I am intrigued by the comment on Jem’s thread that he sounds like Jem on all the various flute combinations. I am wondering if I sound like me on my various flutes. Just curious if people would be willing to indulge me playing the same tune on three different flutes: Seery Delrin (modeled after a Hudson Pratten), an original Hudson Pratten, and a Firth, Pond and Co. flute w/ Jon C. hj and barrel? If it sounds interesting I would gladly put together some clips. For those of you concerned, I shall not use reverb.
Arbo
Arbo, with the greatest respect, whilst we might well discern some differences between the flutes’ own qualities in your hands, (especially sans undue engineered distortion!), I do not think there is the slightest shadow of a doubt what the outcome would be in terms of how you have phrased your proposal!
I’d be willing to listen, but I also happen to like listening to prominent chiffers 
. I do not doubt that you would sound like you in the end though. For better or worse, most of us end up sounding like ourselves when all is said and done. At the very best/wost, we end up sounding like ourselves trying to sound like someone else! 
Okay, so that’s a ‘thank you, but no thank you?’
arbo
I have no desire to sound like anyone but me…
Arbo.
What the ‘L’?
Flute A; http://www.box.net/shared/ngf2dojlj5
Flute B: http://www.box.net/shared/vzsszk07r7
Flute C: http://www.box.net/shared/2bbqcx9sz2
You figure it out..
Arbo
I’ll guess:
A=Firth
B=Seery
C=Hudson
Okay, I’ll bite…
A= Hudson
B= Seery
C= Firth
I listened, decided … and came up with the same order as Jon C. FWIW, I think you sound most ‘like you’ on flute A.
Not at all. Just unsure quite what the point is as you framed things. You have a very distinctive sound and style which could only be you on every clip of yours I have listened to! In the OP of my thread I wrote that I knew all my clips sounded like me; that others have agreed is no surprise but wasn’t at all the point of my exercise. However, I think that in a crowd of comparable moderately competent players I would be unlikely to stand out. You would!
I’m in work today so can’t listen to your clips until this-evening. Will do so later.
A=Firth
B=Seery
C=Hudson
mmm
FL A - Strong & nice sound, placement no.2 - Silver Medal
FL B - Sometimes weak, sometimes nice, placement no.3 - Bronze medal
FL C - Nice compromise, nice tone, nice sound - 1’ & Winner
Arbo, confirmed: through those kind of recordings (mp3-pcSpeakers) You sound like “You” on all the flutes…
OK, I’ve listened to all 3 in full, then quick bursts of the starts. I was fully prepared to have a go at guessing IDs, but I honestly haven’t the faintest. FWIW, A sounds “biggest”, most powerful, open, colourful. I think you seem progressively to lose your embouchure through B & C, or at least, not to find it on those flutes (as I didn’t on my mystery flutes). That makes it rather hard to really asssess their (potential) sounds. I kinda expected (oh, the preconceptions!) to hear two obvious Prattens and one narrower bore/smaller hole, more refined type sound, but these clips give one biggy (I guess not the FHP) and two constricted (to my ears). The best, biggest sound ought to be from the Hudson, but I think you’ve been using the Seery a lot of late… I expected to be able to spot the FHP and have to gamble on the other two, but that ain’t so. This may be just because you’ve Arbo’d them all so effectively it really doesn’t matter what you play? For sure, you do sound just like Arbo (who he? 
) on all of 'em. I will guess that you’ve been playing A most most recently, whichever it is. I don’t think your performances put the flutes on a level enough playing field - that may be a problem with my set of clips too. Or my ears just ain’t up to the task.
Cop out! I wanted to do it, but I just can’t…
BTW, Arbo, you going to have a punt on my thread now (not just the ID guessing game, which I think is relatively trivial, though fun)?
Took a quick listen, and on the surface they all sound like a Seery to me (but then I have a Seery so am familiar with the tone it is capable of. I’ve never played a original Hudson Pratten, but would assume the Firth Pond & Co would be more similar to my antique Wm Hall & sons). Any minor variations (and I didn’t listen to them often enough, or simultaneously, to notice those) could easily be attributed to the human element.
While I always feel that my different flutes sound very dissimilar when I’m playing them, this experiment makes me believe that it may not be as perceptable from a couple of feet away, or perhaps just that I haven’t developed my flute playing enough to get the sound I’m looking for out of any reasonable conical simple system flute the way more advanced players have. I know it feels like I can “lean into” the notes on a large hole, large bore, Pratten style a lot further before they flip up an octave than on a small tone hole Rudall style, and feel that I get slightly more volume in general from the former as well.
Interesting post, thanks for sharing.
Thanks all for listening and playing along!
Jem, I think you are right about fatigue! I did play the flutes cold, well…with one run through. Flute A was the first one I played, and fair play to you… it is probably the one I have been playing the most recently. I think by the third time through I was relaxing some with the tune and not playing as loudly or aggressively.
Arbo
p.s.
Jem, I have listened to your experiment once all the way through one right after the other. Need a few more passes, maybe listening two at a time.
Just a couple of listens (on dial-up), but always have thought Arbo sounded best on his Firth:
- Firth 2) Hudson 3) Seery. So it just goes to show, it’s down to personal preference in hearing and tonal judgement.
What really counts is what the player hears and prefers, as far as I’m concerned. Unless of course, you’re getting paid to play-and then what matters is pretty evident. And Jem had a good point-about what Arbo was most used to, and crapping out after playing a bit…hard to tell exactly, but not surprising that it works out that way in the end. Good call Jem.
Arbo, I’ll give you a quarter if you go back to The Snows That Melt the Soonest!!! 
Well, that might be a good thing… but it wasn’t so much that as that your focus was going - you were “missing” more and not consistently generating a clear enough tone to evaluate fairly. In fact, with all three, we might hear the flutes’ characters better if you didn’t overdrive all the time.
Thanks for putting in the “work” on mine!
They’re played in the order you presented them.
Flute A: Seery Pratten
Flute B: Hudson Pratten original
Flute C: Firth, Pond & Co
The first two are the loudest (gotta be prattens). And the loudest of the two is A (gotta be the Seery in delrin). Me thinks…
It is interesting to me that you think I have it on overdrive ‘all the time.’ I will admit I am hitting those low D notes with a it of a kick, but I didn’t feel like that was happening throughout. Another thing to keep in the back of my mind while playing!
Arbo
a) Firth
b) Seery
c) Hudson
i feel pretty confidant about A, but not sure about the Hudson…is it with the original head?
from my experience the seery is very dry sounding.
to me, A has a best tone, and it’s interesting that some may think the opposite…
kind of a good indicator that when it comes to tune, we each have our own North.