Hey I made a flute

[skydove]

At a recent pagan camp I made a flute out of 2 pieces of plastic pipe and a cork, drilled with 5 holes that you blow down a bit like a recorder. The chap doing the workshop showed us how to hold it and how to move our fingers up and down the scale. Can anyone point me to any websites giving further instruction or give any tips, it's all coming from the heart at the moment. I can't read music but I sing a bit so it would be more freestyle that I would start with.

[Corwen]

Is it tuned like a Native American flute?

[Ade Sundog]

Was it easy to make Skydove? I wouldn't mind having a go

[skydove]

Hi Corwen, Yes it's like a native american flute.
Hi Ade yes it was easy to make, it looks like a piece of plumbing plastic pipe from B&Q 2.5 cm in diameter 38.8 cm long. The D shaped hole ( its actually a shaped long rectangle with circular ends from the drill bit) - but covered by the 'bird' at the blowing end where you can see 1mm cork coming from the piece pushed inside - starts 11.7mm from the end
( or alternatively the drill bit centre positioned 11.4 mm from the end) and is 7mm long when you see it from the outside with it's 'bird' covering. This was made by 3 drilled holes quite close together then chiselled into a long channel, you have to be careful not to spoil the rounded shape of the last hole as this would make the sound horrible. The first playing hole has its centre 18.8 mm from the blowing end then further holes 20.9, 25.5,27.4 and 29.5 cms from the end. The playing holes were done with a drill bit to make a 6mm hole. All the gubbings has to be carefully cleaned from inside the pipe and the edges on the holes smoothed and sanded. The bird is the piece of pipe that fits over the first pipe holding the cork in place and positioned over the gap made from the 3 drilled out out holes leaving the 7mm gap as above. The bird has to be split by a hand saw down it's length its not too critical length wise, mine is 4.5cm long. The cork is an unused wine bottling cork but its angled upward along its length, this is the only bit you might have trouble with as the chap had a template that we pushed the cork into before slicing it but it fits snuggly inside the pipe and as far as I can see is cut about 6mm from the far end tapering to nothing at the hole end. You sand your cork to get it smooth you can rub a bit of beeswax on it if you like then push it up the pipe with a tamper, then put your bird over it by niftily opening it out over the end of the pipe and pushing it on. Only leave about 1mm cork showing in the now D shaped hole and its ready to play.
I expect thats as clear as mud!

[Ade Sundog]

Thanx Skydove , any chance of a pic?
thanx
ade

[skydove]

Oh no not tecky stuff!
I'll see what I can do .....it may take a while......"Help Jamie, Help John there's a bloke here wants me to post a photo...what do I do?"

[Corwen]

I have a CD Rom somewhere made by a Devon NA Flute maker, with MP3s and tablature for lots of NA flute tunes, if I can find it I'll let you know where you can get it from.

[Ade Sundog]

Thanx Skydove that would be great.
Can you let me know too Corwen?
Thanx

[skydove]

Thanks Corwen that would be really great, I would love to be able to play something.
Hi Ade trying the tecky stuff now, just trying to work out how to post the photos, the first shows the longhole where the cork is with the bird moved back, the second shows it in the correct position with 1mm cork showing in the hole. Sorry they are a bit blurry!

[Ade Sundog]

Brilliant Skydove , Thank~you very much

[Corwen]

The flute repertoire CD is available from this chap:

http://www.ugunaflutes.co.uk/introduction.html

Nice flutes too, I played some at the West Knoyle Pow Wow.