Dryad Flutes are
made with my lifelong love for trees. I recall, as a
tree-climbing child, an instinctive faith in the strength of
branches. As a young man I would climb,
with my tenor recorder, the park trees to sit with the birds and
play. And over the ensuing years as a flute performer, I have
played
countless times under the natural canopy of the
branches.
So when the inspiration and opportunity came to start making my own
flutes, all I wanted to make were branch flutes. No
other endeavor in my life has been as
fascinating, as rewarding, or as challenging. How would the
spirit, or dryad of a tree make a
flute? That has been my guiding vision. A
dryad would keep
the natural beauty and strength of the branch intact. A dryad would honor the heritage of
the indigenous people of the land. A dryad would give the flute a voice
clear and bright as a bird song. And a dryad
would make the flute a magical home for its own
continued habitation. Or so speak the trees to me.
So in a Dryad Flute, in
its unique shape, in the unsplit strength and beauty of its grain
and
growth rings, in the color and texture of its bark, in
the
character of its knots, crevices or worm holes, to be inlayed
with
colorful stone, and in the unique timbre of its voice, the spirit of
the tree
is invited to remain. A spirit that might then inspire you to
open your
heart to the natural world, sit with the trees and play!
~ Jon
Sherman
jon@rokcircle.com
Dryad Flutes are handcrafted to reflect the unique beauty of the tree from which they were made. Though natural looking, each instrument is tuned and voiced with precision to a particular key in the minor pentatonic modes 1&4.
"It is a perfectly lovely little G# flute as I suspected that it would be from the photo and sound clip on your web site. It has a fantastic voice - real "sweet" and "pure". And I very much appreciate the workmanship that you put into it - very organic, and true to the original limb shape and character. The finish is great, and I appreciate the filled insect holes, including the ones on the bottom of the block! It is a great flute, and I thank you for trusting me with it!"
~ Kent Bush, Sundog Flutes
"I am loving her more with each breath of life we share together. This is the first flute which I can truly feel the vibration of each tone. I am in my office at the Ojai Foundation today and before I started the day I went up to the 
power point, turned
to the four directions as I let my
heart sing through the voice of the
flute. Thank you for the work you put into creating such a wonderful
piece."~ Patrick Talbot, Ojai Foundation |
Although your website
photos were really clear and detailed (which I really love), the flute
is so
much more beautiful in person! I’m very pleased with my choice
!!! This flute will
fit in well with my flute journey I’ve been on and I can’t wait to
see what it has to teach me! Because of its one piece design and
having
the bark still on it, I feel even closer to the tree from which it
grew. It
almost looks like it grew as a flute and just fell from the tree into
your
hands (I know it wasn’t that easy)!! The size is perfect for
travel
and the ash is both beautiful and durable so I can see this little guy
going
many places with me, especially to my flute demonstrations and campfire
programs at my local park. Also, I love the booklet you have
provided
with the flute and I really understand your drive and passion for
making flutes
the way you do. As with all of my flutes, they are both unique
and well
cared for so you need not worry about this guy having a wonderful new
home with
plenty of play time. Thanks for expressing your God gifted talent
and thanks
for becoming a part of my flute journey. I will recommend your
work to
others and I’m sure our paths will cross again.
