Chiff and Fipple Forums

The Silver Spire works nicely on an A flute, where you can get all those notes below the low D. also Jay Ungar's Ashoken Farewell. anyone know other D tunes like these? it's nice if the tune doesn't spend too much time up at the high end of the 2nd octave, which can be quite penetrating on smaller f...

, the tonal effect of all these variations (& wedges generally) is subtle. since a flute player hears far more tonal detail than a listener, i wonder how significant these effects actually are. To my ears, the difference is dramatic - not only in the sound but in the playability of the flute. I...

bang, I especially like that security wedge idea. Seems to be a design that Doug might be able to replicate. perhaps w/ better tools/jigs/etc, but as i said, it was fidgetty to make just one of them. Did you just copy Doug's wedge dimensions to make it? it is similarly sized to a Tipple wedge, but ...

first off, kudos to headwizer for the double stick tape trick. if i'd known that i might not have come up w/ this: http://www.pacificsites.com/~dog/tmp/xwedge.jpg notes: the pin is stainless steel, & there is a small divot carved into the wedge where the head rests. i used pliers to push about 3...

hello all! i've been having great fun with some new Tipple flutes lately. i've found they have a *wonderful* tone when played with a precisely focused, soft blow. the other day however, i wondered how they would sound with more air. long story short: i ended up recording a short, dynamic passage on ...

glauber mentioned an extreme bass whistle, but low whistles generally can be good for breath strength training. not having started on whistles, i was surprised how much air a newish low E Burke whistle needs. playing it makes me use my lungs more, and also helps work on keeping a solid rhythm while ...

hello all, i continue to find both my Wards very satisfying. the D is more particular than the Eb, but has a dark, smoky, mysterious quality that i just love. i think it works best with a *very* precise, efficient blow. in my (limited) experience, the D Ward plays and sounds like a really big 'Rudal...

my understanding is that as a general rule, flutes w/ narrower bores are easier to play in the higher octaves. it also seems to me that thinner walled flutes are easier to play up high. there are clearly exceptions to this, like peeplj's Hammy (which does surprise me, in the absence of any actual ex...

With the normal LH hold, the pressure of the flute against the lower lip is nearly from the side and so pushes nearly directly into the lip. With LH piper hold, the thumb presses more from the bottom of the flute. Bob- where does the flute rest on your chin/lips? mine sits right in the hollow just ...

I like not having my RH pinky on the flute. [...] Using this approach, ornamentation seems so much easier! Bob- do you ever use the RH pinky to stabilize the flute when playing quick bits with C#? or quick B-Cnat bits? when i do these with the RH pinky up my flute moves a tad whenever all fingers a...

[...]the contact/pivot point in the normal hold is too far away from the head end of the flute. [...]Using LH piper hold makes it so I can balance the weight of the flute just on the tips of the two thumbs and the lower lip. that's a really good point Bob, & one i've wondered about, particularl...

So here's the question: how far away from your index finger do you position your thumb? I.e., about what angle does your thumb make in relation to your fingers? here's a top view: http://www.pacificsites.com/~dog/tmp/pipers-top.jpg i more or less put the thumb where it is most relaxed when the fing...

I complained last week about a cramped left index; some people (Bang, for instance) kindly PMed me about trying piper's grip--something I have long viewed with disdain. hmmm. actually, i PMed a couple of suggestions for making standard grip more relaxed. i entirely respect anyone's choice of grip. ...

David L- how would you compare the Hammy and the Doyle for loudness and audibility? i haven't played a Hammy, but the Doyle seems to have a particularly bright, rich tone compared to most flutes. it seems to have more 3rd harmonic, which gives it a strong reedy sound that's quite penetrating. tia! /...

....do it again & again until the corners of your mouth hurt, and then some more! :D i realize this was in jest to some extent, but... is it really necessary to pull back the corners of the mouth so much it hurts, at least initially? i've been getting loud & hard low D's from a mild degree ...