Anyone make the dual-chambered/beaked English flageolet?

Whistle
1

Though the term “flageolet” appears to be applicable to duct/fipple flutes in general, I recently dug into some online reading about the specific type known as the “English flageolet”. I’d seen these in museums, and in their “double flageolet” format, but was intrigued by an earlier mention on C&F that the “barrel and beak” construction of later English flageolets softened the tone and smoothed out the air pressure, similar to what we see in the dual-chamber system of the modern Native American flute.

Note in this image how much chamber there is before you even get to the air window:

Here’s a not great clip of one on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=98aB56-1OeI&feature=results_video&playnext=1&list=PL31EAA8F070BE24BA

And a clip of a double-flageolet: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0MLeySdZILc&feature=autoplay&list=PL31EAA8F070BE24BA&playnext=2

I know there are plenty of folks making wooden “tin” whistles that would basically be equivalent to earlier English flageolets, but is there anyone currently making whistles that have a chamber prior to the fipple? It’s an interesting-looking design, and I’m curious as to how it would play.

Any insight as to any contemporary experimentation with this sort of design?

2

Something posted a while ago called the “Matheu whistle with intonation wheel” had a similar mouthpiece and labium placement. Simpler, and made out of metal, but in the same vein as your picture.

3

Alba Aerophonics used to make French-style flageolets in aluminium, not too dissimilar. Stacey might have some old stock tucked away. http://www.albawhistles.com/index.php

4

Don’t some sorts of Native American flute have a similar setup? A bit like a big whistle but with an air chamber followed by the actual windway. Or so I vaguely remember.

I think they also used to put a sponge in the air chamber of the flageolets to dry the air before it passed into the windway, presumably to stop condensation blocking it.

I haven’t played one but I imagine it’s less responsive to breath pressure than a normal whistle/recorder setup.

5

Yes. It’s called the slow air chamber. It is the externally ducted to the labium which is basically upside down - edge at the top and ramp cut toward the bore.