Verne Q. Powell - The Flutist

Verne Q. Powell

This week, we had the pleasure of corresponding with Verne Q. Powell's gradndaughter, Gail Powell Dearing.  She had written an article for the Winter 2013 edition of The Flutist Quarterly, detailing some very interested yet not widely known facts about her grandfather. In this excerpt, we learn about Mr. Powell's earliest days as a wind player...

Excerpt from "Second Wind: The Powell Spoon Flute at 102" (The Flutist Quarterly, Winter 2013)

By Gail Powell Dearing

It’s not well known that Powell was an accomplished flutist.  He started playing the ocarina when he was 8 years old, and at the age of 10, started a small fife and drum corps with a couple of his friends.  When he first heard a piccolo, he had to have one, so his brother bought him one for $3.40.  Powell said he shined his brother’s shoes for the rest of his life to repay him for the piccolo.  Then he expanded his group to six piccolos, six snare drums, and a bass drum; the group played at local ball games for the price of admission.

He bought his first Böhm flute when he was 17, and four years later purchased his “first good flute,” a Rundall-Carte wooden flute.  Largely self-taught, Powell had a reputation as a superior flute player long before he became better known as a fine flute maker.

Thus, his spoon flute was born of the combination of his skill as a jeweler and engraver with his love of music and facility with the instrument.

Wooden Flute Tone Holes -- and More

If you've looked closely at the tone holes on a wooden flute, you may have noticed that they look a bit different from tone holes on metal flutes.  At Powell, metal flutes have either drawn or soldered tone holes, but those choices are not possible with a wooden flute body.  After all, with wood, you wouldn't have the option to solder something onto the body or "pull" the hole up from the body.  No, wood is definitely not as flexible as metal.  So, how exactly are the tone holes formed on the wooden flute?  Are there other differences in how the holes are covered by the keys?

The answer is rather simple, actually.  It's all about subtracting material and sculpting the wood.  With a wooden flute, the tone hole is cut out of the body in a process that is referred to as "milling." However, after the tone hole is milled, more material around the hole must be removed to allow clearance for the key cup.  Since it is a wooden body, you are actually carving or sculpting the wood to create the convex shape around the tone hole.  The tone hole itself has a flat edge, so the key mechanism functions exactly the same as it does on a metal flute.  The key cups and pads are exactly the same size and shape as those on a metal flute -- and they cover the hole exactly the same way as they would with a metal flute. 

But what about the rest of the body?  Is it the same thickness as metal?  Obviously, no.  A wooden flute body is thicker than a metal flute body.  The wood has to be thicker so it doesn't crack.  However, the inner bore diameter of a wooden flute is exactly the same as the inner bore of a wooden flute.  So, there are some differences with the wooden flute but many more similarities. 

Wooden flute bodies before and after tone holes are cut.

Close-up on the tone holes (notice carved covex shape around hole for key clearance)

Final assembly with keys in place.