My Ormiston has arrive (5 key blackwood) and I am very pleased. It is as nice as any of his display models that I had a chance to test.
The instrument is beautiful and behaves wonderfully. If anyone cares for a full review, I’d be happy to give one once I’ve had a bit more time with it. I’ve been playing it for 4 hours longer than George recommends during the break-in period (so if it cracks I have no one to blame but myself) but that’s probably still not long enough for a decent review.
Here’s a little test file that I made (I wasn’t brave enough to put down an entire tune).
VERY NICE Erik!!!
The flute sounds beautiful and it seems like you are already quite “fluent” on it.
I have been playing an Ormiston for about two years and I am still loving it. Mine is a keyless and if I could afford it, I would definitely consider a keyed one.
Please tell us more about the flute and please don’t shy away from treating us with an entire tune. You certainly sound more that capable of it!
I second Otter’s message. I’m expecting an Ormiston 5 key 2nd hand from Ireland next week. Your sound clip is really encouraging - I now have something to aim for. I’d love to hear more - sounds and review thoughts.
I’m going to do my best to not sound like a salesman, here, but as I’m very happy with my purchase I fear that it will be unavoidable. As you can see, it is nicely finished. My wife questioned whether it was actually wood. On close examination, though, it has a nice depth to it - a subtle very dark brown tone set against the black. One of the reasons that I chose the Ormiston was the silver posts (as opposed to wood) and you can see those nicely in the photo. He uses an interesting spring system; a very elegant solution that I can’t explain in 20 words or less.
The tenons are a pressed cork rather than waxed thread. Very nicely done and the fit is smooth.
The slide is actually brass; the entire head being lined with it. Where it is exposed, it is covered in silver tube (not just silver plate - it’s a good .010" thick).
Since looks is the easiest to describe I started with that. I’ll work on another clip and describe the sound in the near future. I’ll also reveal the one fault that I have found.
Erik
[ This Message was edited by: ErikT on 2002-11-19 18:53 ]
Here is a PRE-holiday clip that my wife and I have been working on (for the celebration). I will gladly take all feedback; I’m not very experienced at mixing music; a critique would be great.
The flute is the Ormiston in question. I’ve added a little reverb but no filters.
Now regarding the flaw, I need to state this carefully, because it is small and indeed common to most if not all of the trad flutes that I’ve played. If the G note were to be considered 100%, the A and E (due to their natural harmonic properties) are 95%. So it’s probably an overstatement to call it a flaw, but I didn’t want to sound like too much of an excited salesman
Erik
p.s. I had some audio problems, but hopefully it’s fixed…(pause) it is.
[ This Message was edited by: ErikT on 2002-11-21 16:12 ]
