Baroque Flute

Irish Flute
1

:confused:
Has any one built one of these or played one?
It looks like it is not in the key of D

2

Here is a similar baroque flute from ebay.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=47102&item=7324616474&rd=1&ssPageName=WD1V

It is in the key of G, but the tone holes are much larger. It’s hard to judge proportions (ie. length), but they appear fairly similar.

Best-O-Luck!

Jordan

3

The page on MusicMakers says that they are in G.
Kinda pricey: $199 for a finished model. If I wanted one, I’d get the kit, which saves you $90
All you have to do is glue on the cork and apply a finish.

4

Must have missed that on their page.

Not really interested in it, just curious if it was the beginnings of a lamp or if any one had played one.

Thanks

5

Looks like a lamp to me.
The only ‘baroque’ thing about it are the ludicrously O.T.T. turnings! :astonished:
If it’s meant to be a ‘Baroque Flute’,then where’s the Eb key,for example? :confused:

6

Also the holes seem too large for the Baroque forked-fingerings to work. Not that they would without the key, anyway…

–James

7

I was wondering about the lack of a key also and the strange concave embouchure plate.

8

What a stunningly unattractive flute

9

With my extremely limited experience I would say that the flute looks a lot more like a medieval or rennaissance flute than a baroque flute. 1) the holes are too large, 2) it’s keyless, 3) it seems to have a cylindrical bore.

If that is a baroque flute it has to be a very early one and I’ve never seen one like it.

Perhaps someone who has studied flute history could enlighten us.

10

I’m certainly no expert on ‘Ren.’ Flutes,but all the woodcuts /pics in books that I’ve seen (for example Powell’s ‘The Flute’- necessary reading IMHO) show Ren Flutes as being very plain turned cylindrical bore instruments.
This instrument looks like a piece of cr*p.
Somehow,I can’t imagine that it plays better than it looks! :smiley:

11

Rennaissance flutes were indeed cylindrical and one-piece. They were made in a range of sizes from descant down to bass, with the tenor flute corresponding to the D flute we know today. They did not have decorative turnings. I’ve seen the range given as two octaves and a sixth–that’s really stretching it, as two octaves was about the usable range. The upper end of the second octave used vented partials as the overblown fundamental was too far off pitch due to the cylindrical bore.

Early Baroque flutes introduced the conical bore and multi-piece construction. Some of the earliest were made in 3 pieces (similar to our “Pratten” Irish flutes) with a single key for E-flat. Later 4 part construction was introduced, adding an adjustable break between the left and right hands, and a second key was added, for D-sharp. The baroque flute had a usable range of almost three chromatic octaves. The decorative turnings were an evolution of the swellings added to the joints to strengthen them.

The flute pictured in this thread doesn’t resemble any Rennaissance or Baroque flute I’ve ever seen.

You can see pictures of reproductions of early flutes at

http://www.baroqueflute.com/

–James

12

It looks to me like some “creative” entrepreneur took a recorder and made it transverse rather than endblown.

13

Okay, sorry for the misconception. So the consensus is that this is a flute with no historcal fundation at all? I think we can all agree that it’s not a baroque flute, right?
You’d be better off buying a Dixon 2pc.

Arguments welcome.

14

No argument here, sir.

You are entirely correct–anyone would be far better off with a Dixon.

Anyone seeking to learn actual traverso (as opposed to Irish trad flute playing) would be far better off with a Sweetheart maple or an Aulos polymer. These are real Baroque flutes that actually play.

–James

15

Sound advice Jim :slight_smile:
Also,a good link to Folkers and Powell to show a whole range of beautifully re-created historical Flute models-I’d love to try them all!

16

Just wanted to post one more thing on this thread, a sound sample I found on the Folkers & Powell site:

http://www.baroqueflute.com/MP3/quantz.mp3

Credits: Wilbert Hazelzet, solo flute
From: Suite for cello No. 1 (G major), BWV 1007. Transcription: Wilbert Hazelzet. Glossa Music CGD 920804
Time: c2 mins. Size: 1,307,749 bytes 16 bit stereo 44.1 KHz sampling

Almost everyone on this forum has heard Irish flute played well, either from CDs, live performances, sessions, or more likely some combination of these; however, it seems to me unlikely that as many have encountered the Baroque traverso played well.

Now you have. :slight_smile:

–James