Antique Georg Walther GEWA Fife Flute 15 Darkwood – Adorf Vogtland Germany. Beautiful handmade Fife in very nice shape. I think this is made out of Rosewood but not 100% sure. I cannot find any information on this fife other than Manufacture info. There is no date on it. A fife is a small, high-pitched, transverse flute, that is similar to the piccolo, but louder and shriller due to its narrower bore. The fife originated in medieval Europe and is often used in military and marching bands. Someone who plays the fife is called a fifer. The word fife comes from the German Pfeife, or pipe, which comes from the Latin word pipare. The fife is a simple instrument usually consisting of a tube with 6 finger holes, and diatonically tuned. Some have 10 or 11 holes for added chromatics. The fife also has an embouchure hole, across which the player blows, and a cork or plug inside the tube just above the embouchure hole. Some nineteenth-century fifes had a key pressed by the little finger of the right hand in place of a seventh finger hole. Fifes are made mostly of wood: grenadilla, rosewood, mopane, pink ivory, cocobolo, boxwood and other dense woods are superior; maple and persimmon are inferior, but often used. Some Caribbean music makes use of bamboo fifes. Military and marching fifes have metal reinforcing bands around the ends to protect them from damage. These bands are called ferrules. GEWA music was founded in 1925 by Georg Walther in the town of Adorf in the Vogtland region of Germany. Following the tradition of the region, a small team of violin makers initially concentrated on the construction and sale of handmade instruments and, a short time later, also on the manufacturing of cases. Georg Walther distributed his products on his own initiative through music retail stores; through the contacts he made, he also succeeded in obtaining distribution rights from a variety of manufacturers. As the “music region of Germany”, the Vogtland area has a history of more than 300 years in musical instrument manufacturing. As early as around 1800, the region was the center of European musical instrument manufacturing with the production of stringed instruments, zithers, woodwind and brass instruments, and later also harmonica and accordion. Knowledge and experience passed on from generation to generation have produced some of the most renowned brands in the industry. I believe in WYSIWYG – What you see is what you get. All products are exactly the ones shown in my listings, no stock photos. “Pictures are worth a thousand words”. ALL PACKAGES GO FULLY TRACKED AND INSURED. I treat all in a fair and efficient manner.
