The shakuhachi, the classic bamboo vertical flute of Japan, has a beautiful and distinctive tone with a wide range of colours in the hands of an accomplished player.

The sound has been variously described as warm, haunting, soft, arresting, pure, natural, and evocative, and is nowadays to be heard not just in the classic canon of Japanese folk and art music, but also in new less traditional contexts including jazz and many film scores.

Traditionally a five-holed instrument, it is ideally suited for a pentatonic scale – and so is able to carry many Gaelic airs effortlessly. However, in its five-hole version it lacks the flexibility and agility of the six-holed whistle or flute to successfully cover the full range of strathspeys, jigs, reels and other tune types in the Scottish tradition.

In a bid to introduce a sympathetic new timbre to an old tradition Gordon Wells, working from his home in Benbecula, has been experimenting for some years with new hole configurations.

He has now settled on a basic seven-hole system which maintains the characteristic shakuhachi sound, while enabling a greater melodic flexibility to facilitate easier control over the full range of Scottish tune types. You can hear a sample 30 seconds into Gordon's BBC interview here <more>

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Gordon Wells, 8A Aird, Isle of Benbecula HS7 5LT
The Western Isles, Scotland
t : 01870 603214
e : infoATgordonwellsDOTcoDOTuk
w : www.gordonwells.co.uk/flutemaker
site update 210809