So its 6 degrees F. outside. Normaly I would not venture out to the postoffice on a day like this. Its all I can do to get out and feed the boys when its this cold, but today I figured my new flute would be there so crank up the old Honda (82) and head to town. This hunk of mopane looks just like milk chocolate, realy. It is a thing of beauty. Biggest holes I have ever had on a flute. But the spread aint bad. Heck I should be able to play this thing. Put it together, sweet fit, and give a blow. So nice. I held it in my lap for half an hour to help warm it up and got about 15 minutes worth of tooting on it and it is everything I wanted. Not that I got it out of it in that time but I know its in there. Have to feed the boys right now but in an hour I will be back for another crack at it. I know I should break it in slowly but I don`t count the first day with a new flute. Tomorrow I will start breaking it in. I have to do a bunch of sliegh rides tomorrow so I will be to cold to play anyway. Thanks Jon, its a beauty.
Well, congratulations Tom, can’t ask for much more than that! Your first impressions are pretty good for the short time playing it-and it should get better the more you get to know it! Sounds like you made the right choice.
Play it in good health, and stay warm! We just got over a cold snap here, and it was 9 degrees in the morning a couple of days in a row-way too cold for me, but now we’re back to normal, just regular Dang Winter!
Ahw. I want that flute. My new dream-flute is a 6-keyed Jon-C Pratten in Mopane, (where is the drool-emoticon when I need it?).
I have Jons tour flute here with me right now, and I know what the man is capable of.
And Jon, everyone who tries your flutes seems to agree their great. Remember what I said about me and that waiting list
Hey I got a new Flute this weekend also, well actually it is used. A Mark Hoza F Flute which is great looking and from the bit of playing I did it sounds great.
A note: I believe that the Casey Burns Folk Flute that I have is the same one shown here (via another board member). It’s now slightly darker than the picture shown, but still a lovely piece of wood.
I really like the look of Mopane. As my skills improve, I’d like to try other flutes (and materials), but if I were commissioning a flute on looks alone, I can’t think of any wood I’d prefer.
I think I’ve been boosting Mopane for flutes longer than anyone
else around here - and its gratifying to see other makers using it
finally. I am always impressed by this wood and its beauty.
Lately I’ve been enjoying a few special cuts featuring some incredibly
wild grain - see the somewhat dirty scan (my scanner is somewhat
scratched from scanning fossils) below of a current flute project
for a special client that will eventually have keys and the works.
Well, if you all dont mind :smiley: Id like to get back to my new flute. I could`d get a sound out of it last night. Course it might have something to do with the fact that I smacked myself in the mouth twice yeasterday with a bit while getting the boys ready for the days work. They were feeling pretty fiesty and I was feeling pretty tiered. I was using the small sled and the big boys get a little carried away when they are pulling it and we did have some fun. Then I stopped them out in the field because the people we were hauling wanted to take a picture of themselves so I got off the sled so as to not be in the picture and the boys took off. So there I was with the reins in my hands beside the sled flat on my face being drug along some real rough and hard snow. When I got them stopped and we got back to the barn I noticed the fingers on my right hand were a bit torn up. That was after I took off a pretty substantial pair of leather gloves. So with swoolen lips and mangled fingers I am again humbly waiting to start again on my new flute.
Interestingly, the grain and colour of my Burnes Ergonomic most closely resembles the McGee photo above.