October 16, 2004
What is Concert Tuned?
Here's another response to a inquiry about whether a flute is concert tuned. Again, the name has been changed to protect the innocent ;-)
Hi Hans,
Thanks for your email
>Is your Golden shakuhachi concert tuned? Can you make me one in Black bamboo that is concert tuned?
In a nutshell, yes, the Golden shakuhachi is concert tuned. But, it is not as simple as that. I know you are an absolute beginner so I think what you really mean to ask is, "Is it concert quality?" before I get into this, let me tell you where I'm coming from. I play many kinds of shakuhachi flutes for many different applications; recordings for films and CDs, live music with tuned instruments, underscoring theater and my favorite, alone in a room late at night. Each requires a different kind of shakuhachi, one that the situation calls for. A concert tuned shakuhachi is not always used, even in concert.
To ask if a flute is concert tuned means that you either will play it in a concert with other musicans, study with a teacher, or just want to know if it's a "good" shakuhachi. All very valid reasons. The first is for modern players who play in traditional ensembles or who play modern music with Western tuned instruments. Professional players need concert tuned instruments. I need them. The second reason is for shakuhachi teachers so that they can teach proper techniques and know that the flute can handle them. They need to know if the student is playing flat or sharp and not the flute.
The third meaning in your question can imply that there is a standard to what is consider a good shakuhachi. It can imply that if it can be played on stage in Westen tuning, that it is a good shakuhachi. This is a little problematic as it confuses the judgement ctriteria on what a good shakuhachi is. I've had the fortunate experience of trying many many shakuhachi, more than most shakuhachi players ever will in a life time. I find that the ones I am drawn to are the older ones that are made for solo playing. These are usually not in Western tuning. There are some very very expensive shakuhachi out there ($10,000 and up) that are not only not in concert tuning but are not well tuned to themselves. In other words, some of these very expensive flutes need embroucher adjustments to be able to play in tune ( this issue is out of the scope of this response and will have to be dealt with in a future blog).
Of course, I'm not saying that all old flutes are great flutes. I am refering to ones that are well made. Well made old flutes have a wider timbral range than the modern shakuhachi. There are many many old flutes that are not well made. They fall in the same catagory as modern shakuhachi that are not well made, "the not so well made shakuhachi" catagory (I hate to say bad because it's very difficult making good shakuhachi and in the end, even a bad shakuhachi will serve someone well).
Whether a shakuhachi is concert quality is up to the experienced player to decide. That is mostly dependant upon the choice of style and piece of music to be performed.
If I am performing a classical shakuhachi piece, I need to first know what the piece of music is. Is it a Gaikyoku with Koto and shamisen? Is it Minyo? Or, is it a Zen Honkyoku? Each requires a different kind of shakuhachi. Long natural Jinashi flutes such at the 2.4 you won are favored by Zen players. These are different from the modern shakuhachi. Modern players will want a flute to play louder and easily in perfect Western pitch so they can play with other western tuned instruments and not have to struggle to be heard. A Zen Honkyoku player will play a completely different flute in concert from that of the modern player. It would be a solo concert with no other instruments playing at the same time and therefore doesn't have to be as loud. It just has to have tonal character.
After studying with several masters ( still at it), I've thus far learned that judging a shakuhachi is not as simple as "concert quality". There are piles and piles of concert tuned shakuhachi put away in bins because they are simply not inspiring. The same is true of "Antique" shakuhachi. What it really boils down to is, " Is it a well made shakuhachi, or, not so well made? And, how does one know if it is well made? One of my teachers is one of the best players all around. He can sound exactly like himself on any flute he plays regardless of quality. He will play a very expensive flute in concert right next to a "simple" flute. He's after a sound quality. The simple flute does something for him that the expensive one can not. What that is takes years to discover, cultivate, understand and appreciate.
So, back to your question, yes, I can make you a "concert tuned" flute in Black bamboo. But, you must tell me what kind of music you plan to play in concert.
Thanks again Hans, Hope this helps.
Sincerely, Perry
Posted by Perry Yung at 09:44 PM | Comments (1)
August 08, 2004
Shoddy shakuhachi repairs!
This is a photo of a shoddy repair. It was done by an American working out of Kyoto. This is the case where getting a repair done can do more damage to the flute than the original crack.
The owner of this flute brought it to me explaining that she wanted the flute to look better. I was a bit shocked to see the work and she even said the guy apologized for doing a bad job. She wanted the thin rattan, the standard used in inlay repairs these days. But, the person in Kyoto used this less expensive thicker grade. In addition, while doing the repair, he ended up marking up her flute with deep file gouges, heavy grade steel wool scratches and left over super glue. Doing this kind of work is sort of like corrective surgery on a botched operation. It's a lot more work to cover up a bad job than to do it from scratch.
There was a discussion last week at the Fourth Annual World Shakuhachi Festival in NYC where Yamaguchi Shugetsu said repairs should be done by professionals. His remark was made to someone in the audience who asked for advice on working on flutes when he has nothing to do late at night.
Monty Levenson said he should do all he wants to the flute since that's how he got started. I agreed with Monty, if it wasn't for my own inquisitiveness, I would have never gotten into shakuhachi making. But, after having seen this shoddy repair, I now understand where Shugetsu San is coming from. I mean, you can dig into your own flute and mess it up all you want but you should not dig into another person's flute, scar it up, and then charge for it! That's just not cool..
Here's what it should've looked like.
Posted by Perry Yung at 11:23 PM | Comments (0)
June 04, 2004
Lost shakuhachi Flutes!
I had been using the US Postal Service to deliver my flutes for the past five years. Recently, because of online convenience, I started using UPS. In only two months of switching over, UPS had lost four of my shakuhachi. Yes! Count'em...FOUR! Somewhere out there are two lucky people playing earth shakuhachi, someone trying to get a sound on a PVC 2.4, and one really lucky person blowing on a magnificent 2.4 rootend Hocchiku! UPS's compensation method is slow and painful. They are not even going to reimburse me for the full cost of the Hocchiku even though they were grossly negligent in this delivery. They, for some unknown reason, decided to reroute the package to an address unknown and unspecified by me. I have gone back to the Post Office. They've never lost a flute. If it wasn't for those darn lines!
Posted by Perry Yung at 10:22 PM | Comments (2)