Re: [Shaku] Playing the high Fs

From: Karl Signell (signell@cpcug.org)
Date: Sun Apr 11 2004 - 10:49:09 PDT


At 04:49 PM 4/11/2004 +0000, Kiku Day wrote:
>I have recently received music by the very interesting, but severely
>underrated, British composer Frank Denyer, who wrote for Iwamoto
>Yoshikazu. Just looking through the score, I thought some of the pieces
>were not written for 1,8. There are various reasons for me thinking that,
>but the one I want to ask you about is, that the very high F comes up
>several places. The F, I am talking about, I think Americans call it F6,
>so the F above the stave (with 3 extra lines) ot the 3rd F after middle C.
>I have heard
>players say that this F doesn not exist on the 1,8 shakuhachi. Denyer
>insists that Iwamoto played 1,8, and on the recordings he certainly hits
>the high Fs crystal clear. Unfortunately it's no longer possible to
>contact Iwamoto and ask him about it.

Good news, Kiku-san: Iwamoto explains in print how to play all those
difficult notes, including the high F you're asking about. For that note,
he uses his patented "knee technique," i.e., closing the "bottom end-hole
on the knee whilst making the indicated fingering [1 open]." Same
fingering for the F#, without the knee. And the publication comes with a
demo audio cassette. Iwamoto says his instructions are for the standard
1.8 flute.

Bad news: The publication is an obscure journal, Contemporary Music Review.
1994, Vol. 8, pp. 5-44, "Reprints available directly from the
publisher. Photocopy by licence only."
http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/titles/07494467.asp

Karl

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