Re: The Perfect Bore

From: Mark Millonas (millonas@email.arc.nasa.gov)
Date: Thu Sep 18 2003 - 14:34:17 PDT


>Do you know where one could get this kind of work done? I don't
>care about color, the experiment is simply to see if, in fact, there
>is something to bamboo as opposed to other materials, if the bore and
>hole placement/size are precisely the same between the two
>instruments.

I think Monty Levenson claims to be able to do just this, to copy a flute
bore to thousands of an inch accuracy.
Maybe if he is listening he can respond.
And I'm pretty sure he must already have enough experience doing this to
answer the question of how well this reproduces
the sound without copying your flute, but I'm guessing he could if he
wanted. From reading the notes
on his web site the measurement process might be quite involved, especially
if there are fine-scale variations
in your bore. Perhaps he can address the question of what, if anything,
might be missing in his reproduction process.

Which brings up another question I've been wondering about. I just started
playing, and I bought
a student model instrument from Monty with a cast bore. I'm assuming it's
cast from some model
instrument he has measurements on, and just out of curiosity, I wouldn't
mind knowing from Monty the maker, history, lineage
and whatever of the instrument whose bore is reproduced in my
instrument. I'm guessing that there are numerous legal,
and otherwise ethical reasons not to blab this all over the place,
especially if the maker is still alive, but maybe
he could tell me off line.

And then there is the important question of, once one overcomes their sense
of furukusai,
will chicks be more impressed with my student shakuhachi if I tell them it
is actually an exact copy of a really great instrument :-)

m.

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