Denner Voiceflute (Tenor in D), a’=415Hz

Johann Christoph Denner (1655-1707), a woodwind maker who was active in Nuremberg, Germany, was one of the earliest maker of three-piece  instruments. Besides the recorder, he made oboe, ranckett, bassoon and clarinet. He is also famous for improving chalumeau and inventing the clarinet.

He seems to have been highly regarded since his lifetime, and there are records that he owned about three homes at the time of his death, suggesting that he was very financially successful. There are about 54 original recorders in existence, second only to Bressan, and his workshop was continued by his sons after his death, and his instruments spread throughout Europe, not to mention Germany.

At our workshop, we make tenor in D based on the original recorder in the German National Museum in Nuremberg. The original pitch is approximately a'= 415Hz, which corresponds to the modern baroque pitch with almost no modification. It has a powerful and deep tone, and it sounds richly and well. What's amazing is the arrangement of the finger holes, which allows you to hold them at close position as if they were alto, making it easier to play than other models of the same size. In addition, since the width of the wind-way outlet is relatively wide at 14.0 mm for this size, we also have an additional joint for a tenor in C (a'= 442 Hz) with the middle and foot joint extended and lowered by a semitone.