can you make a 180 deg. bent whistle?

[Thomas-Hastay]

Charlie

If you fill the copper pipe with dry sand and cap the ends tight, you can bend the tube any way you want without deforming the circular diameter. You must anneal (soften) the copper pipe with a torch though or "ripples" will show up. I've made a "flute de Amore" in G, bent into a flattened "S" shape. I use it quite often at sessions.

[ErikT]

I posted a picture of the "Willy Wonka" whistle that shows it bending both at the top and along the bottom. Kind of like what Thomas mentioned.

[allezlesbleus]

[Charlie]

holy cow!!!

what on earth is that thing? are there any sound-files of it available?

[allezlesbleus]

holy cow!!!

what on earth is that thing? are there any sound-files of it available?

Charlie,


It's called a serpent...it's a really weird instrument and apparently a beast to play, I first came across them when I went to a PDQ Bach show.

I snagged the image of this website (they have sound files there):

http://www.serpentwebsite.com/index.htm

Check out the pictures! I can't imagine impressing any ladies by serenading them with one!!!

Apparently the English would ride into battle playing these honkers...now that would strike fear into the heart of the enemy (either that make them weak with laughter!).


Some opinions of others:

Willi Apel (1893-?): "A drain pipe suffering from intestinal disorder."

Edwin Evans (1871-1945): "The Serpent was such an odious affair that nothing short of compulsion could explain its employment."

Michael Praetorius (1571-1621): "Most unlovely and bullocky."

American Music Journal 1835 (on a performance by one Mr. Young): "The Serpent is the last instrument in the world we would wish to hear figuring in a concerto within doors - Mr. Young really plays beautifully."

Hector Berlioz (1803-1869): "The essentially barbaric timbre of this instrument would have been far more appropriate to the ceremonies of the bloody cult of the Druids than to those of the Catholic religion. There is only one exception to be made - the case where the Serpent is employed in the Masses for the Dead, to reinforce the terrible plainsong of the Dies Irae. Then, no doubt, its cold and abominable howling is in place."


PC

[Martin Milner]

While I was searching for this Pic Allezlesbleus came up with an even bigger one! This is the original size, called a Church Serpent, and there was a military one too.

As there only appear to be six holes, one imagines the fingering must be much like a whistle...

[Jack]

I want one.

[Zubivka]

Willi Apel (1893-?): "A drain pipe suffering from intestinal disorder."

Interesting :
waaaay before Colin's Cosmic Drainpipes (aka Overtons)
a reference to a Colitic drain pipe.
What's next ? Coalitic drainpipe (cf. WhOAR)

Hector Berlioz (1803-1869): "The essentially barbaric timbre of this instrument would have been far more appropriate to the ceremonies of the bloody cult of the Druids than to those of the Catholic religion. There is only one exception to be made - the case where the Serpent is employed in the Masses for the Dead, to reinforce the terrible plainsong of the Dies Irae. Then, no doubt, its cold and abominable howling is in place."

Hang Berlioz, then burn him US-bacon-crisp and disperse his ashes through an Ophicleide!
He's already the culprit for first bringing the "transverse-blown multivalve Theobald Boehm system flute " (aka hypercharged V-12 gas processor) in a Symphonic orchestra.

Actually, Berlioz used both the Serpent and Ophicleide in his Solemn Mass and the Symphonie Fantastique.
Both have been recently (90's) recorded by J.E. Gardiner with the "Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique" with the real things.

[Daniel_Bingamon]

If the fipple head were angled at 90 degrees, a low whistle could be held sideways, like a flute and ease the stretch even more.

Thomas, that's right. It does take stress off of the right hand.

This is my experimental transverse Low-D whistle. I like playing it at an angle rather than the full 90 Degrees.

[LimuHead]

It seems it would be possible to make a whistle similar to a rackett (a funky double reed instrument of old). From what I understand the rackett uses a snakey internal chamber carved into wood instead of a long tube. This makes the instrument look like an ocarina on the outside, but is supposed to produce a low bell tone that belies its diminutive size....

You can see what a racket looks like on Lark in The Morning's website:

www.larkinam.com

Any whistle makers want to try and make a whistle version? I'd buy one.

(I am purposely avoiding the obvious 'racket' puns, but feel free to interject should the urge overwhelm you )

[ErikT]

Basically, a shuttle pipe whistle

That'd be interesting. I had a chance to inspect one of Dave Shaw's shuttle pipes close up and I find them fascinating.

Erik

[ErikT]

Thomas or Daniel (or anyone else),

Is there a material that would be inserted into the tube that would be maleable enough to bend with the tube, but solid enough to keep it from collapsing? Maybe a lead plug that could then be melted out after the operation is complete? What do you think?

Erik

[allezlesbleus]

It seems it would be possible to make a whistle similar to a rackett (a funky double reed instrument of old). From what I understand the rackett uses a snakey internal chamber carved into wood instead of a long tube. This makes the instrument look like an ocarina on the outside, but is supposed to produce a low bell tone that belies its diminutive size....

You can see what a racket looks like on Lark in The Morning's website:

www.larkinam.com

Any whistle makers want to try and make a whistle version? I'd buy one. :P

Whilst doing my serpent research, I came across the rackett (on Musica Antiqua's site, credit where it due) and was also intrigued by the whistle possibilities. It would be interesting to maybe make a little-but-low whistle.

I'd buy one too! :)--

I wonder what a high whistle with a convoluted tube would be like? You could get a High D that you could just put in your pocket and not have folks look at you funny-like (Is that a whistle in your pocket or are you just glad to see me? --Mae West).

PC

[Thomas-Hastay]

EricT

As I said above, dry sand has been used by instrument makers for centuries to fill metal tubes before bending them. After the tube is filled with sand and sealed, the metal tube is "annealed" or softened with a heat. This technique allows a Smith to bend the tube without collapsing it and the sand is "heat proof". New "Tech" methods use tempered steel springs inside,like a snake,to bend tube.

[allezlesbleus]

EricT
"annealed" or softened with a heat.

Lexical question: I always thought that "annealing" refered to the slow cooling of a material as it goes from the liquid to the solid stage (like the annealing ovens in glass workshops, to prevent the cooling objects from cracking...OK, so glass never *really* gets solid but you get the idea).

For me, the softening of a solid just before the melting point was called "sintering"...anyone know for sure? I've seen a couple of different folk call this annealing and I'm just curious.

PC