History Of The Flute by Howlin’ Wind

The Flute, one of the most beautiful and evocative sounding of today’s instruments, has a rich and colourful history going back to ancient times. For tens of thousands of years, mankind has made music from ‘flutes’ - windblown instruments fashioned from sticks, bamboo, and hollowed out pieces of wood, or even clay and dried fruit. These flutes were widespread throughout the world; for example, end-blown flutes are found in every continent, especially South America and Asia, with examples dating back to the Stone Age. Some of these flutes were used simply for music, others were used for religious and productivity rituals, while others were used as alarms to warn of threatening tribes. There is a huge variety of flutes. For example - whistle flutes, Quena from Bolivia, Fipple Flutes, or Penny Whistles, Fujara from Slovakia, Pan Pipes, Recorders, Ocarinas, Vessel Flutes, Peruvian Clay jug flutes, African Shiwaya Flutes made from hollow fruit, side blown Chinese flutes, Fifes, Nose Flutes from Polynesia and South America, Multiple Flutes from Mexico, and the modern Orchestral Flute of today. In these brief notes, we can only touch on the basic outline of the history of the flute, and for further reading consult your nearest music encyclopaedia. 

The history of today’s Flutes can be traced through two main streams of Flutes; the End-Blown Flute (Recorder Family), and the Traverse, or Side Blown Flute. In Europe, the first evidence of the Traverse Flute is found in the “Hortus Deliciarum’ an encyclopaedia from the 12th Century, where it is called a Swegel. Throughout the Middle Ages, Renaissance, and early Baroque Period, this Traverse Flute was mainly a military instrument, like a Fife, associated particularly with what is now Germany, so the Traverse Flute became known as the German Flute. These flutes had no keys and were generally made from wood, ivory or ebony. 

The Recorder (End-Blown Flute) was popular from the 14th Century on; for example, inventory records exist from King Henry IV of England’s household of Fistula Nomine Recordo - a pipe called a Recorder. The Recorders popularity arose during the period of the 14th-18th Centuries. The early Recorders were cut from single lengths of wood, but it was soon found that a superior tone and articulation could be achieved by building these recorders into sections - the head piece and the body with finger holes. King Henry VIII of England has inventory records of flute for consort music, and these Flutes, or Recorders were treble, tenor, and bass, voice and sizes. The Traverse Flute was more difficult to play; the player had to do with his lips, all those intricate things which a Recorder’s mouth piece, Fipple, and narrow wind way, do automatically for the Recorder player. The Traverse Flute was becoming more popular with musicians during the early 17th Century largely because it was an instrument capable of a more vocal singing tone, with powerful dynamics, and offering a greater range of musical colours, combined with a greater velocity and agility. The French led the way during the 17th-19th Centuries, in the development of the Traverse Flute. This is evident by the output of some of the great French composers, such as: Lully, Couperin, Blavet, Hotteterre, and Boismortier, who all wrote beautiful music for the Flute. During the early 18th Century, Johann Quantz (born near Gottengen, 1697-1773) revolutionised all thinking and composition for the Traverse Flute. The translation of his detailed work “On Playing The Flute” is still the most highly acclaimed text available regarding the evolution and development of today’s Flute. King Fridrick of Prussia was a great Flute lover and accomplished player, and he employed Quantz as his personal Flute teacher, and official composer. 

Today’s modern flute is a highly sophisticated piece of engineering, craftsmanship and research. Theobald Boehm (1793-1881), son of a Munich jeweller, revolutionised the mechanics and geometry of the Traverse Flute to virtually give us the flute that we have currently today. He devised the Boehm fingering system, whereby the Flute player was able to freely move one finger after another, as a piano player would. The effect of this was for greater agility, velocity, and an approach to equal temperament (whereby the distance between each note is the same). He invented the modern cylinder Bore Flute, with parabolic head, and enlarged the finger holes to increase the flute’s power and range of expression. Flute player’s throughout the world truly appreciated this innovation. The flute has always fascinated the world’s greatest composers; this is evident by its large and varied repertoire. Some of the main composers for the flute are - J.S. Bach, Handel, Mozart, Vivaldi, Quantz, Beethoven, Schubert, and the many French composers - Gaubert, Taffanel, Fauré, Debussy, Poulenc, Roussel, Ibert, Saint-Saens, not to mention Prokofiev, Martinu, Enesco, Rodrigo, Nielsen, Hindemith, and Messian, to name a few. The flute is the closest instrument in the world to the human voice; the sound is produced from the player’s lungs, through the instrument. There are no reeds, strings, bows, or other paraphernalia, to produce the sound. The result is a freedom of tone, and colours of sound, just as a singer is able to produce. With some flute players, this can be the most exciting, moving, and often emotional and spiritual type of sound one can imagine, truly inspirational. 

There is wide experimentation into materials used for the construction of today’s flutes. Flute makers and manufactures, throughout the world are now searching for the best materials, best metals, (all ramifications of silver, gold, nickel, platinum, phosphorous bronze) and various woods are being used in an attempt to get the best sounds available, to find improved intonation, superior tone colours, and greater resonance. 

2021 is a great time to be a Flute player.