Mujitsu and Tairaku's Shakuhachi BBQ

If you have the ability, some photos of your new addition would be greatly appreciated. I love Perry's work, and can't wait to own one of his flutes. He has a pair of Hochikku on his blog that are stunning, especially the 3.0:

http://www.yungflutes.com/log/

It's just such a nice, strong rootend with a great mouthpiece and utaguchi. Very strong and soft at the same time, and I bet it's fairly heavy, which I actually like. That's the flute I want.

-E

It's a beautiful thing.

Thanks.

Very Nice 3.3, looks like it was worth the wait. If you wanna check it out I have a Yung model 1.8 jiari that Perry is currently making for me that's up on his blog, most recent post last time I checked.

-Sean

I have quite a few shakuhachi by Perry and they are all exceptional and have there own unique qualities. I have a  an Earthmodel 2.4, a Chikusing 2.8 and 1.8 as well as a MASSIVE 2.9 Hocchiku that I received recently(oh yeah and a PVC 1.8 that Perry was kind enough to send me as gift:). I wil have to part with the 2.8 and 1.8 soon, they will go towards the Yung Model.

-Sean

Yeah Perry really is a great guy, I feel blessed to have a Yung model in the making.

I have two flutes by Perry Yung.

1.6 jinashi.  2.5 jinashi.  Very different flutes, serving different roles for me.  Very happy with both.  Neither goes very long without being played, so I guess that sums it up.  So much for a highly technical review filled with adjectives...

Anyways, it was also a real pleasure to speak to Perry a couple of times about these flutes and music in general.  He's knowledgeable and thoughtful and very customer-oriented.

-Darren.

Kabato wrote:

I bought my first flute, an Earth 2.2, from Perry several months ago and I love it. It's a beautiful instrument both in looks and sound, I look forward to learning a lot from it.

Sean, do you think you could maybe post some pictures of your 2.9 hocchiku? I always love seeing huge flutes.

I'd like to see it too. Alcvin's pictures of his Japan trip that he recently provided the link to has some large ones on the first few pages. Personallly, I'm not in a rush to purchase something like that because I don't know if I'd be able to handle the hand position, it looks a little bit awkward, but I can just imagine that they sound awesome.

I got a nice 2.2 from Perry just recently. He pulled the pics from his server shortly after I won an auction on it, so I don't have any good pics, but he really does have a nice sense for making things pleasing to look at. This particular one he originally had a "buy it now" price on Ebay for 240, but after it didn't sell twice he put it up for auction. I ended up getting it for 118 and I didn't even have to snipe it. I think it might be because it had a blemish near the root end. I can sort of understand why because I kind of thought the blemish looked severe in the pictures, but when I explained it to my girlfriend that Perry said it made for a nice Wabi-sabi aesthetic, she suggested that I shouldn't question it because he was the pro. It turns out she and Perry were right, in real life it looks nice, and I wouldn't want it any other way. It plays very well too. I have to admit that I'm still exploring what it can do, and refining my technique to get the most from it. but I heard the potential even with first few notes. Believe me, this flute can go very far past the Chosi sample he provided in the description.   

BTW, I had dreams of bamboo shortly after receiving this instrument (sort of living, with the long part without the holes being like a gooses neck, kind of wierd like dreams are a lot). I take that as an indication that it presented something to me that I have to stretch a bit to learn about.

D.J. wrote:

I traded my Perry made 1.8 for one of his 2.3 (I believe it is a Chikusing). I also have a 2.9 that is an upgraded Earth and also a Raga hybrid. And most recently, I have acquired a 2.2 drone. I have played Shakuhachi from other makers and have been utterly unsatisfied, even at expensive ones.

How expensive were the expensive ones? Not that expense is the only defining factor of quality, but I'm curious. Being realistic, I kind of like the broken 1.8 Jiari I got from that koro-koro guy on Ebay better than Perry's, but Perry's has those low notes. If I had the bucks, I'd have to try them first, but I wouldn't hesitate getting one of Perry's higher end instruments.

I kind of like the fact that his bamboo is fair trade too. Does part of that definition means there was no child labor involved?

Hi D.J and radi0gnome, Thanks for your kind words.

radi0gnome wrote:

I kind of like the fact that his bamboo is fair trade too. Does part of that definition means there was no child labor involved?

I've been digging my own bamboo or procuring it from my source in China for many years now. Before that I bought bamboo where ever I could find it. There are unfortunately no wild bamboo groves in NYC! In my research, I found that the bamboo imported into this country was usually harvested by people who were treated much like the diamond miners in Africa. Bamboo harvestors in Asia make about a dollar a day at most. 50% of the profits from the $9.00 pole bought in Chinatown goes into the pocket of the importer. The remaining goes to the store and shipper. While bamboo harvesters are not dying from dynamite mining, they are still being expoilted in rather harsh ways. The Chinese Madake I use for my higher end flutes are hand picked for me only. I try my best to ensure that no one is exploited in any part of the way. For years I have been trying to use American home grown bamboo for my EARTH Models and have recently been getting poles from a mother who has a bamboo grove in her lot in NC. She works part time at Walmart. We're both very happy to have found one another.

D.J. wrote:

Perry has an unusual ability to do something most do not. He naturally pours a certain edge of his soul into his work that can be felt. I have played natural instruments for years. African Djembes and djuns, didges, NAFs, and the list of other rhythm instruments go on. Not all have that defining edge that no one sees.

D.J.

I had a strong hunch that sensitive people would be able to notice something. Jinashi making is a very different craft from Jiari making.
Many of you have read the Science and Art argument towards making shakuhachi. I understand the need for science and use it as much as I can but I naturally use my art instincts to finish my flutes. The most influential teachers I've had could never fully explain what makes art. They could speak for themselves but they could not say that it would work for someone else.  That's why it is very important for me to not only understand science, but it is even more important to know my materials. When I was mainly a painter, I used to experiment with pigments. It became clear that the cheaper paints did not have the same vibration in the color when dried. They were quite flat. The (unfortunately) expensive paints had really rich and complex tones because of the mixture of pigments. It's much like a shakuhachi note played by a fine player. There are subtle overtones, not just the note itself. Knowing that my bamboo is harvested with care gives me the confidence that the final flute will vibrate with lots of love. And if it doesn't, it'll still look great on my wall

Namaste, Perry

Last edited by Yungflutes (2007-02-27 11:03:00)