reviol cast bore flutes

[Deasan]

Greetings,
Any reviews, experiences or opinions about the Reviol cast bore flutes would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks, Jason

[Sillydill]

Hey Jason,


I really like my Reviol Cast Bore flute. I offered to sell her before Christmas, but honestly I'm happy just to keep playing her.

PROS

The most endearing quality is its clarity! She sings with a bright clear tone and I can hear every little roll, tap, cut...
Octaves with ease, requiring very little push.
She honks! Yet I tend to use less air playing my Reviol than my Copley.
Very Light, mine only weighs 7.4 oz. (with a Mopane cap and tuning insert).

CONS

It takes a while to get used to the embouchure. Steep learning curve, but well worth the effort!
Not the most accurate tuning.
The bottom D is not a foghorn. It is there and is pretty firm, the more I play the Reviol the stronger it gets.

If you want a no-fuss wooden flute, this is about your only choice! The Reviol Cast Bore plays and feels just like a wooden flute.

Happy Hunting!

[Feadoggie]

Any reviews, experiences or opinions about the Reviol cast bore flutes would be greatly appreciated.

You might save yourself some inquiries by using the excellent "search" function provided at the upper right of the page on this site. Here's are a couple threads you might have found from the past.

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=77991
viewtopic.php?f=2&t=77991

Feadoggie

[MTGuru]

And don't forget Google site search. Like this:

http://www.google.com/search?q=Reviol+c ... fipple.com

We let the Google bots crawl all over the Chiffboard. Might as well take advantage of that.

[Hup]

I'd say this flute is fine as a general-purpose folk flute - for
playing in a contra band or church, but not so great for Irish Trad
music. I now have a keyless McGee Pratton that I play instead. That one
has not knocked my socks off either but I think it's much better.
I'm keeping the Reviol just in case I change my mind about it.

Generally - the top end of the bore is huge, then it tapers down
to a normal diameter at the bottom. The tone holes are largish -
like a late Rudall or a Pratten.

Pros:

-It is very light in weight
-The bore is indestructable - you don't oil it and it can never crack
-Middle octave is sweet, big and light sounding - easy to play
-Third octave speaks easily up to D and you can get E and F# with effort
-It is inexpensive for a wood flute and good for the price

Cons:

-Head cork has no adjustment mechanism
-No end cap unless you pay extra
-The balance (weight) is bottom-heavy so
you need some work from your right hand to hold it up
[the McGee - even with a C foot - is beautifully balanced between the
A and B holes]
-Wide spacing between D and E holes will be too much for
some people; most will need a piper's grip
-The diameter of the head joint is very big which might be
a problem for a small-handed person
-In the low octave below G you need to spend a lot of time
working out a good way of getting a strong sound. I also
found the low bottom octave fairly unresponsive - notes
often don't pop out on the run. The sound is "hissy" in this range too.
[The McGee is far more responsive and doesn't hiss like that,
but is disappointingly weak]
-The intonation of the upper and upper middle octave is
pretty sharp relative to the lower octave, but you can
learn to adjust to it. The cork is not meant be adjusted
but I'm tempted to try pushing it out a few millimeters.
[The McGee is very consistent between octaves]


BTW - has anybody posted some audio/video of tunes played on a McGee Pratten? I
haven't found any. I'm worried I might have to do it myself...

[greenspiderweb]

Just to balance this out about Hup's comments above about his McGee Pratten-I found the bottom end of it (yes, same flute) very solid and easy to hit at will. I pm'd Hup and suggested that either there is something wrong with the flute now (possibly
humidification-causing a loose joint and weak notes), or his technique. Both Cathy Wilde and Eilam have commented about the solid tone on their McGee Prattens, and I found their comments to be very accurate to my experience as well with this one that Hup now has in hand.

It does take some time to make various flutes sing, and for one to adapt. Just as Sillydill has suggested with his Reviol cast bore-the bottom end isn't easy to hit, but with time he's learning to make it sound with more authority. He's been playing about 6 years, I think, and the same for me.

Sometimes it just takes putting the time in, and usually you will be rewarded eventually. Other times, there are physical reasons that a flute isn't playing well. That should be first on the list to check-joint fit, hairline cracks, etc and a suck test, along with proper humidification and headjoint cork placement (can dry out and move without notice). Keyed flutes need to have their pad sealing checked as well.

Probably more often than not though, it's more down to competence and flexibility of your embouchure that gets in the way at least in the first few years of playing. Don't be afraid to experiment with your embouchure, and see what works best for you and the flute, and above all, be flexible-sometimes all it takes is a little movement of the lips or mouth (jaw, chin, etc) and how much of the embouchure hole you cover to make a note sound well or not. It certainly isn't easy, because you have to play in tune too, and at the same time know the music.

But hang in there-it just takes time and some effort. I've still got a long way to go, but I've come a long way since I started, and really enjoy playing, even if it is only to please my ears.

[Cathy Wilde]

Oh yeah, if you're having problems below G on a McGee Pratten there's something wrong. Those were mine's easiest notes! First off I'd check the position of my RH fingers (the slightest leak will cause problems) and, if the flute has keys, the long and short F and G#.

[tucson_whistler]

Oh yeah, if you're having problems below G on a McGee Pratten there's something wrong.

how do you line the headjoint up? straight in-line with the toneholes, or offset?

i've been playing with offsetting the headjoint a bit, just the tiniest tweaking towards or away can make a huge difference in how easy it is the hit the bottom notes. if i line the far edge of the embouchure up with the middle of the toneholes (as suggested by experts) i get a clear and easy to hit high end, but struggle to hit the bottom d. if i roll the headjoint out just a tiny bit more the high end is difficult but the bottom d barks...

cheers,
eric

[deisman]

Hi Eric,

I have been playing only about 3 years but for lower octave I do better with relaxed lips and for second octave try and focus the airstream tighter and hit the sweeetspot wherever that is on your flute

Best

Deisman

[tucson_whistler]

dear Deisman,

thanks. i know what they're supposed to do... i just can't seem to get them to do it when i want them to.

cheers,
eric

[Hup]

Huh ... I thought this one was locked.

I usually turn the head joint a tiny bit inwards - just a couple of mm.
But I also play 'straight up' or slightly rolled out if the sound isn't happening
that day.

I can get a low D with a bit of "buzz", but the trick is to get
that with good volume and IN TUNE. And to be able to land on it hard from
any other note on the fly. An example of what I think is an
ideal D is June McCormack's D - but you can't argue with Conal O'Grada's D either.

In my signature now you'll find a recording of myself on the McGee. Maybe
I should put up a Reviol recording too.

[LorenzoFlute]

I say, don't judge an instrument untill you have a decent blowing technique.

[Hup]

Don't worry, Othannon - I fully agree with you; that's why I'm keeping both flutes,
and not buying or selling anything for a while.

Now here is a recording of me playing that Reviol in the spirit of 'put up or shut up':

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGMkesMk_Is

[Hup]

... for comparison, here's the same thing on the McGee flute. I guess to
be fair you'd want a better player on good recording equipment

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLXxJf8U-0k

[celticmodes]

• I had problems with the notes below G until I offset the emb. back a bit.
  I used the butt end of a wooden spoon to move the cork. I checked with Reviol on it's placement but in the end still moved it away from his specs to match my sense of intonation.
  Took a while to get the embouchure down
  To a beginner it seemed a large air requirement but as I got used to it I realized this translated into a LOUD flute when it was filled