DCM 1493: Raoul Fajardo Flute Head Joint

The combination head joint cap and cork element appears to be formed from plastic tubing not unlike the embouchure plate and maintains a seal at the lower end by means of a standard rubber O-ring. Affixed to it and formed from a pine dowel is a tapered wooden wedge or baffle wall which has the effect of altering the cylindrical bore to one incorporating the tapered or parabolic nature of the standard modern flute head joint. This is an experimental device opposite the embouchure hole and can be rotated approximately 40 degrees for the purpose of altering the instrument's playing characteristics. The amount of rotation is stopped by a lateral metal pin moving in a groove cut in the end of the head joint tubing. See DCM 1494 Notes.
Instrument type: Flute Head Joint
Medium: Fabric, with synthetic laminate, possibly a phenol derivative, terminating at the lower end with a sheet metal, nickel silver tenon. See Notes.; 21.75 cm.
Mark Maximum: R. Fajardo (cursive)
Mark Additional: Inscribed on head joint, with label: Raoul J. Fajardo, PO Box 8711, San Marino CA, 91108.
Provenance: Raoul Fajardo, San Marino, California, ca. 1971.

The Dayton C. Miller collection in the Library of Congress, contains nearly 1,700 flutes and other wind instruments, statuary, iconography, books, music, trade catalogs, tutors, patents, and other materials mostly related to the flute. It includes both Western and non-Western examples of flutes from around the world, with at least 460 European and American instrument makers represented. Items in the collection date from the 16th to the 20th century.