Cornelius Ward - The Flute Explained§ 7. THE BORE, ETC.ALTHOUGH the apertures should be placed
consistently with the ratio of the divisions The lengths of the tubes required for each
of the fundamental notes of the flute Again, we have repeatedly stated that the
air in the flute is divided into parts or By the scientific reader it will be readily
understood that mathematical and The same line of reasoning applies to the
laws of air in tubes. But when, in addition, it is considered that
not only are pneumatic and quasi-hydraulic laws There is, indeed, a most extensive and
beautiful parallelism and analogy between the two classes of
experiments, viz., with strings and tubes; embracing even curious
collateral and supplementary phenomena: but here, as in astronomy and
all the physical sciences, corrections and compensations must be
applied, corresponding with the contingencies of the occasion. To
reduce these, also, to rule, and to apply them skillfully, requires the
aid both of science, and a mass of experimental facts: and we
claim for our instrument, the application and embodiment of these
principles in their fullest extent; fearlessly asserting their almost
total disregard in all other flutes. To confer power and firmness on all the
tones equally throughout the scale of the flute, - to ensure the facile
production of the true quality of sound by a well managed touch of
the breath, -and to provide the means of pushing each note to its
utmost extent of power with moderate exertion, a certain size and
shape of bore only is fit and proper to be used in connexion with the
correct arrangement of the apertures. If the bore be large beyond the
proper measure, more force of breath must be exerted to produce the
sound; but no equivalent increase of power will result. Instead of
this, we only induce a stiffness, and increased difficulty for the
embouchure, which exhausts the player, and produces a tone of inferior
quality and power. A small difference in the calibre of the
bore has a great effect upon the qualities of the instrument; as will
be imagined when it is known, that the largest and the smallest do not
differ more than about one-thirtieth of an inch. The bore of the head should be cylindrical;
but that of the rest of the flute of a taper form. From the point
where it commences to taper, it should contract by a regular
declination to half the diameter of the cylindrical part. If it
contract more or less than this, then the due relation will not be
preserved, in tone or tune, between the notes formed at the lower part
of the instrument and those formed at the upper part; or else the
harmonics wi1I be false; or, worse still, a tendency will be created
to produce harmonics, especially in the act of increasing the force of
breath when directed for the lower tones, which are consequently
deficient in firmness and certainty when attempted as forte notes. We say, that, to ensure firmness, power, and
certainty, throughout the extent of the instrument, with correct
intonation, the longitudinal section of the bore should be two
straight lines, converging at the lower end to half their distance at
the upper. To make a bore in this shape is much more difficult than to
lessen it in an irregular way, as some pretend is necessary in the
ordinary flute. No distortion of the bore will compensate for the
erroneous positions of the apertures, nor for the muffling effects of
cross-fingerings. Nothing in short, but the union of correctly placed
apertures with a bore of true size and proportions, will allow of
correct scales being produced by a regular transition of the direction and force of the breath. The bore of the ordinary flute is made
larger in this country than it should be for a flute properly
constructed; because, from the enlarged capacity, and the necessarily
increased force of blast, some of the cross-fingered notes become a
very little better. The quack vendors of these instruments mystify
the pretended effects Akin to this mystification, is the course
pursued in many instruction books. We have not seen one which
candidly informs the learner of the manoeuvres required to play the
ordinary flute in tune. They give a vast variety of modes of fingering
the same notes; with the object, one might suppose, of perplexing the
scholar, or of showing the author's ingenuity. Their silence on the
one hand, and their profuse loquacity on the other, furnish strong
evidence of their having (in the old flute) a bad case to deal with,
requiring a large amount of special pleading, and a studious
concealment of the important truths. The authors of these books do not tell the
student that the intonation of the instrument rests entirely with the
performer, and depends upon certain zig-zag manoeuvrings of his lip,
and other subterfuges. They do not point out which notes require the
flattening or sharpening, the forcing or tempering process. Oh, no!
the flutes they recommend are, doubtless, well in tune: the student
is to blame if he cannot play in tune; and he must take expensive
lessons to learn, not how to tutor his own ear, but to correct the
false intonation of the instrument. The good old Quantz was more honest and
candid. He gives full, clear, and true directions for correcting as
far as possible the bad notes, which he considers and terms the natural
defects * of the instrument. And he states that unless the
player can use his lips and chin with dexterity, under the guidance of
a good ear, he can never become a musician on the flute. Quantz was
evidently not interested in puffing any particular sort of
flute; although he gives a true account of an improvement of his own.
His remarks upon the method of playing in tune, and indeed upon all
other matters concerning the instrument in relation to the performer,
contain more sound information, and in a better form, than any modern
work on the subject, although he wrote one hundred years ago. *
Natural effects, we should rather say, of erroneous construction. Our
flute demonstrates that such defects are neither natural nor necessary when the necessary natural laws are not contravened. On, to The Patent Terminator and Indicator |