Mujitsu and Tairaku's Shakuhachi BBQ

Jam · 2010-01-07 02:54:57

I hope this is the right place to post this, if not I apologise.

I bought a new flute from my teacher about a month ago, he decided it was time I "levelled up" to a better flute. I agreed, and got a new flute from a maker who my teacher really rates, as does his teacher, Mizuno Komei. I was very pleased with it, I could get some beautiful sounds out of it, and my playing was really starting to take off.

I went home (from Japan) to England for Christmas, and decided to take my flute with me, to play with some friends and family, and all was good. I had the flute in a plastic bag, in a leather shakuhachi bag, in my hand luggage on the plane. In England the flute was fine, but when I returned to Japan on Tuesday, the flute had developed some very small cracks towards the root end. I've been in touch with my teacher and his advice was to play as much as possible and when not doing so, to keep it wrapped up.

I played for an hour and a half today, checked the cracks and to my horror there's a massive crack from the 5th hole on the back, to the join.

What do I do? I feel sick.

*edit, have just spoken to my teacher, he's going to send it back to the maker to get it repaired, and he thinks it should be cheap as I've just bought it*

For reference in the future (as I'll be flying back to England with flutes again I'm sure) what can I do to make sure this doesn't happen again?

Last edited by Jam (2010-01-07 03:02:55)

Justin · 2010-01-07 06:00:18

Keep your shakuhachi away from dry air. Heated rooms become dry. If you heat your room, make sure you have a source of humidity. This can be a humidifier (very common and easy to buy here in Japan), or, for example if you have a heater which has a flat top which gets very hot then keep a pot of water on top of it so that the water gradually evaporates into the air. You can keep open water (e.g. in a glass) in the drawer/cupboard where you keep your shakuhachi, or even "dampits" which music shops sell I believe. Or in more extreme circumstances a wet towel, perhaps on a plate or tray to stop it warping the wood. This will humidify the air quickly in a small closed space such as a cupboard or box. It is this quick humidification that you would need when the cracking started as it did with you. Merely playing it would do nearly nothing, as the inside of the bore where your moist breath is going, is basically waterproof. So it is the air surrounding the bamboo that you need to pay attention to. In extreme cases some people may even wrap a damp towel around the outside of the instrument. This may be useful if you see the crack actually opening before your eyes and want to stop it immediately.

Kaz · 2010-01-07 12:30:50

Isn't edosan supposed to lay the smack down soon?

edosan · 2010-01-07 14:06:08

Kaz wrote:
Isn't edosan supposed to lay the smack down soon?

It's a very common shakuhachi crack, easy to repair, and shouldn't give you any problems afterward.

The bastards are quite unpredictable, even under the most scrupulous care. Very likely it was the airplane ride that pushed it
over the edge; those things are as dry as a desert.

Consider it wabi-sabi under the bridge.

[didn't want to dissapoint, Kaz...]

Last edited by edosan (2010-01-07 14:12:28)

Jam · 2010-01-07 18:06:49

Thanks for the help guys, and the gentle smacking down

Lorka · 2010-01-08 10:55:16

To confrim what Ed said about the commonality of this problem, I got a tiny hairline crack in exactly the same spot, from the bottom of the thumb hole to the joint. It was my fault though, as I was tired and forgot the put the flute back in its bag one night in a room that lacked humidity. My bad. Don't worry though. Once you've resigned yourself to the fact that these things will happen some time or other, then when they do, it is not such a terrible thing.

radi0gnome · 2010-01-08 12:58:21

Lorka wrote:
To confrim what Ed said about the commonality of this problem, I got a tiny hairline crack in exactly the same spot, from the bottom of the thumb hole to the joint. It was my fault though, as I was tired and forgot the put the flute back in its bag one night in a room that lacked humidity.

I had the same problem on a new flute. Just hours after I got it. I blamed it on my letting the thumb hole get drenched with the condensation that runs down into it.

Lorka wrote:
Once you've resigned yourself to the fact that these things will happen some time or other, then when they do, it is not such a terrible thing.

Uhhh... I don't know, I wouldn't suggest to let such an attitude prevent anyone to not take preventative measures. What I've started doing is to bind the flute as soon as reasonably possible, before it cracks. The fishing line kind that Perry Yung has instructions for on his website serves the purpose well and can be as temporary or permanent as you want. Personally, I'd rather leave them as permanent because, aside from inlaid bindings, any kind of bindings detract from the beauty of a new uncracked flute, and choosing the lesser of two evils (do-it-yourself fishing line or something more professional) isn't all that much different, as the clear fishing line doesn't look all that bad. Applying them takes a bit of practice though.

Jam · 2010-01-08 20:27:56

Radi0gnome, the post of the beast!

I agree with everything everyone's said here, but like Radi0gnome said I'm disappointed that it needs to be bound. Never mind, I suppose it gives it character..

lowonthetotem · 2010-01-09 13:45:59

Justin has good suggestions. My grandma used to keep a pot of water simmering on the stove all day which she would periodically replenish. It is also handy, as there is always warm water for tea at hand.

FluteSwordsman · 2010-01-21 18:03:13

This could be useful:

It explains why bamboo cracks and allows you to build a "crack meter!"

http://www.navaching.com/shaku/crack.html

MikeL · 2010-01-22 09:06:09

Jam wrote:
For reference in the future (as I'll be flying back to England with flutes again I'm sure) what can I do to make sure this doesn't happen again?

I guess that there's no way to know for sure that it was the travel that caused
the flute to crack. Maybe it was just going to crack in any event.

I have never taken my shakuhachi on an airplane, or to distant countries.

But I have been at a number of seminars and concerts where Kurahashi Sensei was
teaching or performing. He usually has a number of shakuhachi with him. As far as I've
seen all he does is keep them in their plastic bags when they are not being played.
He comes from Japan, travels all over the US and the world, and I've never heard of
or observed any special procedures.

Do any forum members who travel a lot do anything beyond the usual? Keep the flute
in a plastic bag when not in use, avoid sudden extreme changes in temperature and/or
humidity, etc.?

Mujitsu and Tairaku's Shakuhachi BBQ

#1 2010-01-07 02:54:57

Cracked flute

#2 2010-01-07 06:00:18

Re: Cracked flute

#3 2010-01-07 12:30:50

Re: Cracked flute

#4 2010-01-07 14:06:08

Re: Cracked flute

Kaz wrote:

#5 2010-01-07 18:06:49

Re: Cracked flute

#6 2010-01-08 10:55:16

Re: Cracked flute

#7 2010-01-08 12:58:21

Re: Cracked flute

Lorka wrote:

Lorka wrote:

#8 2010-01-08 20:27:56

Re: Cracked flute

#9 2010-01-09 13:45:59

Re: Cracked flute

#10 2010-01-21 18:03:13

Re: Cracked flute

#11 2010-01-22 09:06:09

Re: Cracked flute

Jam wrote:

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