For those who are curious, I have summed up the process of how I make ceramic flutes.

The creation of a ceramic flute:

I first form the bore using an extruder. I then insert the wall inside the bore and form the mouth piece. At this point I allow the clay to dry a bit before continuing to the next stage.

In the next step, I cut the sound mechanisms into the bore and continue to slowly let the clay dry. Once the flue and fetish have been formed and the sound holes are correct, I make sure that I have a good fundamental note.

I continue to work the sound mechanisms, adjusting the sound holes and the tone. Once the clay is leather hard, I then do the pre-firing voicing. I take into account the shrinkage that will occur during the two firings.

Next, I continue by placing the tone holes and tuning them. At this stage it is very important to take into account how much the clay will change during the firings. Different clay bodies either shrink or enlarge depending on their composition and I have applied a lot of research to get accurate results.

Now it is time for the oven.

The first firing is a bisque firing. After this firing, I again adjust the tuning to make sure it will be correct after the second and final firing. At this point, I have the tuning just about where it needs to be for the final flute.

The next step is the final firing.

Most of the time I either pit fire or Raku fire the flutes.

For pit firing, I place the flutes in a large open pit. I then add various organic materials such as: woodchips, coffee grinds, seaweed, banana peels and pine needles. After adding the wood to create the fire, the pit is covered and the fire is starved for oxygen. This creates reduction and the fire looks for oxygen from the organic materials. The gases that are expelled from the organic materials are what give the flutes their unique and beautiful colors.

If I chose Raku firing, the process is quite different. Raku is a 400-year-old Japanese firing method that uses glazes and reduction to create the beautiful colors you see on these flutes. I use Raku clay to ensure the best results. I then glaze the flutes using specific glazes for different finishes. The flutes are heated up in a Raku kiln. Once the flutes are heated to the correct temperature, they are removed from the kiln and placed in a reduction chamber where they cool down and their unique colors are created.

A final tuning step, and the flutes are ready for their journey.