GIORGI Flute

Instruments, Product archive

In the 19th century, several inventors patented ideas to enable the flute to be played vertically. This meant that the flute is held vertically, but blown transversely. Enter the fascinating ‘Giorgi’ flute! The Giorgi flute was an 11-hole keyless flute to which keys could be furnished if required. The instrument had a cylindrical bore, with a flute-type embouchure on a mouthpiece which featured a tuning slide. The flute was made of Ebonite . It had eleven holes. Keys were often added to act as extensions of the fingers for those with problems with the stretch. The flute did not have a cork and the chin rested on the mouthpiece while played.

This flute construction was patented by Carlo Tommaso GIORGI. It was manufactured in Italy by Maino & Orsi in Milan and in 1896, the company Joseph Wallis & Son Ltd. purchased the right to make the Giorgi patent flute and also the Giorgi piccolo in England. Giorgi wanted to create a flute that could play all chromatic notes without the need for keys or cross-fingerings. His system involves using the fingers and thumbs of both hands as well as the side of the first finger of the left hand to cover the eleven holes.


LIBRARY OVERVIEW

Piccolo – POTTER

This piccolo is made of beautiful boxwood with ivory ferrules and a single brass key. It was made in London... read more

The Potters of Pemberton Row

The Potters were a celebrated family of woodwind instrument makers and musicians working in the Classical Period in central London.... read more

Joseph Wallis of Euston Road

Joseph WALLIS is perhaps best known for joining forces with Carlo Tommaso GIORGI (1856–1953) to produce the Giorgi flute under... read more

Cesare Vicinelli – the ocarina’s Stradivarius

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Ring-key flute – GODFROY AINÉ, Clair

Ring-key flutes are very special, aren’t they? This Clair GODFROY Ainé (1774-1841) ring-key flute is just fabulous.There were five generations... read more

B-flat clarinet – LAFLEUR & SON

Joseph-René LAFLEUR (1812-1874) was considered to be one of the best bow makers in Paris where he had a music... read more

Oboe – SAUERHERING, Hermann

Here is a grenadilla oboe with nickel silver keys that was made by Hermann SAUERHERING (1840-1909) sometime around 1900.Hermann Sauerhering... read more

Walking stick trumpet/cornet

Here is an extremely unusual and rare item – we’ve never laid eyes on such a thing before. It’s a... read more

Ebonite

Ebonite was invented in 1839 by Charles Goodyear. He found that he could obtain a black material, which was rigid rather than elastic, by mixing together and heating latex and sulphur. The result was a hard rubber and it was given the name ebonite because both the colour and consistency were very similar to ebony (heartwood).

Ebonite would go on to be used in the manufacture of many objects including high-quality fountain pens, bowling balls, clocks, electrical insulating material or saxophone and clarinet mouthpieces.

Ebonite was also employed as an alternative material for making flute bodies. It seems it was first used in flute making in the mid-1800s by New-York-based Alfred G. Badger and other makers followed suit. It was thought to be very advantageous as a material because it did not absorb water, was durable and difficult to break. It was also a bad conductor of heat which meant that alterations in air temperature would not affect the pitch of the flute.

The famous ‘Giorgi Flute’ was made entirely of ebonite (with metal rings) rather than wood by the London firm Joseph WALLIS & Son Limited in around 1900. It was not only constructed in this new hard rubber material, but had no keys!