The Tao of Walking Ridge

This GUI assumes the method of tuning where placement of the hole is chosen, then the hole is slowly increased in size until the desired pitch is reached. This method of tuning begins with hole A, furthest from the TSH. One by one, each hole is then slowly increased in diameter until the correct pitch is obtained.

This method of tuning commonly results in holes of slightly different sizes. It is a forgiving method for achieving precise tuning. As long as holes are placed in approximately the right place, the resulting hole size will be reasonable for playing. Each flute will be unique with respect to notes obtained with cross fingering.

Once the length of a barrel is known, then the length can be put into the tool and starting points for placement of playing holes are easily calculated. They are based upon flutes that typically had about 0.3″ playing holes, with the E hole closest to the TSH typically a bit smaller. The tool easily calculates the hole placement for different key flutes. It also quickly calculates the difference in placement for Mode 1, Mode 4, and Mode 5 minor pentatonic scales. Depending on the particular details used by a flute maker, the estimate may be high or low. Input for improvement of the tool is welcome. Send comments to WalkingRidge.

Selecting closer placement of holes D and E is more likely to result in more uniform hole sizes. Standard placement often results in hole D being larger and E being smaller and closer to the TSH. This applies in particular to Mode 1. However, especially for short flutes, closer placement of holes D and E can result in the fingers being crowded. The finger pad circles are intended to give an idea of how crowded the fingering will be with various combinations of barrel length and hole placement.

The GUI is based upon the empirical hole placement method described in method-tuning-native-american-flutes-pt-1.