Nice to hear someone else is playing a Blackman, T Jones. Do you have any clips? I have heard that Wylde possibly made mine as well. Mine has large rose engine turned rings, and is cocus and nickel. I’d imagine these rings were the impetus for Chris Wilkes’ patterned ringed flute as I 've never seen rings like this on any other 19th century stick.
I also have a Peter Noy boxwood flute with horn rings, large modern embouchre on a thinned head, and amber end cap. I traded an Olwell Nicholson in boxwood for this flute. For me the Noy can be pushed harder without breaking the tone than the Olwell. I’ve never played another flute like it. Loads of room to move around on the embouchre cut. I like it much better than the Olwell and find it has much more interesting tone. Overall they play rather similarly though. Both flutes to me were more fun to play than listen to. I like the strip of hard horn giving the emboucher a sharp edge. It may just be a tactile thing but I could see wanting it on a newly made flute.
When I got the Blackman the Olwell sat in its case most so trading it away was not too difficult a descsion. I remember when this Noy was brought to Boxwood sever years ago it made a big impression on folk there. When I saw it was for trade I gave it a shot as I had never played a Noy. The Noy does come out of the case, but again it just doesn’t have the sound I want for my music. The Blackman does.
Patrick, is your Noy a large-holed model? I play a small-holed Noy with Rudall embouchure. I find it can’t be pushed as hard as an Olwell, but I like it for stuff other than ITM. I have an Eflat key for it, and with the small holes it’s fully chromatic with just a little embouchure gymnastics.
Hi Charlie,
Not sure if the ability to push it is because of the bore or emboucher cut.
The bore and holes are bigger than the Olwell Nicholson. I think Peter may still call this a Rudall, however but I am not sure.
Don’t get me wrong the Olwell is a cracking flute just had a narrower sweet spot, then again that is for my lip.
I suspect it’s more a function of a deep steep emboucher chimney. You can blow softly in tune and then push the note louder and louder and it takes longer to break. Allows for louder tone and more dynamics. Gives me a crunchier tone which I sometimes want.
Hope all is well with you,
Patrick
Peter is quick to point out that his flutes are neither Pratten nor Rudall. The small-holed flute is an interesting beast – very little taper. I have a little trouble playing the top of the second octave in tune.
I’d missed that you have the modern-cut embouchure. Peter sent me a flute with a couple of headjoints to try out. I loved the power of the modern cut – I agree that it has a huge sweet spot and can be pushed incredibly. In the end I went with the Rudall cut, which I found more capable of changes in texture.
I think so, in the vicinity of 15th and Walnut, or thereabout. I stumbled across it near my grandparents old house on Smedley St, if you know where that is. Hadn’t been in the neighborhood for 10 years or more, but that store looked like it had probably been around since I was a kid, but I never noticed it. Well, maybe not since I was a kid, I’m 49 now so… Anyway, it was about 10-12 years ago that I ran across the store and the flute. A female friend and I went into the place and asked if they had any vintage wooden flute. Quite frankly the guy was a dick: “What price range?” “We’d like to see what you have, Rudall and Rose, Pratten, anything of the sort please” “How much are you willing to spend?” “It doesn’t matter.” “Well I need to know what you budget is.” Ugh, what an ass. Truth is, if he’d brought out a perfect condition R&R, we had the means to purchase it on the spot, so we were really aggravated that he was attempting to qualify us like a freaking car salesman. Eventually, and with a whole lot of put out attitude, he brought out a 2-3 trays of flutes in mostly shitty condition, including the Wylde. Everything was cracked and it appeared he made no attempts to humidify the instruments in his shop. Any of this sound familiar?
Because they suit my style of playing very well. I mean the link-mouth-lips-embouchure after a long period of trial and error. The sound they produce on a good day. The way they look
I was thinking when I was playing today that you definitely can’t go wrong with buyng a Patrick Olwell flute nore with a Grinter which are my two favourite flutes but I would never part with the Martin Doyle, the Glenn Watson or the Hammy Hamilton so if you pick one of these flutes you’ll find your favourite flute. Just saying…
Don’t know about his particular one, but the several I’ve tried are completely different from an Hammy or Doyle. Smaller bore, different embouchure cut etc. All three the makers make nice flutes, the rest is a matter of taste…
I never managed to get the right feeling with Watson flutes… I’m a big Hammy’s fan, even if this month I’m into the “Heeey, well, I’d like to get a Cotter” mood… About having a “second flute for travel” I think that it must have the kind of embouchure you know to have an immediate confidence with…
About having a “second flute for travel” I think that it must have the kind of embouchure you know to have an immediate confidence with…