris!

best

Rod

 

[Peter_M]

That flute looks nice Rod , this is some nice cutting on he key I would say it is very fitting for the instrument.

Sure is some nice turning you do, I have to be lucky to get 4 chair legs all the same

Some good stories as well.

Peter