Who here has played a mopane flute? I saw and heard this weekend a mopane Bb and folk flute by Casey Burns. With silver rings, this flute looks awesome and they sounded great this weekend, but was also being played by John Skelton in concert on the Bb and just as a demonstration on the new folk flute just for fun to a flute newbie.
Mopane is great–lovely to look at, very stable, and with some nice warmth to the tone. I’m a fan.
You can check out http://www.caseyburnsflutes.com/mopane.php for more info on this wood.
Micah
I’ve played one, made by Casey Burns. A really lovely flute in my opinion, rich warm tone.
Carol
I have a mopane whistle by Chris Abell, and apart from the fact that its dark brown color always makes me feel like I’m about to play music on a tootsie roll, I’m very happy with it. The wood seems very stable.
Same here.
I am playing a Casey Burns mopane flute in D for two and half years and have come to love the sound of it. It is warm and woody sounding in the lower octave with a strong low D; but the upper octave is very bright and clean.
A good friend of mine here in Windsor plays a Sam Murray keyed and Healy keyless and has played mine. He finds the Burns flute much brighter and cleaner than both his flutes.
It is also loud, very good for sessions.
This is only flute that I have and I can play this one for the rest of my time and be more than happy.
MarkB
I think the CB mopane flutes are very good,
and I agree about the rich warm sound; personally
I prefer the sound of blackwood. My chief problem with
mopane is that I want to eat it.
The new benchmark for flute wood,
the tree:
Colophospermum mopane -
Where does it groe?
I’m thorn to pieces in the decission on what flute I should get next. The two top contendants are Hammy Blackwood keyless D or a CB Pratten in Mopane. The CB is cheaper and shorter wait but the Hammy has got a flawless reputation and is favured by many professionals. Plus, I prefer the look on Mopane compaired to Blackwood. I just can’t decide what to get. I want a great flute that I won’t ever have to feel limited by. Help please! I need your oppinions on this one.
Thanks
Ps. I currently play an M&E R&R that I will get fully keyed for chromatic use before I get my top notch flute as my first choice for IrTrad.
Henke,
I had a CB in mopane for several years. A keyless with silver rings. Fantastic flute. I found the rich red-brown Mopane to be beautiful. It had a full bodied woody wonderful sound and was a great player. Intonation was spot on top to bottom. I gave it up for an Olwell but wouldn’t hesitate to to purchase a Casey Burns flute again.
My vote for the Burns. They’re both good, and Hammy is a great guy and one of my favourite flute players too, but the exchange rate for the Euro is a killer, these days. I’ve never seen anyone disappointed with either a Hamilton or a Burns flute. Burns is probably a little easier to play, Hamilton a little more agressive, barking. But in the end, they’re both great flutes.
I have a CB Folk flute in Mopane. I love it! Very versatile. Get the CB now and get on Hammy’s list. On a side note it looks like I’ll have to get on Hammy’s list too. Finding a 2nd hand Hammy that someone is actually willing to part with is… Well let’s put it this way. I think I have a better chance at winning the lottery than finding one…
Tony
FWIW-- I’ve made several Mopane whistles and love the stuff. Hard as a rock and turns with a surface almost like plastic. I hardly have to sand the stuff at all. Sounds great too.
Paul, how would you compare the sound of mopane and blackwood in a whistle? Anyone who feels like doing a comparison for flutes feel free too. I’ve just got a CB mopane on loan and a LeHart blackwood that’s mine but I’m not yet experienced enough to do a serious comparison. I mean, I’ve only had them for a week and I tend to play the Burns more at this stage because it’s keyless and an easy blower but I’m curious about what differences I should expect as my embouchure improves and I adjust to each. Actually, I can just about hear the features people are describing in the sound of mopane already, or at least I like to think that I can.
I have a wooden heart, but I’m not sure if it’s made of mopane. I think it must be rosewood as I can sometimes feel the thorns when the weather changes.
P.S.: keep dada
You will notice that on CB’s site, he has a picture of
his Bb flute which has a blackwood headjoint
and a mopane body, the former improves
the sound and range of the flute, I believe he says,
the latter keeps the price down. I don’t know how
to describe the sound of blackwood…Best
Mopane is warm and woody; blackwood
is more dark and precise…sort of like
rosewood on absinthe.
Just want to point out that CB has a blackwood
all wood D, which I prefer to the mopane D,
which I like fine. Best
Well, I have a great Ormiston short foot in D and I saw both a Grinter in Lance wood and a Burns Bb and D in Mopane this weekend and now all of a sudden I really love the color, plus I want an Eb (which Casey told me today over the phone he would make for me) and so I am seriously considering the Burns mopane Eb with silver rings/slide. $800.
Which is a good price. I’ve never heard a mopane
flute set up that way. They’ve all been all wood.
Micah’s Flute, if I’m not mistaken, will have silver rings and silver keys, which should look stunning once the Mopane is polished and oiled.
Loren