I can probably confuse this discussion further....that's the aim, right? (heh heh)
Some of you will remember my "Self Indulgent Flute-Maker's Tour" of 2002 in which I started in the S/W U.S., swung my way north and east, and into Canada and Nova Scotia, then on to England, Ireland, NI, Scotland back down through England and home. Attending summer schools, visiting makers, players, museums, etc, as one does. And attending 32 sessions in 64 days. It was hell! (Heh heh!)
http://www.mcgee-flutes.com/2002trip.htmBut (arguably) relevant to this discussion is what I found in terms of playability of flutes. I played anything and everything I could get my hands on (it was a fact-finding mission), and, with all the playing I was doing, I was in good form (after the jetlag on the first week!).
What I found was, the closer I got to Ireland, the flutes got harder to play. My flutes were easiest (to me, of course, and that's only natural!). U.S-made flutes came next, then English, then Irish. I really struggled to play Hammy's and Sam's.
And a week or two back, I think the same (but inverted) was reflected back to me. The phone rang, and Jesse called out to me in the garden that a Fintan Vallely was going to drop in in the next hour or so. Now given we live in a tiny obscure village by the sea in rural south-east New South Wales, that sort of thing doesn't happen often. Is nowhere safe? Fintan duly arrived, and we got chatting about flutes (surprise, surprise). He asked to see one of mine, and I proferred him my own playing flute - my large-holed "Rudall Perfected" model. He didn't last long on it - "the size of that embouchure" he gasped, "I'd soon run out of breath!"
I cast around for anything else to show him. All I had was a keyless Grey Larsen Preferred being readied to send to Grey. Really small holes, small bore. I quipped "well, you're not going to like this", on the basis of the very small holes. He
did like it (blowing me quite out of the water). What's more, he got the most sound out of that small-holed flute I've ever heard anyone do. It was like he was going into pressure mode, rather than flow. That
would be hard to keep up on the Rudall Perfected, or a Prattens.
Interestingly, he commented on a flute he did enjoy, a 19th century Blackman's, and I had one in my collection which I pulled out. Again relatively small holes, again the high-pressure blowing approach, again very powerful tone.
It all confirms my feeling that there are a wide range of approaches to flute making and playing, and there seems some evidence that there are regional variations. Probably a PhD in that for somebody....
(Nudge, nudge....)