headjoint cork affects tone & tuning
Dear Fluters,
This question appeared in my inbox today. I thought I'd answer it for all the students out there who may ask the same question in the future. Best, Jen
Dear flute student,
Ah yes; the mystery of the flute's headjoint cork and what it does.
That cork, with the silver discs on either end, hidden inside the tip of the headjoint, is what sets the flute's tuning.
It's supposed to be set at 17.3 mm from the center of the embouchure hole, but more importantly, here's the information you need, first and foremost:
If the cork in your flute's headjoint moves easily when you try and move it, then it's definitely time to take it to a reputable fluterepair shop and have a minimum of $10 worth of repair. Why?
a) Flute headjoint corks shrink over time, from so often being wet and then dry. They have to be adjusted and checked each year when your flute goes in for its regular servicing, so that the cork has an air-tight fit. Any cork that moves easily has already shrunk and is not doing its proper job of making an air-tight seal at the crown of the headjoint.
b) If your cork moves too easily, often you will also hear stuffy or muffled tone quality because air is escaping around the cork, which it shouldn't be doing.
c) Also, if your cork moves too easily (you can simply pull on the crown or push on it with your swab and it moves), then you may unwittingly move it when swabbing the headjoint, and put your whole flute out of tune.
Why?
The cork's exact position affects the tuning of the flute.
Too far out, the left-hand notes will be flatter.
Too far in, the left-hand notes will be sharper.
Either of these positions will put the scale of the flute out of tune with itself.
A healthy flute headjoint cork is very difficult to move by yourself. Some brands even use a rubber O-ring (Mateki for example) in attempt to make the ultimate air-tight seal. So if it's incorrectly positioned (not at 17.3 mm or the line on your cleaning rod is NOT in the middle of the embouchure hole) then you should only reposition the cork with expert help (your private teacher or a reputable flute technician).
In fact, have your flute teacher double check your flute both visually, and with a tuner, so that you can know for sure that you've got the cork in the perfect spot to have all three octaves of the flute in tune.
Now, back to the tone quality question:
If you canhear a change in the tone quality after moving the cork, that means the cork is definitely leaking air, and you have to have it replaced (this is $10 - $20 worth of a flute technician's time.)
On average, corks are replaced and/or tightened by a flute technician every 3 to 7 years.
A PDF for beginners that illustrates how the cork should be positioned for placing the flute's length correctly for tuning is here.
Articles about headjoint corks (courtesy of Miyazawa and Brannen companies) are online here.
http://www.miyazawa.com/library/other11.asp
http://www.brannenflutes.com/care.html
In general, yes, moving the cork will affect your flute's scale andpitch, but a leaking cork will affect your sound.
You can test for a leaking cork by creating suction on the headjoint, and listening for a hiss coming from the crown.
Let us know what you discover about this; and whether your cork is in fact leaking, thus affecting your tone quality.
Best,
Jen
This question appeared in my inbox today. I thought I'd answer it for all the students out there who may ask the same question in the future. Best, Jen
Question: I moved the top cork thing from the top of my flute and i was wondering if moving it would change the sound of my flute?
Dear flute student,
Ah yes; the mystery of the flute's headjoint cork and what it does.
That cork, with the silver discs on either end, hidden inside the tip of the headjoint, is what sets the flute's tuning.
It's supposed to be set at 17.3 mm from the center of the embouchure hole, but more importantly, here's the information you need, first and foremost:
If the cork in your flute's headjoint moves easily when you try and move it, then it's definitely time to take it to a reputable fluterepair shop and have a minimum of $10 worth of repair. Why?
a) Flute headjoint corks shrink over time, from so often being wet and then dry. They have to be adjusted and checked each year when your flute goes in for its regular servicing, so that the cork has an air-tight fit. Any cork that moves easily has already shrunk and is not doing its proper job of making an air-tight seal at the crown of the headjoint.
b) If your cork moves too easily, often you will also hear stuffy or muffled tone quality because air is escaping around the cork, which it shouldn't be doing.
c) Also, if your cork moves too easily (you can simply pull on the crown or push on it with your swab and it moves), then you may unwittingly move it when swabbing the headjoint, and put your whole flute out of tune.
Why?
The cork's exact position affects the tuning of the flute.
Too far out, the left-hand notes will be flatter.
Too far in, the left-hand notes will be sharper.
Either of these positions will put the scale of the flute out of tune with itself.
A healthy flute headjoint cork is very difficult to move by yourself. Some brands even use a rubber O-ring (Mateki for example) in attempt to make the ultimate air-tight seal. So if it's incorrectly positioned (not at 17.3 mm or the line on your cleaning rod is NOT in the middle of the embouchure hole) then you should only reposition the cork with expert help (your private teacher or a reputable flute technician).
In fact, have your flute teacher double check your flute both visually, and with a tuner, so that you can know for sure that you've got the cork in the perfect spot to have all three octaves of the flute in tune.
Now, back to the tone quality question:
If you canhear a change in the tone quality after moving the cork, that means the cork is definitely leaking air, and you have to have it replaced (this is $10 - $20 worth of a flute technician's time.)
On average, corks are replaced and/or tightened by a flute technician every 3 to 7 years.
A PDF for beginners that illustrates how the cork should be positioned for placing the flute's length correctly for tuning is here.
Articles about headjoint corks (courtesy of Miyazawa and Brannen companies) are online here.
http://www.miyazawa.com/library/other11.asp
http://www.brannenflutes.com/care.html
In general, yes, moving the cork will affect your flute's scale andpitch, but a leaking cork will affect your sound.
You can test for a leaking cork by creating suction on the headjoint, and listening for a hiss coming from the crown.
Let us know what you discover about this; and whether your cork is in fact leaking, thus affecting your tone quality.
Best,
Jen
posted by Jen Cluff at 4:07 PM
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Comments (8)
Hi
Thanks for your website which I find both interesting and informative.
Not so much a comment about snugness of fit etc but have you tried using a stopper and crown of different materials? Robert Bigio (for example) advertizes Delrin and Zirconium which are supposed to improve the tone and projection. I use a silver lined thinwood headjoint and (in common with everyone!) am always trying to improve my sound. The cost of these stoppers isn't that great, so I was thinking it's probably worth trying anyway, but before I take the plunge thought I would ask if you have tried one, and what, if any, difference you found.
Many thanks
Dear David,
good question; the sound samples that were done by Raymond Robinson showing exactly what each crown and stopper does are on my mp3 radio show called Fluteloops. Show no. 8 covers this topic with sound samples and spectrums.
Go to: http://www.jennifercluff.com/fluteloops08.htm
Best, Jen
Sorry! I had missed that one. Fascinating, and from the samples I would say more a difference in tone rather than any one sounding better. I think the comments made by both yourself and Raymond about the most important influence on the sound being the player is really the one to stress. I shall practice more... but I may treat myself to a new stopper too!
I just had a lesson today with a new private teacher, and I have read so many articles that your not supposed to touch the cork once it's in the standard position.
My flute is brand new and I checked the position and it had been in the right spot, lined up with the cleaning rod.
Today my new teacher said I was not in tune with her, that I was higher and she unscrewed it so that my flute would be longer and then pushed it, but it only screws, so I don't know why she pushed it. Is this a bad sign? Should she have not moved it?
Also I don't wanna have to re-tune it to my teacher every time I have a lesson so should I leave it even if it's not the "standard" position? I don't wanna put unnecessary wear and tear on it.
Perhaps your teacher's cleaning rod and your cleaning rod have the mark of 17.3 millimeters etched into the rod in a slightly different place. Apparently there are cleaning rods that are mismarked circulating out there in the thousands. I was reading about this the other day; they are mismanufactured. So simply compare your two cleaning rods very closely at your next lesson in order to rule this out.
Also, measure your own marking with an accurate ruler to make sure it truly is 17.3 mm.
Let me know what you find out.
Best,
Jen
She didn't go by the cleaning rod she said that my flute was higher than hers and I needed to make my flute longer so she just screwed it out , she didn't put it to a standard position.
I'm not sure if she just wanted me to tune it that one time like that or if she does this often..but the way she talked about seemed like she does it often.
I guess I will just tell her what I have read and see what she says I just don't wanna come across as a know it all, but I don't want a damaged flute either!
I'll let you know what happens, thanks for your time.
Thanks for your further details.
I guess it's possible that your teacher might have missed the "17.3 mm" information in her travels. Stay polite/curious and fairly ask about the methodology of cork-moving and how it works.
As far as I know, the 17.3 mm. rule is a standard flute manufacturer's measurement.
The concensus is that no flute can play in tune with itself if you deviate more than a quarter to a half turn of the headjoint's crown. Phyiscally moving the cork to 18 or 19 millimeters would mis-scale the placement of the tone holes and put the flute out of tune with itself.
I've met lots of less experienced or "non-internet reading" flute teachers who don't yet fully understand the exactitude of headjoint cork placement.
If one takes the time to graph the flute's pitch on every chromatic pitch, using a mezzo forte dynamic level, a tuner, and a simple graph (as found as Seven Steps to Intonation by Chris Potter) a flutist will be able to design an experiment that shows how cork distance affects the flute's ability to be played in tune with itself (overblowing octaves and fifths.) It's simple trial and error to put a flute's cork in the best place for tone quality and sound, but it shouldn't deviate too far from the industry standard.
Good luck and let us know how it turns out. Fascinating to hear about. Best, Jen
P.S. Headjoint cork placement:
Helpful links:
Nancy Toff's Flute book stating 17.3 is the correct cork placement:
http://tinyurl.com/64z9oe
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ARTICLE: Tuning a Flute - considering all flute tuning perameters:
http://www.langemusic.com/Articles/flutetune.htm
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General information about flute headjoint cork-repair and placement for tuning the flute:
http://www.langemusic.com/Articles/flutecork.htm
NOTE: Adjusting the tuning cork forward or back does not adjust overall intonation of the flute up or down universally. Although you will succeed in sharpening or flattening overall, movement out of center will relatively flatten the upper register and sharpen the lower or visa versa. This will distort the scaling of the flute. Position of the cork is measured as follows: the length of the end plate to the center of the embouchure hole is equal to the diameter of the tube at the center of the embouchure hole. This measurement is most commonly 17.3mm. Physics determines the proportions! Flutes are designed to play most in tune with this proportion set properly and proper tone hole placement (scaling).
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Picture of a headjoint showing cork:
http://eldredspellflutes.com/Articles.htm#Anatomy
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Acoustic Flute article: Abstract: how headjoint cork placement can affect the tone quality of the flute:
http://tinyurl.com/5nkocn