Spurred on by Jem's experiment...

[greenspiderweb]

Just a couple of listens (on dial-up), but always have thought Arbo sounded best on his Firth:

1) Firth 2) Hudson 3) Seery. So it just goes to show, it's down to personal preference in hearing and tonal judgement.

What really counts is what the player hears and prefers, as far as I'm concerned. Unless of course, you're getting paid to play-and then what matters is pretty evident. And Jem had a good point-about what Arbo was most used to, and crapping out after playing a bit...hard to tell exactly, but not surprising that it works out that way in the end. Good call Jem.

Arbo, I'll give you a quarter if you go back to The Snows That Melt the Soonest!!!

[jemtheflute]

I think by the third time through I was relaxing some with the tune and not playing as loudly or aggressively.

Well, that might be a good thing.... but it wasn't so much that as that your focus was going - you were "missing" more and not consistently generating a clear enough tone to evaluate fairly. In fact, with all three, we might hear the flutes' characters better if you didn't overdrive all the time.

Thanks for putting in the "work" on mine!

[yellowhistler]

They're played in the order you presented them.

Flute A: Seery Pratten
Flute B: Hudson Pratten original
Flute C: Firth, Pond & Co

The first two are the loudest (gotta be prattens). And the loudest of the two is A (gotta be the Seery in delrin). Me thinks...

[ImNotIrish]

I think by the third time through I was relaxing some with the tune and not playing as loudly or aggressively.

Well, that might be a good thing.... but it wasn't so much that as that your focus was going - you were "missing" more and not consistently generating a clear enough tone to evaluate fairly. In fact, with all three, we might hear the flutes' characters better if you didn't overdrive all the time.

Thanks for putting in the "work" on mine!

It is interesting to me that you think I have it on overdrive 'all the time.' I will admit I am hitting those low D notes with a it of a kick, but I didn't feel like that was happening throughout. Another thing to keep in the back of my mind while playing!
Arbo

[eilam]

a) Firth
b) Seery
c) Hudson
i feel pretty confidant about A, but not sure about the Hudson....is it with the original head?
from my experience the seery is very dry sounding.
to me, A has a best tone, and it's interesting that some may think the opposite.....
kind of a good indicator that when it comes to tune, we each have our own North.

[jemtheflute]

It is interesting to me that you think I have it on overdrive 'all the time.' I will admit I am hitting those low D notes with a it of a kick, but I didn't feel like that was happening throughout.

Arbo, I don't mean or want this thread (or at least my contributions to it) to turn into a critique of your playing - no more relevant to the purpose than in "my" thread..... what I wrote before was relevant to the comparative process.

To be accurate, you don't appear to be in overdrive throughout those clips - in all three there are brief passages where you seem deliberately to ease off for effect, and in B & C there are places where you aren't in overdrive because you've lost it..... but I think it is my general impression of your playing that you seem most of the time to be seeking to push the flute (and yourself) as hard as you can - and that is without the addition of pulse-emphasised notes.

As for guessing the flutes' identities, we are now into the realms of using outside info. We know from elsewhere on C&F in recent times that Arbo has been main-lining the Firth, but also that immediately recently he's done a bunch of clips on the Seery. The Hudson has been up for sale due partly to disuse. Logic thence suggests the strongest sound/performance will not necessarily be on the large-bore/tone-hole Pratten flutes, and if A sounds strongest but is actually the Firth, where does that leave those who are guessing on the basis of preconceptions about Pratten style flutes? The A clip must be either the Firth or the Seery. I still can't find sufficient internal evidence in the clips to postulate IDs for B & C - they don't quite sound the same as each other and definitely don't sound close to A, within the overall strong Arbo-ness of all three, but which is which, and is either not a Pratten?

[ImNotIrish]

I don't know if this will help, or just muddy the waters, but....

here is a second take of Flute B & C. Hopefully, this addresses some of the 'fatigue' issues.
Arbo


Flute B: http://www.box.net/shared/zc23buk97a
Flute C: http://www.box.net/shared/5gk7ia6zsz


and the original, Flute A; http://www.box.net/shared/ngf2dojlj5

[eilam]

much better, and to me, it becomes much more obvious which is the "smaller tighter".....and which two are the "big open".
out of the biggies, C sounds better to me.

[jemtheflute]

Had a quick listen last night - new clips sound much better and more usable, Arbo. I haven't time until tomorrow to listen properly and evaluate and compare.....

[radcliff]

Listened all the files again... same results...

[ImNotIrish]

I don't know if this will help, or just muddy the waters, but....

here is a second take of Flute B & C. Hopefully, this addresses some of the 'fatigue' issues.
Arbo


Flute B: http://www.box.net/shared/zc23buk97a
Flute C: http://www.box.net/shared/5gk7ia6zsz


and the original, Flute A; http://www.box.net/shared/ngf2dojlj5

Time to identify the flutes:
Flute A: Firth, Pond & Co. w/ Jon C. hj
Flute B: delrin Seery, modeled after the Hudson Pratten
Flute C: Hudson Pratten original



Thanks for listening and playing along!
Cheers, Arbo.

[jemtheflute]

Hey, that was hasty! I'm still spinning it out..... (well, trying to do the next stage I promised.... and getting side-tracked.... ....as usual....). Well, I may not have gotten to evaluate the two new clips blind, nor found out if I could discern which flute was which just on a sound-to-preconception basis but my logic (using extraneous info) was on the right track!

[kkrell]

What do I win?

[jemtheflute]

What do I win?

You got in first, Kevin, but you gotta share the prize with eilam and Lorenzo!

[LorenzoFlute]

Ah, that was easy.
C flute with the huge and deep sound of the Pratten bore, B flute rough and less resonating, clearly a not as good quality flute, and then the A flute, nice responsive sound of a smaller bore and holes. It had to be like I said...