Mujitsu and Tairaku's Shakuhachi BBQ

Karmajampa wrote:

My name is Kelvin Falconer, I live in New Zealand where the Shakuhachi is relatively unknown. I picked up my first flute in Nov '2004 and have been teaching myself with any aids I can find. I have no teacher. I have also been making my own flutes from 'Black bamboo' and any other likely looking culms I come across including Madake, which I have planted.

If any player or teacher visits New Zealand I would be interested in meeting with you, please contact me.
Metta,
Kel.

Hello Kel, and Welcome!

It always good to see people joining in, and great to have such a world wide membership to draw upon!

I've only been playing a short while, and learn on my own at my chosen pace-mostly just enjoy playing for the great feeling it gives me.

Hey, it's great you are making them also-I would love to try that myself!  Black bamboo has an awesome beauty to it, I think, but I even like the plain colored bamboo if it's made into a flute!  Do you find it growing wild in New Zealand?  And you're lucky to have somewhere you can plant some for harvesting-smart move.

Anyway, good to have you here too!  Great place, this forum!

Karmajampa wrote:

Hi Barry,
Thanks for your post. Hey I rode a Schwinn 10-speed from Toledo Ohio across Pa. to Westchester near the Brandywine river in 1974, great countryside, rode through all the Amish country.

Black bamboo is an invasive problem in many backyards. It is really green, sometimes very dark, but was originally named 'nigra' and apparently once named, cannot be un-named. It is an easy wood to work with, has a different tone to the harder thicker bamboo of the likes of madake. In a grove there seem to be a lot more culms that are within the parameters of a potential flute. It can be a bit controversial to plant bamboo but in my case it is surrounded by indigenous blackberry, gorse, kykuyu, willow, wandering dew, pampas, in fact the only native plants in the vicinity are ones I have planted myself !
I feel the horse has bolted..........

Excellent adventure to go make your own flutes, I am now making them for many others and the demand is increasing.

Kel    §

Hi Kel,

You were not far from me in 1974!  But the area has become a lot busier since, like most places.  That was a long ride you took on your Schwinn 10 speed!  Ah, memories!

That's great that you can harvest your own bamboo, and grow some too.  I understand about the native plants-years ago that was true all over the world, now many foreign varieties are widespread in other countries, kind of like the internet!

Yes, I will make some flutes-when I find a source of the bamboo here that is reasonable, especially for the first attempts!

Good luck with your flute making-it sounds like you have some customers lining up!

Barry

hi Kel,
this flutes look great.
good job.

Geni
p,,s do you offer discounts for forum members;-)