Village Flutes

Big Changes

Jon Norris — Tue, 28 Nov 2006 17:46:56 +0000

Those of you that know me know that I basically live in front of a computer — when I’m not busy with all of the other things mentioned in my last post, of course. I spent five years doing graphic design, web development, and marketing for a large international corporation. In the summer of 2005, I was laid off, but I quickly landed a job at a small start-up software company doing even more graphic design, web development, and marketing along with a few new things like pay-per-click advertising and email newsletters. Both of those were good companies to work for, and I do have a lot of great experience under my belt now, but I finally reached a place where I was beyond burn-out. I felt like I was always in the office and spent two or three hours in the car every day. I hardly ever got to see my family and had very little time to even touch my flutes.

I’ve been thinking for years about doing my own thing. I’ve looked at lots of different options — opening a small retail business, writing and illustrating books, working with missions teams and relief organizations in other countries, and making flutes full time. I really felt like I was being led to do something different with my life. Of course, making a big change like that and leaving the safety and security of a guaranteed paycheck is a bit risky, especially when I’ve got the aforementioned family to clothe and feed.

In mid-September, I heard a statement that really opened my eyes. “Two farmers were both praying for rain. One just sat and waited for the rain to come, but the other started preparing his fields in anticipation of the coming rain. Which one are you?” For years, I had been like the first farmer, waiting and waiting for some sign, but I realized I needed to become the second farmer. I needed to have faith and go in the direction I was being led. I made my decision right then and there.

Within a matter of days, things really started happening that validated my decision. I asked several friends for advice just to make sure I wasn’t losing my mind, but they were all (surprisingly) totally supportive. I was offered a contract job doing web work that would allow me to work from home and work fewer hours. At the little start-up software company that week, I got a new manager (my fifth in a year), so things there were in a state of flux. Then I was given the chance to go to the Dominican Republic with my church in early October, leaving me just enough time to work out a two-week notice at the software company and pack my stuff. That was the clincher. It was so very obvious that I was supposed to make this move, so I jumped — I quit my job and I haven’t looked back.

Fast forward to today. It’s been about six weeks since I got back from my trip. Now, I basically split my time between doing contract web work and making flutes. I get to see my family a lot more. I have more time for other things that I’ve been wanting or needing to do (like updating this blog). I’m definitely a lot happier, and I’m confident that I’m doing what I’m supposed to be doing with my life right now. I’ve learned a lot through this experience, and I feel like my faith has grown, all because of one simple eye-opening statement.

Which farmer are you?

Back to Blogging

Jon Norris — Tue, 28 Nov 2006 16:33:25 +0000

After a hiatus that lasted far too long, I’m finally getting back to blogging again. Long story short, I’ve been pretty busy dealing with family (I’ve got a 9-month-old), work (I’ve made some big changes recently), travel (I went to the Dominican Republic in October), and the occasional flutemaking (I just finished a big batch). I will probably touch on all of those items in future posts, but for now, I just wanted to get things rolling again and let you know that despite the rumors, I have not actually vanished from the face of the earth. Stay tuned for more.

An Evening with Mary Youngblood

Jon Norris — Wed, 26 Jul 2006 02:43:38 +0000

Mary Youngblood was in Charlotte this past week doing some recording for a documentary about Sacagawea. She was kind enough to take the time out of her busy schedule to conduct a workshop on embellishment and improvisation.

If you’ve ever heard Mary’s music, you know that she can do amazing things with a flute. As a player, I try to figure out what is going on when listening to her CD’s, but that isn’t always easy to do. I’ve seen her in concert multiple times at Musical Echoes in Florida, but we’re always a good distance from the stage. This time though, it was up close and personal — and that made all the difference. I thought I knew how she did a few of the embellishments, but watching her play from 10 feet away really highlighted the subtleties for me.

Every time I’ve heard Mary play — and speak — I’m always so impressed with her. She’s so friendly, and as someone commented at the workshop, she’s so “real”. There’s nothing pretentious about her. She’s just a humble musician who is willing to share what she knows with other musicians.

By the way, stay tuned for some more Mary-related news. Once the details are ironed out, I’ll fill you in.

Roland Micro Cube

Jon Norris — Sun, 16 Jul 2006 20:21:17 +0000

A few months ago, as I was getting ready for Artsplosure, I started shopping around for a small amp that I could use at the show to boost the volume of my flutes. Several of the members of our local flute circle have Roland Micro Cubes, so I thought I would give it a shot. A few clicks online at one of my favorite music gear websites and mine was on its way.

A few days later, the UPS guy dropped off the box and I ripped right into it. The amp is tiny — 9 by 9 by 7 inches — and quite honestly, it looks like a toy compared to my big Fender bass amp. Yes, it comes with an AC adapter, but my favorite feature is that it runs off of AA batteries as well, a huge plus for portable playing. Anyway, I plugged in my microphone, cranked up the dials, and started playing. The volume and sound quality blew me away. For a little tiny amp with a 5 inch speaker, this thing sounds amazing. The specs on Rolands site say that it only has 2W output, but this thing could easily compete with most of the 10 or 15 watt practice amps I’ve seen.

The coolest thing about this amp — on top of the fact that my set of AA batteries lasted through two full days of playing and still have plenty of juice (Roland claims 20 hours of battery life) — is the effects. If you want to sound like R. Carlos Nakai with thick reverb and lots of echoes, just turn a few knobs and there you go. These aren’t cheesy little effects like you see on some of the cheap amps out there. These effects sound really good, and they can definitely compete with my favorite reverb/echo preset on my Alesis Microverb. To top it all off, for you guitar players out there, it has some great COSM amp models. My acoustic guitar sounds pretty good through this thing, but my electric guitar sounds incredible with the Brit Combo or Classic Stack settings.

All in all, this is a great little amp. It’s so light and portable, and thanks to the batteries, you can play it just about anywhere. Someone always brings their Micro Cube to our flute circle meetings, and they always come in handy, whether we’re playing at a coffee shop or in someone’s living room. For $125, you can’t beat the quality and the features. My Micro Cube is probably my favorite purchase this year (after my new bass guitar, of course).

Old Style Flutes

Jon Norris — Sun, 25 Jun 2006 11:23:03 +0000

About a week ago, I sold this flute on eBay. I received a lot of emails about it, so as you can see in the picture above, I’ve started a big batch of these old style flutes that should be done in a couple weeks.

I’m not quite sure what it is, but there’s just something about the older looking flutes that really appeals to me. There are a few guys making them — Michael Allen (Coyote Oldman), Raymond Redfeather, and Brian Akipa to name a few — but overall, they don’t seem to be that common. It seems like guys will spend weeks doing an incredible carving of a sea turtle or intricate inlay of dancing kokopellis or even an entire crew of dancing kokopellis riding a giant sea turtle. For some people, there can never be enough flutes with wacky animals on them. For me, there can never be enough of these old style flutes.

One of the members of our local flute circle wants me to make a replica of George Catlin’s flute. I’ve also been toying around with doing a series of flutes based on some of the old ones in the Dayton C. Miller Collection. I’ve got plenty of wood. Now I just need to find the time…

Exotic Woods: Do Your Homework

Jon Norris — Sun, 25 Jun 2006 02:20:30 +0000

One thing to know about me — I love working with exotic woods. I’m always on the lookout for something new to try out. I recently saw some beautiful flutes made from Chechen, and when I had the opportunity to buy a few pieces of that wood, I jumped on it. A little over a week ago, I was starting a batch of flutes and decided to throw one of those new pieces of Chechen into the mix. The next day, I had an itchy spot on my side that reminded me a bit of poison ivy, but I hadn’t been anywhere near the woods or even the flower beds in our yard lately. A couple of days later, it had spread to my arm, so I tried calamine lotion. I tried cortizone cream. I tried a couple of other things, but nothing really helped.

I was still really curious where I had gotten poison ivy. Then it hit me — right before the itching started, I was working with a new exotic wood that I knew absolutely nothing about. Since I sit in front of a computer about 14 hours a day (I work full time at a software company), I decided to dive into the wonders of the internet to see what I could find. After a little digging, I had it. Chechen — botanical name metopium brownei — commonly called Black Poison Wood. Apparently, in the plant world, Chechen is the first cousin of three plants native to North America. Yes, you guessed it. Poison Ivy, Poison Oak, and Poison Sumac. When working with woods, I’m very cautious about breathing wood dust, but I never thought that I should keep the dust off my arms.

After scouring the internet a little more and realizing just how nasty the live tree version of Black Poison Wood is — apparently, the bark oozes a really caustic oil — I found a home remedy suggested by someone in Central America where these trees grow all over the place. I raided the kitchen, grabbed the dishwashing detergent, and headed to the shower. A few minutes and lots of bubbles later, the itching was almost gone.

Next time, I’ll be sure to do my homework before buying a new exotic wood. If anybody happens to want a couple pieces of Chechen, let me know…

Entering the Fray

Jon Norris — Sat, 17 Jun 2006 16:42:16 +0000

Inspired by flute player Scott August and flutemaker Geoffrey Ellis, as well as the Northern California Flute Circle, I’m throwing my hat into the blogging fray. Are you wondering what creations are emerging from the piles of wood and sawdust in my workshop? Curious about how flutes get their voice? Want to find out where I’m going to be so you can try out a flute or two? Really can’t wait to get your hands on that CD I’ve been promising to record? If so, this is the place to get the scoop about what’s going on at Village Flutes.

Seriously, when I’m not working on flutes or hanging out with my four-month-old, I basically live online. I work full-time for a software company, so I’m in front of a computer for most of my waking hours each day. Needless to say, I read a lot of blogs to keep up with the news and trends related to my job — and more importantly, my hobbies and interests. When I started Village Flutes, one of the first things I wanted to do was create a blog of my own to pass along information about what I’m doing, what I’m making, and what I’m learning. I’m going to be sharing tips and tricks for flutemaking, playing, and recording that I’ve picked up along the way. Hopefully, somebody somewhere will be interested in what I have to say.

Well, for now, I’m heading back down to take part in my usual Saturday ritual — making sawdust and trying to help a flute find its way out of a piece of wood…