Flute – LINTNER, Georg Leonhard

This spectacular and rare flute was made by George Leonhard LINTNER (1794-1859), who was trained and licensed as both a brass and woodwind instrument maker – very rare at the time. He worked with his father, Johann Georg LINTNER, originally from Tyrnau in Slovakia, in their hometown of Augsburg in...

GIORGI Flute

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...

BÜRGER, Julius Max – ring-key flutes from Strasbourg

The beginnings in Germany and move to StrasbourgJulius Max BÜRGER was born in Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany on 21 April, 1844. He completed a total of twelve years as an apprentice and journeyman in several woodwind instrument workshops across Europe. This training included some work in Munich for Boehm &...

Ebony

Ebony, Diospyros ebenum or Ceylon ebony is a hard, dry, brittle wood with a very low oil and resin content. The wood is so dense it can even sink in water. Many (even the occasional flute-maker!) find it quite difficult to distinguish ebony from grenadilla (African blackwood). However, ebony is,...

Fragonard love story-courting couple motif

The terms Fragonard Courting Couple or Fragonard Love Story refer to a motif inspired by the work of the French artist, Jean Honoré Fragonard (1732-1806). Fragonard, born in Grasse, on the now French Riviera, was a painter and printmaker from the Rococo (Roccoco or Late Baroque) movement and later Neoclassical...

The unicorn

Unicorns have become all the rage over recent years and we are often confronted in our daily lives with unicorns in the form of cartoons, cuddly toys, pencil cases, hairbands and even inflatable pool loungers.A unicorn is a beast that typically looks like a horse and has one single, pointed...

Ocarina

So, what is an ocarina? It is the strange name of a wind musical instrument – and means ‘little goose’ in Italian dialect. Also known as a vessel flute, the ocarina’s chamber has between four and twelve tone-holes and also a mouthpiece which usually projects from the flute body. The...

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...

Boxwood

Boxwood is a lovely wood and it’s hardly surprising that it remains quite a favourite among today’s woodwind instrument makers. Buxus sempervirens, known as European boxwood, or common boxwood, is a species of flowering plant. It is an evergreen bush really, rather than a tree. It takes a long time...

How to look after old woodwind instruments

Every old/antique woodwind instrument has specific care needs because of its individual construction and material properties. But there are some general recommendations to follow.The playability of old, antique wind instruments is only achieved if the instrument is restored and prepared for its function. Even a short play or improper assembly...