This short story centres on a young man from the small village of Bessancourt in France. He would establish his own workshop in Paris, specialising in the art of making exquisite handmade flutes, ultimately becoming one of the most renowned flute-makers in French history. The business would endure across three...
Here is a trapezoidal-shaped salterio with two sound holes. This type of salterio was played in countries like Italy and Spain by the upper-class aristocracy. It could be played using the battuto technique which used hammers or sticks or using the pizzicato or plucked technique.Proudly presented inside the salterio is...
This flute was made by Clementi & Co. The company was set up by the Italian-born composer, pianist, conductor and teacher Muzio CLEMENTI (1752-1832).Born in Rome, the young composer and pianist Clementi was sponsored and brought to London by the wealthy, British writer and politician, Sir Peter Beckford. Beckford had...
This keyed French flageolet was made by Frédéric Eléanor GODFROY. He was born in 1805 in Paris and was the eldest son of Clair Godfroy (1774-1841). He was a woodwind instrument maker from 1827 to 1844. The GODFROY family was active in the 18th and 19th centuries. They were initially...
This silver Boehm flute was made by the renowned Berlin-based maker Emil RITTERSHAUSEN. Carl Emil Cäsar RITTERSHAUSEN (1852-1927) worked for Boehm & Mendler before setting up his own workshop in his native Berlin. His Boehm flutes and piccolos were much in demand by professional flutists worldwide. His partnership with the...
This Nonon “flûte perfectionnée” is a beauty, isn’t it? It was elaborated in deep-brown cocuswood with utmost care and precision. The silver keywork is so eye-catchingly refined, featuring delicately shaped touch-pieces throughout. It is proudly stamped with its maker’s mark on every part. Jacques NONON (1802-1877) was born into a family...
If you’re never seen a ‘Silberton’ or ‘Silverton’ all-metal soprano recorder before, then now’s your chance. Here is a fine example of this instrument. It was designed and developed by the Hungarian Gyula FOKY-GRUBER (1927-2014). He left his homeland for Vienna following the Hungarian Uprising in 1956, where he studied...
Here we have a stunning contrabass clarinet made by the firm Prof. Romeo Orsi. Born in Como, Italy, Romeo ORSI (1843-1918), was a prestigious clarinettist at the Milan La Scala opera house and clarinet teacher at the Royal Conservatory of Milan. He started a business partnership with the woodwind instrument...
This gorgeous Wm. S. Haynes inline flute is crafted in solid silver and is also rare. Why rare? By consulting the company website, we can date this flute # 22842 to January 14, 1953. It is specified as a THM French flute. THM meant Super Thin Wall, so with a...
This palisander, keyed oboe was made by Friedrich KULOW (1853-1939).Friedrich Karl Hermann KULOW was born in Berlin in 1853, where he learnt the craft of woodwind instrument making. He spent some time as a journeyman working for the company HECKEL in Biebrich. He moved to Magdeburg where he worked for...
Open/closed G-sharp key
The open G-sharp key was promoted by Theobald Boehm. So, G-sharp is fingered like a G on the modern-day flute and G is fingered like the modern-day G-sharp. The open G-sharp key mechanism avoids having an additional second G-sharp tone hole, which is not optimal in acoustical terms.
The closed G-sharp key is the regular mechanism on modern day instruments as well as traditional conical wooden more-keyed flutes. G-sharp is obtained by pressing the G-sharp lever. G is produced by pressing down all four fingers of the left hand.
Theobald Boehm’s open G-sharp was not successful in the end and is no longer used in flute-making, with some exceptions.
