It’s been awhile since I’ve been on this messageboard, I hope everyone is doing well. I have a question about a whistle I picked up at a yard sale yesterday.
It has the six finger holes, but it looks like a flute, and the fipple isn’t on the end, it’s sideways kinda like a ‘gym whistle’ soldered onto the body.
You hold it like a flute, and blow into the fipple. It’s a curiosity, but it plays sweet (atleast, as sweet as I am able to play) and is in the key of C.
Check Elderly Instruments. I think I saw one there, and I’m pretty sure there’s a thread about such an animal in the archives from a few months ago. Any identifying stamps or logo on it? That’d help. Also might want to check out eBay.
Good luck, and keep us posted!
serpent
Didn’t someone post a picture of one recently? If I recall correctly, they were originally designed for military fifers who couldn’t master the embouchure and were basically a fife with a whistle-like mouthpiece mounted for transverse playing.
Yeah, sounds like a melody flute. I think the WhistleShop has the Mel Bay ones. The all-metal ones like Fibulo found can be found all around and some are quite old.
Cheers,
Aaron
Interesting! I’ve a question regarding these. I have two Melody Flutes, one plastic and one nickel. I’ve always wondered about them - when one is building them, do you start with a standard C fife and then figure out how to design/affix a mouthpiece. or is it designed from scratch, i.e. not really either a whistle or a fife but a third thing which differs from the other two? Also, the Melody Flutes seem to have been only in C. Could they be built in other keys?
Mine is an old C, Nickle Silver, from the "Melody Flute Company, Mass.
I call it a fife with training wheels. They were indeed used as far back as Civil War for quick-trained Fife regiments. I have heard of one that old. Easier to play outside, in a breeze. Or if you don’t have an embouchure. Mine does not have a great 2nd octave, perhap repositioning the cork would help.
The one I built is a Low-D, the mechanism operates like a whistle and it could work in any conceivable key.
This is how I built one. First, I made one of my PVC flutes.
The I took a piece of round brass tubing and a piece of rectangular brass tubing that perfectly fits in the round tubing.
The bottom of the round tubing is cut/sanded off so the the rectangular piece and sit and the edge of the hole.
The rectangular piece is filed and slightly chamfer on the inside just as you would chamfer a fipple.
The rectangular piece is then aim to see the opposite edge of the hole with most of it flow over the hole and small bit of it flowing below the edge.
Then, a little super glue to hole the piece in place.
After that, I surround the piece with Sculpey polymer clayand made a wall around the embouchure hole like “ears” on fipple.
Bake the piece very carefully in the oven. Keep temperature down to the minimum that will cure at. Otherwise, you’ll have a melted mess.
A Low-D tonebody, a little primer and candy apple red paint and it’s completed.
I just picked up a Melody Flute for $5 at a local Antiques fair. The sound is OK…rather “chiffy”…but it’s all-metal (appears to be nickel), and in quite good condition. The upper register is really very easy to hit and hold…even easier than the bottom of the lower. It says Melody Flute, Laurel, MD near the mouthpiece, and has what looks like a serial number near the first hole. It’s in the key of C.
Thanks to those who’ve posted to this thread for telling me a little about it. If anyone knows more, I’d be delighted to hear!
