Great Gelbu Special by Kesar. Pix. Save fifty bucks.

Finn,
I would add that Flutes, Khukuries and Didgeridoos are all connected. Didgeridoos are made by termites who hollow out the inside of a Eucalyptus tree(many species),and the Australian Aborigines (I'm not sure, but they may prefer to be called Yolngu (SP?) please excuse my ignorance)have played the hollowed out tree trunk for 40,00-50,000yrs. I thought I'd give a brief description for those who may not know what they are. But like flutes, its just a piece of a tree set to vibrating with your breath--Can't wait to play my flute with someone who plays didj, or vice versa
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Cougar,
I'm sure you're right about the F# problem, but I wanted to get the traditional key that Yvsa recommended. Well, that says it all---Yvsa recommended it. Case closed
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Maybe down the line, if I am lucky enough to be given the tools to play the F#, I'll get one that will blend with my brother's guitar!
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Rob
 
I'll stick to harmonica meself. Just about any jackass can make something that sounds like music on a harp, after a few months in the woodshed. Which isn't to say anybody can be a virtuoso. There have only been a few of them.

Still, I doubt I could play with another person at all. Can't read music, no sense of rhythm.
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My cat's got to the point now that when he sees me REACH for the harp case he runs for the hills (or the nearest sofa).
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:
What complicates the key of the F# Flute further is that it's actually F# Minor.
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Even the Bass Condor Flute is in the key of D minor but marked D to save on space I imagine.
However Carlos Nakai, Douglas Spotted Eagle and others have made some very beautiful music with other ethnic instruments as well as a symphony orchestra. But I have no idea of what key they may be playing in.
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And the Indin Flute originally is an instrument that's meant to be played by itself anyway. The Indin Flute was used by many tribes as a courting instrument.
And yet it was also used in a lot of ceremonies many, many years ago. That's starting to happen once again and I'm really happy to see that.
It's a very healing instrument for many things.

And Doc like you I have no formal music education. And when I sing I can't carry a tune in a bucket let alone be on key.
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But I have to say Doc that you could probably learn to play the Indin Flute much quicker than you might think.
All one has to remember is that it's played from the bottom upwards.
In other words you don't uncover any hole until you've uncovered the one(s) underneath it.
But after you start getting the notation down this rule can be broken sometimes to get a note that can't be achived otherwise.
It's probably the easiest instrument in the world to learn how to play and all cultures have the Flute in one version or another either past or present.
A Bone Flute was even found in a Neanderthal Grave. And the thinking used to be that this was a very brutish people with not much going for them except survival.



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Yvsa.

"VEGETARIAN".............
Indin word for lousy hunter.
 
Oh, all right then -- F# minor relates to A major -- guitars can play in F# minor with no problem at all.

But if he's calling it an F# minor flute instead of just calling it an A flute, it must be F# pentatonic minor, I guess ... well, that's okay, you can play that scale with guitars too. I am going to demonstrate heroic restraint by not rewriting The Harvard Dictionary of Music here ... it's been written already.
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I have some of Carlos Nakai's tapes but I don't recall what keys he plays in, and I have a feeling those tapes are buried in a box somewhere (I moved recently ... and even worse, I'm going to have to move again in about a month.)
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Nakai uses several different pentatonic scales. Most of the Indian flute music I've heard is pentatonic....

You don't necessarily have to understand any of this theory and terminology to play music. It can help, but it isn't essential -- so don't let it scare you ... just pick up the flute and play it.

Or pick up a harmonica and play that. The harmonica has a great advantage for people who aren't strong on theory -- you can't play out of key because the common 10-hole diatonic harmonica only has one key. You can consider that a limitation or you can consider it a liberation....


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-Cougar :{)
Use of Weapons

[This message has been edited by Cougar Allen (edited 06-12-2001).]
 
That is great if you start off in the right note, Cougar. ( point .125 probability ).

Unfortunately, if you start off on one of the other notes ( point .875 probability ) then you are well truly upgef***ed. Unless you can run impromtu riffs til you've gone and changed over to the right key that is.

A harmonica can play in any key. Just a question of whether the score calls for the notes that you have.
 
Doc,
Charlie Musselwhite & Kim Wilson seem to make pertty good noise on a harp! If you can play like them!WOW!OOPS! Living in a padded office,guess you've never heard of them!Sonny Boy,Little Walter& James Cotton aren't too bad either!
jim
 
I like Sonny Boy (that's the second, Rice Miller), Cotton, William Clarke; Big Walter's my favorite I think. Charlie Musselwhite isn't even human so I won't mention him. Ok, so I will. The thing about Charlie is he knows when not to play. . . makes him one helluva side man.

And diatonic harmonicas actually can be played chromatically using the usual note-bending techniques used for blues, etc. and some fancy stuff like overblows. Howard Levy does this, but of course he's one of those virtuosos I was talking about.

And there's always the chromatic harmonica- two reedplates strapped together and tuned a half-step apart, with a slide mechanism switching airflow between the one and the other. I don't much like the sound of most chro's, but again, there are some virtuoso players. Toots Thieltemanns (sp?) the jazz man is one.
 
Way to go Jim, I see you've been doing your research on "harp" players.

And don't forget Big Walter "Shaky" Horton, Carey Bell, William Clarke, Billy Branch, Rick Estrin (and I forgot if you mentioned Junior Wells).

A good harp, well played is a beautiful thing.

Blues



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Live Free or Die

Blues' Knife Pix
 
OK, lets step back and take inventory.......We have the didj, a couple of guitars (maybe a banjo, if Rusty doesn't get rid of it), Flutes in several keys, and a whole harmonica section.

Now we need a garage or large basement, preferably in a neighborhood with very understanding (or deaf) neighbors, and no dogs (I cannot condone animal cruelty).

All we need is a Big Sid Catlett, and we got drums
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Forgive me for changing the subject gentlemen, but if I may interject a few words that actually have some relevence to this thread here...
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I just received that Kesar GS that my fellow forumite wrote a song about, and I am blown away with how light and quick it is--unbelievable! It feels like it's made out of aluminum, only lighter. It's not quite as symmetrical as Bura's or Sanu's work, but it's fine just the same, and the finish is typical HI mirror. The scabbard and frog are particularly well done--very nice attention to detail all around, and the frog was cut perfectly to fit it. I love the Celtic-looking decorative knot tooling in the leather too. I'm amazed at everyone who saw this thread before I did who passed it up--if you guys had a chance to examine this khuk & scabbard up close, and heft it for yourselves, I doubt any of you would have hesitated to buy it--though I thank you all for saving it for me. My thanks to Uncle also.

Now where were we? Oh yeah, flutes and harmonicas...

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Molon Labe

[This message has been edited by X-Head (edited 06-12-2001).]
 
What's it got to do with khukuris (and harmonicas and didj's)?......

....
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Blues

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Live Free or Die

Blues' Knife Pix
 
:
Well for those that may be interested I just got word from Finn that Odell has found a concert model Flute for me.

Odell had to go through several he had laying around in different states of finish since this Flute is actually a discontinued model now except perhaps for special orders and although I can't speak for Highspirits Flutes I imagine that they will cost more than the originals did since they are no longer in production and extra care has to be taken with them.

I feel very fortunate to get perhaps the last one and perhaps the only one that will have 6 holes in it instead of the 5 that were on the orignal concert models. Odell is going to put the 6th hole in it for me.
And if it's like the one I have now that will effectively give me 2 keys instead of just the one.
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And I owe it all to Finn who has been a good customer of Odell's in the past.

We come here to this forum and make friends that are really special to us and occasionally one of the good friends will become an Uncle, nephew, or Brother.
And when Barb and me went to visit Finn and his mate, Finn and myself truly became Brothers. Not only in spirit and of the Flute and Khukris
but truly Brothers in the real sense of being relatives.
And when we get back to their place, hopefully this winter sometime, I will, with Finn's permission, do a Ceremony that will cement that relationship and make it public to those he wishes to invite, if anyone, and become as blood relatives if Finn would like that.
And I hope that he does. And this is a ceremony that I haven't done in a few years because of some commitments I made to myself and others.
I am very careful who I do this ceremony with anymore as some people don't know and realize what family is all about. Finn and his mate both know.
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I wish to do this so my Brother Finn will be able to have some certain items of mine when I walk West.
Certain things can only go to certain family members.

Sorry to spring this on you without any warning younger Bro, but it felt right so I went for it.
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What does this have to do with khukuris? You know!!!!!!!


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Yvsa.

"VEGETARIAN".............
Indin word for lousy hunter.
 
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