AllOtsego.com: Of Flutes

Of Flutes

10/30/09

Of Flutes

SAM GOODYEAR

ART BEAT

Though it is a truism, it is perfectly true that, on getting up in the morning, one just never knows what the day will bring.
My Saturday morning is a carefully structured sequence of events, which includes making sure my two dogs are properly exercised and worn out for a long day of rest while I drive to Binghamton and back for my eight-hour shift on WSKG.
There is a lot to attend to and time is short.
Still, this past Saturday I squeezed in a quick errand at the Artisans’ Guild on Main Street in Oneonta (which warrants a whole column on its own) and emerged 10 minutes later full of wholly unanticipated wonder and enlightenment.
The gentleman manning the shop was making music. On a huge (and I mean huge – very long, very wide ) wooden flute whose sound was reminiscent of the sonorous vibrations of an Australian didgeridoo.
Spread out before him on the countertop was a collection of smaller flutes, each one from a different wood and of a different color and grain, each one masterfully hand-carved, each one a work of art.
The flutist also happened to be the creator of these exquisite objects, which he calls Native American Style flutes.
Meet Jim Verrelli, craftsman and musician extraordinaire who claims to be an "amateur" woodworker and instrumentalist. You could have fooled me.
Since first purchasing a Native American flute in 2006 and falling in love with its essence and its sound, Mr. Verrelli has made well more than 100 versions of his own in countless sizes and out of all sorts of types of wood (curly cherry, purpleheart, zebrawood, paduk, lace/leopard wood…).
"The flute is an energy conduit between one’s soul and the world," says this "amateur." He is a passionate expert on the entire gamut of a flute’s being: the wood, the finish, the ornamentation, voicing, tuning, key, scale, tonal range…
Not only is this gentleman modest, he is also deeply respectful of the tradition which has captured his heart.
He emphasizes his adherence to the Indian Arts and Crafts Act of 1990 and the Indian Arts and Crafts Enforcement Act of 2000.
"I am not an ‘Indian’ and do not represent my my flutes as being ‘Indian’ made," he says. "I have great respect for the native culture and use the word ‘style’ to distinguish my flutes from Native American flutes made by native flute makers."
The prerequisite for a true amateur – and professional, for that matter – is the word’s origin: love. Mr. Verrelli certainly has that, and then some.
Your appetite whetted? Let yourself come under the spell at www.jimsflutes.com
Sam Goodyear’s column on the arts appears weekly.

Labels: 11-06-09, art beat