Anyone play a flute?

[Tomme boy]

I have always been intrigued by the sound of a native American flute. I have been watching a lot of videos lately about them. And I think I might try making one. I was thinking about going to Homedepot and getting some poplar to make one to see if I can. And start to learn how to play. My mother has my 4th grade Catholic school recorder I played back then. I was not very good at it.

I have access to a very good private saw mill. He is a lifetime friend and has all kinds of wood he sells. I want to try this first out of something that is not expensive. Then later if it turns out well I can try my hand at something a little more expensive.

 

[richhodg66]

Where I grew up in coastal S.C., bamboo is common. As a kid, inspired by my 7th grade recorder class, tried making one from bamboo, but I seem to remember I didn't get it to work very well.

 

[L Ross]

I have always been intrigued by the sound of a native American flute. I have been watching a lot of videos lately about them. And I think I might try making one. I was thinking about going to Homedepot and getting some poplar to make one to see if I can. And start to learn how to play. My mother has my 4th grade Catholic school recorder I played back then. I was not very good at it.

I have access to a very good private saw mill. He is a lifetime friend and has all kinds of wood he sells. I want to try this first out of something that is not expensive. Then later if it turns out well I can try my hand at something a little more expensive.

If you could come up with the Mexican flute they used in the sound track of the 1982 Willie Nelson movie Barbarosa.........

 

[Jeff H]

Both of my daughters played the flute, and they and I are longtime fans of Ian Anderson, who claims he's not very good at it either - I heard him say it. This was at a small concert one of my daughter talked me into going to with only part of the band (Jethro Tull) and after every couple tunes, Ian would recline on a couch on stage and BS with the audience, answering questions. Someone inquired as to how he learned to play the flute and he said he never did - at least not correctly, anyway.

For all of us who "weren't very good," there's hope.

@richhodg66 , I was thinking the same thing - for the same reason. Any garden center, anywhere in the US will have sticks of bamboo from which one could conveniently and inexpensively craft a rough prototype before committing the time, effort and more costly material. Just make sure it hasn't been treated to kill organisms.

 

[Snakeoil]

At the risk of talking sacrilege, for your first practice session of making one, you could use a short piece of 1 inch PV pipe. Removes the need to bore the hole thru the stick. Then it's just a matter of the sound producing end and placing the finger holes in the right place.

 

[4060MAY]

I mde two similar to this, sound ok, not as mellow as wood

Making Simple PVC Flutes

Making Simple PVC Flutes: This flute design is a common one on the net, and for good reason. Not only is it simple to build, it's also relatively simple to learn and rewarding to play. It only took a month of on and of playing to be relatively proficient (meaning I could get…

www.instructables.com

 

[Snakeoil]

I mde two similar to this, sound ok, not as mellow as wood

Making Simple PVC Flutes

Making Simple PVC Flutes: This flute design is a common one on the net, and for good reason. Not only is it simple to build, it's also relatively simple to learn and rewarding to play. It only took a month of on and of playing to be relatively proficient (meaning I could get…

www.instructables.com

Well how 'bout dat!!

 

[richhodg66]

My instrumental music teacher in 7th and 8th grade was a guy named Kenneth Jackson and he was one of a handful of teachers who really stand out in my memory regardless of what their content was (it's easy to remember say, your history teacher if you love history) i got so much more out of his class than just playing a recorder and all the other kids thought well of him too. I have been far removed from my hometown for 30+ years now, but heard about six months ago he passed away and it made me genuinely blue for several days. I never did learn to play an instrument or really even learn to read music beyond very basic stuff, but the experience made a lifelong impression.

 

[richhodg66]

I mde two similar to this, sound ok, not as mellow as wood

Making Simple PVC Flutes

Making Simple PVC Flutes: This flute design is a common one on the net, and for good reason. Not only is it simple to build, it's also relatively simple to learn and rewarding to play. It only took a month of on and of playing to be relatively proficient (meaning I could get…

www.instructables.com

The ingenuity and resourcefulness so many of you guys on this forum show nevers ceases to impress me. Always makes me feel like a slacker for not doing more interesting things.

 

[Ian]

When I was a kid, my dad taught me how to whistles from the hard, dense bamboo that has been planted in a few places around here. We tried making recorders, no good. Also tried Carrizo cane but it's too porous so we split it and made kite frames.

In high school band I was able to become at least moderately competent on all of the brass and woodwinds except Bassoon, Clarinet, French horn, and the modern flute. Mouth just doesn't do the right thing for those. The pan flute also frustrated me. I wish you luck in your endeavors!

 

[smokeywolf]

While we have had a number of instruments in the house (guitar, violin, clarinet, saxophone, xylophone, piano, drums and trombone) we've not had flute. Both younger sons play piano; one also plays saxophone and drums and the other plays trombone. Mrs. smokeywolf also plays piano.
I played a little (and I emphasize "a little") guitar as a teenager.

 

[4060MAY]

I got involved in playing Irish Music about 1999
started to play Irish Sessions at the Hibernian Club, After I met a couple my Wife's cousin knew, I took my Guitar, immediately it was obvious I didn't play nearly fast enough, playing in
standard tuning, met a guy named Felim, playing an Irish Bouzouki,I had to have one
good ones were hard to come by so I made one for him and three more for other people and for myself, made from Black Walnut, Felim was suppose to teach me, instead he went back to Ireland, so I took the one I made for him to Ennis Ireland, this was my first trip to Ireland
The Irish Bouzouki is a 4 course 2 string like a mandolin, tuned GDAD, longer scale length and used mostly for backup, rhythm, using mostly 2 and 3 fingers
mandolin and fiddle are tuned GDAE, had a band for 6 years called The Muck Savages

Forgot, meeting Patrick who was from County Clare, Flute player, Whistle ,Irish Pipes, , extraordinaire, he was teaching the kids how to ply a tin whistle, so we set up and made whistles with CVPVC plastic 1/2" water pipe, making the fipple was the hardest part, would be easy now with a 3d printer, I think we make 20, fun to do, kids were great


i

 

[Snakeoil]

started to play Irish Sessions at the Hibernian Club,

I've got Irish in me, so I can can say this. I had a bunch of Irish working for me in Khafji, Saudi Arabia on overhauls. One of them played what I believe was a concertina. Basically, a small squeeze box, accordion kinda noise maker. He would honk on that thing for hours at night. The crew lived in my villa, fortunately in the wing on the opposite side of mine. The other Irishmen seemed to like the music but could only take it for so long. So, I knew it wasn't just me. Normally I like Irish music. And there have been a number of Irish bars in the past that would host Irish bands. DWI laws pretty much put them all out of business.