Fujara flute - three-hole bass whistle

[Mark Meckes]

Has anyone made this flute with bamboo?

From the article about Fujara Flute History - Author: Karol Kocik
"... Basically, Fujara flute is a gothic three-hole bass whistle. The three hole whistles were in the 12. - 13. century Europe very famous and wide spread. They used to be played in a musical configuration together with a tambour (small hand drum). Because these bass whistles were shorter and had only 3 holes, it was possible to play them with just one hand. Thus, often the musician accompanied himself playing tambour on his own: playing the three hole whistle in one hand and the other hand beat the tambour.
Substantial expansion of these instruments in Slovakia confirm the period papers, for example a picture of a flutist with tambour under the Ostry castle, or two three-holes whistles from the 13.century acquired lately by Phdr. Hanuliak during excavation in the Pusty castle near Zvolen. ..."

See complete article Fujara Flute History (http://www.fujara.sk/about/history/history.htm)

From the web site - Folkart Slovakia (http://www.fujara.sk/about_us.htm)
Fujara Info / audio samples ; How to play Fujara ; Fujara Forum ; Catalogue of artists works.

[Angel]

The construction of a Fujara is absolutely plausible. In fact, this flute has some reminiscences on the moseño -a Andean flute that has already done in bamboo (traditionally, Aulonemia queko).
Fujara seems to be a harmonic flute, so it is played in upper registers instead of the fundamental, bass notes. Moseño is exactly the same in Bolivia. The moseños played in bass register were done in South American cities.
By means of upper registers and at least with 3 holes, a complete diatonic major scale could be played. I can explain how if any interested.
The xistu of the Basque country, and the Phusipía from Bolivia (the last in bamboo) use the same arrangement of 3-4 toneholes.
I wonder ¡f Fujara is designed to play a major diatonic or another scale.

Angel

[Angel]

Fingering chart for Fujara flute
http://goss.rho.net/flute/htm/fu_fingerings.htm

[mamasiga]

Hello Angel,
"By means of upper registers and at least with 3 holes, a complete diatonic major scale could be played. I can explain how if any interested."
YES PLEASE, I would love to know that. I am not musicaly educated so these things are still not clear to me but I am very curious about it.

Tomas

[Angel]

The fujara, as many flutes, consist in an open-open tube. that means that it can play several notes by overblowing -the narrow the tube the more the tones can it overblow. The lowest note is called fundamental.
These overblown notes (modes) follow the rule that are integer multiples of the fundamental, say, if you have a fundamental of 100Hz, the modes will be 200, 300, 400...and so on.
That means in music, that if you have a fundamental G2, the 2nd mode will be G3, the third D3, the fourth G4...and a succession of notes called harmonics.
Between the fundamental and 2nd mode of vibration is a wide musical distance (an octave) But notice that between the 2nd and 3rd, the musical interval is not so large. As you go up into the harmonics, the distances are shorter.
So, the clue to build a harmonic flute is to inhibit the first fudamental mode, and then make toneholes to cover the musical gap between 2nd (G)and 3rd(D) You need A, B and C...three toneholes!
So, blow the 2nd, G4, first note of the instrument, uncover 1 hole and get A, 2 toneholes and get B, 3 toneholes and get C, cover all again, overblow, and get D....then, open 1, and get E (3rd mode of A), 2 for F#, 3 for G...The progression is theoretically infinite. Other factors start to play a role by inhibit so high modes (called cut off frequency), and you can see that is a great responsability lead in the players blowing to get the proper mode at each time.
Please let me know if is clear enough. Harmonic relations is a great issue of music, tubes, physics and acoustics by itself.

[thogoul]

505

506
this flute wich I discovered during my last trip in Africa
is used in Peul tribe (west Africa) especially in Guinea
(they call it Fouta Dialon flute name of the mountains in north guinea;ther is another kind of peul flute from mali)
so it's an harmonic 3holes transverse flute based on diatonic scale
(gracias angel for your great explanation about harmonic flutes,
it helped me understanding this one.)
the melodies they play on it are very 'light' and 'sunny' with repetitive short phrases and for solo playing a great 'shouting in' technique which gives so much power to the playing that it's possible to use them in a djembe-tamtam orchestra with no microphones!
but as it's very loud it also requires a huge breathing.
between all transverses flutes I know, this one is the more physical to play.

for the story:
I met in Bamako (Mali) a french guy learning with a Peul master
he's been playing for few year's and also build them
(he is now making his master's flute because he's the only one tuning them with electronic tuner!)
we mixed together our flutemaking xperience and invented the first Peul whistle using the same scale but with a very sweet sound and much more easy to blow.
507
I hope it will be a kind of (r)evolution in traditional Peul music (his master asked for one and went in studio to record with it...!)
there are maybe less than ten pieces of this new flute in the world now but I will make more soon.
the wood used for it is very special (not bamboo)-sorry but I forgot the name!
508
it's a kind of giant herb growing mostly in guinea which is not naturally bored.
harvesting is a hard mission because of the snakes and other animals living in guinean bush and also because of the vicious spikes the plant has!
you need to take of the bark like a sox (a very tricky process not to break it)
so from a two meters culm you can take off 6 or 7 long pieces (from 70cm to 1m).It's a great emotion cause you don't know before what kind of piece the culm will reveal.
so it gives a very light and fragile conic piece which you work only with red-hot irons and knife.The embouchure is made with beewax that you adjust on your mouth.
509
and then the three holes working as Angel explained before.

It's a great singing instrument and i promise to record something and share it
and try to find traditionnal records in orchestra.
(it's very hard to find ressource on the net about this flute)
I have some pieces with me that I will sell in France this summer
and also more wood to work on.
...

btw; Angel could you give more details on Moseno building and playing
I'd like to experiment with.
Also I will pass in Chile in october is it possible to find it there?
thank you for accoustic lessons you're giving here and on your website.

thanks to all bamboo adicted blowers

[Angel]

Sorry for my delay in answer.
As I told before, traditional moseños are long flutes from Bolivia used in high registers. No exactly a harmonic flute Do Re Mi... They are some sizes, played by Aymara people depending the age. Only in some parts of the year as well. Moseño flutes are frontal, without the lateral pipe, except the long ones. They are arranged in groups called tropas
Only in cities - I mean in Argentine cities- moseño is used as a bass flute. So it was reformed in construction, in a way that low notes are enhaced. I think that in the '60ies, during a explosion of folk music in Argentina, arrived the first Bolivian moseños to Buenos Aires, maybee a bit later. For the ignorance, and convenience, someone supposed that a big flute might have a low tone, and blow it in this way -say to get the low register.
Some Argentine flutemakers make this instrument to be used in this way. Enrique Vanini was probably the first, who made quenas "in tune" (read Western scale) and made the first moseños. In the '80s, were quite frequent to see Andean groups including a moseño in their performances, used as a bass flute. I started to make this instrument by this time. adding a couple of innovations.
These "pro" instruments live together with a myriad of mosenio replicas made for tourists in Bolivia, profusely colored, and with, if you are luck, with some traditional, "authentic"moseños, normally no colored and,allow me the term, rustically done.
I don't know the situation in Chile, where you will go in october. I guess that these touristical moseños are spread there. Refuse them if you want to play music with them.

[Angel]

HI THOGOUL,
Is curious, I have some answer about moseño availability in Chile. Ive just receive this contact though my website:

submit: Enviar

nombre: patricio quilodran a.

mail: email (quilodrankenas@gmail.com)

pais: chile

mensaje: me es muy grato poder saludarles.nesecito saber precios de moxeno en sol a 440,agradeceria respuesta pronto.....ya que aqui en chile solollegan desde bolivia y no estan bien afinados......reciban un abrazo ...patricio

I don't know if you read Spanish, If not, I tell that this mail ask me about tuned moseños, since they are not in Chile any others than Bolivian, not well tuned.
Remember that some Bolivian moseños are for tourist, but others are serious instruments, although "not in Western tuning"