Descant recorder, nominal pitch: C

Richard Haka
https://images.is.ed.ac.uk/luna/servlet/iiif/UoEart~2~2~73390~166962/full/,150/0/default.jpghttps://images.is.ed.ac.uk/luna/servlet/iiif/UoEart~2~2~83061~461291/full/,150/0/default.jpghttps://images.is.ed.ac.uk/luna/servlet/iiif/UoEart~2~2~69118~104791/full/,150/0/default.jpg

Instrument

Descant recorder

Instrument Family

Wind

Maker

Richard Haka

Place Made

Northern Europe; Netherlands; Europe; Amsterdam

Date Made

Circa 1661 - c 1699

Description

This instrument is made from a single piece of ivory. The finger-holes are large and heavily undercut and the windway is curved. In this flute à neuf tons (a recorder with 8 finger-holes plus thumb-hole), the eighth finger-hole is duplicated i.e. there are two holes at the bottom for the lower little finger, to be closed according to whether a player plays left or right hand lowermost. The redundant hole was filled with wax. The instrument is stamped “R.HAKA” in a cartouche (the stamp is very worn, the top portion of the ‘R’ is incomplete and the full stop is invisible and may not have existed). The lip is broken and there is a long crack in the mouthpiece and chipped foot. The block is not original. Although not playable in its present condition, the usable pitch is A4 = c 443 Hz with the lip extended to its presumed original edge. The fingering is substantially Renaissance in style but with some Baroque features. Technical description: Ivory; one piece; wooden block; large, heavily-undercut finger-holes; curved windway. A flûte à neuf trous (8 finger-holes plus thumb-hole), the eighth finger-hole is a duplicate to be closed according to whether player has the left hand or right hand lowermost. Repair History: The block is not original. Stamped "R.HAKA" in cartouche; the top portion of the `R' is incomplete, the full stop is not visible and may not exist. Performance characteristics: Not playable in present condition; as reported by Beaudin, with the lip extended by tape to its supposed original edge, the fingering is substantially Renaissance fingering, but with some Baroque features. Usable pitch: Sounding A⁴ = c 443 Hz (c 10 cents above A⁴ = 440 Hz), measured with the lip extended by tape to its supposed original edge. Technical drawing available from the Friends of St Cecilia's Hall. Please see http://www.stceciliasfriends.org.uk/

Notes

J.-F. Beaudin (16.12.86); Edgar Hunt, 1985; E. Smith, 2010.

Measurements

336.5.

Provenance

Purchased by H.I. Brackenbury in Salzburg in June 1928 (for £3/0/0).; Government Allocation to the University, 1991.

Collection

MIMEd; C.H. Brackenbury Memorial Collection

Accession Number

1037

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