Ebony headjoint

[Baz]

Has anyone had any experience playing a wooden headjoint? I've seen a really nice polished solid ebony headjoint and wondered whether it would be worth the investment. Darker/warmer tone? Any ideas/thoughts would be welcome.

[flutepicc06]

I've played them and didn't really care for them. I love wooden piccs, but wooden flute heads just don't do it for me...They all responded too slowly for my liking, and the tone wasn't something I was interested in. I remember specifically playing Powells and Yamahas, but I believe there may have been others along the way. The tone is less related to the material than it is the construction and the player, so you may find a very lively, bright wooden head or an exquisitely dark one. As with any other head, it's up to you to play any potential purchases and see how they compare with your current setup. A more expensive or more specialized set up does not necessarily mean a better sound or easier play. If you find that the head offers something that your current head(s) do(es)n't, or if it seems to far surpass whatever you're playing on currently, then it may be worthwhile. If it just sounds kind of mediocre or doesn't play like you want it to, then you could probably spend your money better elsewhere.

[Masters7]

I do not recomment ebony headjoints. They are VERY prone to cracking. For this reason, Powell, Sankyo, Yamaha, Hammig, Bigio, Eppler and other wood flute makers do not make modern scale instruments out of ebony. Grenadilla, rosewood, violetwood, and cocuswood are less likely to crack and are usually more stable than ebony. I play on wood and sliver flutes. Both have their place in performing, and have their respective good and bad points.

Good luck in your search for something to add variety to your flute playing.

[fluttiegurl]

I agree that most wooden heads do not seem to have the response that I would like. However, just like flutes, quality makes a difference. I played a Howell Roberts head at the NFA a few years ago and loved it. The response was amazing, and the tone was very mellow. You just have to try them and like flutepicc06 said, compare them to what you have. In my case, buying an expensive wooden head was not exactly going to make my playing any better or even any more significant, so I did not buy it.

I have had a wooden head in the past that I bought to give it a try. It was a cheapo that I picked up for a few hundred dollars. The intonation was very poor and the response was horrible. However, a student of mine tried it and sounded great. She bought it from me and uses it for a chamber ensemble that she plays in. The intonation issue was solved by a trip to a tech who knew what he was doing and modified it for her (at a hefty sum). Was it worth it to her? Probably so, but it was not for me at all.

As for tone, if you are looking for something darker/warmer, I recommend trying some silver heads first. In the long run, an investment into a great silver headjoint may be a much better investment.

[fluteguy18]

As for wooden heads, I like them, but they vary a lot. I tried a grenadilla head, and I really liked it [ wasnt what I was looking for, but was nice and mellow all the same]. Then I tried a walnut headjoint that was absolutely terrible for me. I sounded more like a reed instrument than a flute.

So, wooden headjoints may or may not be for you. But, they are worth at least looking at.

[flutegeek1992]

I play on a Howell Roberts cocobola wood headjoint all the time-and I love it! I get a nice, fat, even tone and is really useful for slow movements in the lower register. Its your choice however, so try out as many hjs you can before deciding.

[lstanford]

Wooden headjoints are used, in my experience, for playing traditional Irish music. Most of those players, including myself, use simple-system flutes (6 holes-no keywork) There are some flutes with up to 8 keys which facilitate modulations, but that's not all that important in Irish music, as most of it is modal and in the Key of D.

Wooden headjoints can give a silver or gold Boehm flute a real "bark" in the lower register. Irish music favors the lower register.

Here is a link of Matt Molloy (on of the greatets flutests of all time in my opinion.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=SHcDY76a_eY
(the ornamentation can be done on a boehm flute, but is a little more difficult than on the irish flute.

http://www.robinsonflutes.com
here you can listen to some samples of wooden headjoints on silver flutes


I hope this was helpful. I think wooden headjoints seem sluggish at first, but they are well worth the struggle. It's funny, but when you practice on one for many hours and then go back to your boehm, the notes practicaly play themselves.

Cheers
Lee