Mujitsu and Tairaku's Shakuhachi BBQ

Hey Seth.  I share your appreciation of the "interesting splash of darker motley areas", though I don't know Gyukusui's look specifically.  Urushi is apparently used for spashes of darkness.  But I don't think this is what you're talking about.

Here's a related beginner's experiment though, for what it's worth...  I played with a selection of wood staining products on bamboo a while back.  Nearly useless.  Even the "extra penetrating" stains (gel, thin liquid, or otherwise), left on overnight (when 5 minutes or less was advised for wood), resulted in basically no difference on bamboo skin.  The stain dried and later wiped off without leaving any mark, like it was a dry-erase marker.  On exposed bamboo meat (e.g. skin sanded off or exposed root nub ends), a wood stain can work well.  Though the colors (cherry, walnut, etc.) normally used for wood might not be as complementary for bamboo.  But that's a subjective/cultured thing.

I'm already testing my girlfriend's patience with bamboo, tools, and dust in the apartment.  Chicken shit and straw won't go over well... 

-Darren.

Last edited by dstone (2007-02-11 18:20:36)

Perhaps if you start with a lighter coloured bamboo such as madake, you may have difficulty making it darker, but if you start with a darker coloured bamboo you may not have toomuch difficulty in making some areas lighter.
For example, I use 'black bamboo - philostychys nigra', not a high quality bamboo, but it grows on my property, is of a good diameter, and the oldest flute in Japan, circa 700 A D. is from 'black bamboo'. It is not actually black but once named it was not corrected to perhaps 'dark green. Culms vary from mid green to very dark green, and once dried turn to mid brown to very dark brown, almost black.  Now, when they are freshly cut, you can apply heat to them, in a bureiki style, either over coals, over a stove element or with a propane gas torch, and this surface heating will soften oils and bring them to the surface, they can them be manipulated, either wiped off or spread around or perhaps combined with something else.
Some of my culms that I have done this to are effectively bleached to a very light tan, or honey amber colour, and around the nodes, where there is an indentation, they are dark where the oils still remain.

Kel.

I know what your talking about.  Ichijo does something similar.  It was explained to me, but I forget.  Good question, how do you post pictures.  I looked around alittle and am lame and didn't find out how.

Whoa. That's incredible.

Last edited by Sean (2007-02-12 21:18:26)

Seth wrote:

Can someone explain how to post a photo here?

How to post an image on the World Shakuhachi Forum:

First, you must find an image hosting service. There are many free ones on Teh Intarweebs; the one I use and like is ImageShack. You must register in order to upload your images--ImageShack has a good privacy policy, and I've had no trouble with them.

You can host many kinds of images, but usually it'll be JPEGS, PNGs, GIFs, and the like.

Do this:

1. Go to this URL: http://my.imageshack.us/registration/ and register. Within 15 minutes you will receive an email which contains a login link. HANG ON to this email: It's what you will use every time you want to login to ImageShack.

2. Prepare your image, and know where it's located on your 'puter. Keep your image to a reasonable size.

3. Using the email you've received, login to ImageShack. You will get a page that is yours, and to which you will upload your image(s)--the page is labeled 'My Images'.

4. On the right side of the page you'll see a list of links under the label 'Action', and on that list you'll see, marked in bold type: 'Upload Image'.
Click it.

5. You'll get a dialog box which will allow you to browse your hard drive to get the image (click 'Browse...' and navigate to your image and select it).

6. After you see the link for your image in the 'Browse' window, click 'Upload' (or 'Cancel' if you've changed your mind). The image will appear on your 'My Images' page. Click on the small blue 'i' which is at the upper right of the image.

7. You'll get a dialog box with a list of coded URLs. I almost always select the one on the bottom: 'Direct'. Click on it to select it, and copy it.

8. Now go back to the Forum page you were on, click on the 'reply' or 'Quote' button (if you haven't already). Type:

[img]paste your copied code here[/img]

And set up the rest of your post and preview it. If you like it as is, submit it, or edit it as you see fit.

     This is a picture of Tairaku as a teenager, which I submit for your edification:

             



That's it.

Last edited by edosan (2007-02-12 22:33:41)

Where did you find that Computer-Generated Sumo? He looks like he's from the ZBrush site.

-E

Seth wrote:

In particular the black speckling.

Seth, if raised black bits is your thing...  this might also be of interest...  a "goma zuri" finish (sesame seeds).  Raised black speckles, caused by fungal growth while the bamboo is still in the ground.  So this isn't an applied finish, but something you could hunt for in a grove.

Ah, just found a pic of such a flute on Al's site.


Non-slip grip? 

-Darren.

Hi Seth,

Seth wrote:

Many of Gyukusui's flutes, especially the pricer ones, have a very interesting splash of darker motley areas on the bamboo.  From my limited experience it seems the pricer ones are ever more darker and more splotchy in appearance.   Personally, I find the physical appearance of his flutes totally mesmerizing.

Raw bamboo stock like this can start at around $300 in Japan. More for older pieces.

Does anyone know how he creates the darker areas on his flutes?  Of course there are many dark flutes, but he seems to obtain a very unique and striking contrast between the light and dark areas on the bamboo.

Some of the makers I talked to about this suggest that the bamboo was grown this way due to soil conditions and age of bamboo when harvested. Each bamboo stalk is unique due to many reasons - the area it was grown, how much sunlight it got, if it was grown on a hill, rocky soil, or near a stream etc... An experienced shakuhachi take harvester can probably give you an educated guess on the conditions that contribute to this kind of skin coloring and texture.

My curiosity on this point was raised when I read this blurb, describing a shakuhachi, on one of the pages on Tom Deaver's web site:  (http://www.ch-you.ne.jp/users/tom-tom/)

The only time I  didn't have my camera with me on my shakuhachi trip of 2002 was when I visited Tom's home! He had bamboo hanging on the south side of his farm house drying in southern exposure. They were strung up like ladders. There were some with dark roots. It was a beautiful site.

Is this how these splotchy areas are created on the bamboo?  The bamboo is buried in chicken shit for a year?  Yes?  Any theories on other secret ingredients?   Does this technique only work on bamboo, or would it also color other types of wood this way?

I've seen shakuhachi that were made to reproduce this attribute. They usually look dull compared to the translucent marblized texture of the real thing. I don't know how they did it but often times, you can see chips and blond bamboo beneath.

I am very curious to learn more if anyone out there has some insight to share.

Thanks
Seth

Here's some photos of an Inoue Shigemi I just did some work on.


It has one of the darkest roots I've ever seen. My camera does not do it justice.




It would take a great craftsman and artist to reproduce this kind of nature.
Namaste, Perry

Last edited by Yungflutes (2007-02-13 13:16:48)

Here is what I am talking about.

Perry-  I think yes, this was started by nature, but it seems there was some other process carried out to emphasize the contrasting tones.   But, I would not be terribly surprised to learn otherwise.

Thought I'd just add my two yen worth on the black marking issue.  I've been digging madake in Kyuhsu, Japan for 20 years now and the markings are caused by a fungi that gets under the upper layer of skin.  It isn't restricted to the root end, but tends to be found there and just above ground level.  The colour can range anywhere from a light brown to black and yes, the darker the better from an aesthetic point of view.  Such bamboo does tend to draw a better price when sold either as a completed instrument or as is.
The speckling is as Tairaku suggested, a result of harvesting dead bamboo that has dried in the ground. It's generally lacking oil at the time of harvest. Generally not a desirable trait.
If any of you are interested in some mottled bamboo stock, contact either me or Derek Choice off-list. 
Jeff

Hi all
I saw mant people out there facing problems in uploading their photographs and downsizing the photos for avatars.....because of either larger photo files or pixels...
here is a solution for Macintosh users....
there is a free software called ImageWell......u can use it to downsize your photos....to any size (both in terms of file size and photo size itself!!!)
the software can be downloaded for free here; http://xtralean.com/IWOverview.html

Cheers!!!
Shashank

They look great. If you are looking for advice, I would put on as little oil on as possible.  Sometimes I finish shakuhachi with just a drop of oil mixed with very fine bamboo dust and wipe off all excess oil after rubbing down. I use a little more on the roots but hardly any on the rest.