Improvements in Flutes.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 20th Jan., 1891-Accepted, 28th Feb., 1891
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
[Communicated from abroad by KARL FREDERICK WILLIAM GUENTHER, of
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America, Musician.]
Improvements in Flutes.
I, JOHN THOMSON KING, of 4, Clayton Square, Liverpool, in the County of
Lancaster, Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of this invention, and in
what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement :-
My invention relates to improvements in flutes and is designed to obviate several
objections incident to flutes heretofore known and used which have consisted of
straight tubes with the embouchure or mouth-hole at the side near the end. Such
objections have been first, the difficulty of holding the flute in the constrained
horizontal position required by the location of the embouchure which position
makes it difficult to move the fingers properly in controlling the finger holes and
keys, and makes flute playing when long continued somewhat laborious and tire-
some to the hands and neck; and second-the fact that the air after being divided
by the edges of the embouchure so as to produce the musical notes, must travel in a
spiral course at right angles to its direction at entering the flute, affects the tone of
the flute necessitating special care and skill on the part of the player to produce
true and accurate tones. My invention overcomes both these difficulties, and
affords a flute which is easy to hold and to manipulate, which produces the notes
with comparatively little effort of the player, and is much truer and more accurate
in tone than any other flute known to me.
As distinguished from the ordinary flute, in which the mouth-hole is at the side
of the tube, my improved flute has a mouth piece in which the mouth-hole is formed
at the end of the tube, so that the instrument is held not horizontally as formerly,
but in the manner of a flageolet. The mouth piece has a lateral enlargement in
which are stoppers or corks by which the tone of the flute may be regulated; and
the mouth-hole is situate directly opposite to the end of the flute-tube, so that a
straight passage is afforded for the air from the mouth-hole to and into the tube.
This improved mouth piece may be applied to any of the known varieties of flutes,
including the piccolo, fife &c.
I am aware that for the purpose of providing an instrument which can be held in
the fashion of a flageolet, a flute has been devised in which at the end of the tube
there is an U-shaped head, having an end mouth hole. While such instrument is, of
course, easy to hold, it does not give a better musical note, and is in fact inferior in
this regard to the ordinary side hole flute. It differs essentially from my flute in
that the air is caused to pass indirectly from the mouth-hole to the flute tube,
while in mine the mouth-hole is directly opposite to the flute-tube giving a direct
passage to the air which results in the advantages above stated.
Referring now to the drawing,
Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a flute provided with my improvement.
Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of the mouth piece and part of the flute
tube.
Fig. 3 is a section on the line III-III of Fig. 2.
2 is the flute tube, preferably made in sections and having the usual finger-holes
and keys as desired. This part of the flute may be made in any known manner.
3 is the hollow mouth piece, which is of T-shape, having at the end a lateral
enlargement consisting preferably of lateral tubular portions a, b, containing the
adjustable stoppers 4, which may be constructed in the manner in which the stopper
at the end of the common flute is now made. c is the embouchure or mouth-hole,
which may be of the usual oval form and is situate opposite to the end of the tube 2.
r

page_text: 5, 5, are hooks or projections on the flute-tube affording means by which, with the
thumbs of the player, the flute may be upheld, so as to leave the fingers perfectly
free to manipulate the finger-holes and keys. As before stated, the flute is held in
the manner of a flageolet, but the notes are produced by placing the lip next to the
mouth-hole and blowing laterally over the same in like manner as in playing the
ordinary flute. By adjustment of the stoppers to and from the mouth-hole,
the pitch of the flute can be regulated in conformity to the variations produced by
elongating the sections of the flute tube in the usual manner. In using this mouth
picce, it will be found not only that the flute can be held and managed with less
muscular effort, but that the sound is much easier to produce and that the notes
are clearer and are musically truer than in the ordinary flute. The advantages of
my improved instrument in these respects are very important and will be
appreciated by the skilled musician.
In the drawing I show what I deem to be the preferable forms and proportions
of the parts, but these may be varied by those skilled in the art without variance
from the invention as defined in the following claims.
Thus I believe that I am the first to devise a flute having an enlarged head at
the mouth piece and a mouth hole at the end of the mouth piece directly opposite
the tube, so that a straight passage for the wind from the mouth piece into the tube
is afforded, and I intend to claim these features broadly.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
First. A flute having a tubular portion, a lateral enlargement at the end, and an
end flute mouth-hole situate directly opposite to the tubular portion so that
.
passage for the wind from the mouth piece, through the tubular portion is a. .ued;
substantially as and for the purposes described.
Second. A flute mouth piece having a tubular portion, lateral extensions at the
end thereof, and an end flute mouth-hole directly opposite said tubular portion ;
substantially, as and for the purposes described.
Third. A flute mouth piece having a tubular portion, lateral extensions at the
end thereof, adjustable stoppers, and an end flute mouth-hole directly opposite said
tubular portion; substantially as and for the purposes described.
Dated this 19th day of January 1891.
Per pro J. T. KING,
J. Johnson.