THE GLISSANDO HEADJOINT®
The Glissando Headjoint® gives flutists an entirely new mode of expression, bringing the instrument closer to the sound of the human voice. It is a telescoping headjoint, with a high performance contemporary cut silver headjoint sliding inside a carrier tube! Two “wings” extend from the lip plate and comfortably embrace the flutist’s cheeks. Moving the flute to your right slides the headjoint from its “home position” (all the way in) and extends the length of the flute. Glissandi can be made both to and from every note on the flute! With the Glissando Headjoint® in its “home position,” the flute is a traditional Boehm flute and all repertoire can be played as if a traditional headjoint was in use. The Glissando Headjoint® can be positioned to tune the flute just like any other headjoint.
New musical dimensions for the flutist
The Glissando Headjoint® is a radical re-imagining of the flute! The flutist can now be fully expressive in styles that call for a flexible, liquid approach to pitch. Blues, Rock, Jazz, World Music, New Age and creative music of all types are dramatically enhanced with the Glissando Headjoint®. The creative possibilities in old and new music are virtually limitless.
Inspired by the “whammy bar” on the electric guitar and the myriad of musical possibilities such a headjoint could bring, Robert Dick invented the Glissando Headjoint®. Three flutemakers contributed to the evolution of the design: Eva Kingma, Kaspar Baechi and Bickford Brannen. Now, the Glissando Headjoint® is manufactured under Robert Dick’s own name!
The range that a given note may be glissed is between a major third and a major second, depending on the length of the air column. Short air columns, such as first finger C natural, will gliss the farthest, down to Ab. The longest air column, low B, can be glissed a whole step, down to clear and strong low A. By starting with the slide pulled out all or part of its way, dramatic upward glissandi result from sliding the headjoint back to its “home position.”
With a Glissando Headjoint®, the flute becomes two instruments in one. It can be transformed in an instant from a traditional instrument into a totally new flute, in which every note can be made to flow seamlessly into its neighbors. With complete freedom of dynamics and color, the flutist’s full expressive range can be achieved with the headjoint in home position or with the slide extended for all or part of its travel.
The Glissando Headjoint® is on FaceBook too! https://www.facebook.com/GlissandoHeadjoint
For info, or when you wish to order a headjoint, you can reach me directly by email: glissando at robertdick dot net. I will personally answer your questions! Dealer inquiries are welcome.
All Glissando Headjoints® are play tested by me before going to their new owners or to the dealers who stock them.
VIDEO: ROBERT DICK DEMONSTRATES THE GLISSANDO HEADJOINT®
GLISSANDO HEADJOINT® FINGERING CHART
Click on a chart to open:
GLISSANDO HEADJOINT VIDEOS
If you go to YouTube and search for “Glissando Headjoint” or “Glissando Glute Headjoint” or even “Glissando Flute”, you’ll find lots of videos of flutists around the world doing their thing with the Glissando Headjoint®!
Here’s a short list of some of my favorite Glissando Headjoint® videos:
Robert Dick SLIDING LIFE BLUES
Robert Dick HEAT HISTORY
Melissa Keeling GLISSANDO HEADJOINT – Lesson (& Van Halen!)
Robert Dick and Greg Pattillo: BASEMENT JAM
Greg Pattillo BARN STOMPIN’ with the GLISSANDO HEADJOINT
Matt McKay GROOVE from the JOINT by Robin Dewhurst
Kumi Nakanishi, Japanese jazz artist, tears it up on the Glissando Headjoint® – For this video click here
COMPOSITIONS FOR FLUTE WITH GLISSANDO HEADJOINT®
An ever increasing number of composers are writing for flute with Glissando Headjoint®. The largest group of compositions is the collection of works commissioned by Erik Drescher in Berlin. There are over twenty compositions by European composers, and these may be found at:
http://www.verlag-neue-musik.de — select Erik Drescher as “composer”
The pieces in his collection are by Uwe Rasch, Cornellus Schwehr, Christian Kesten, Chico Mello, Jaime Reis, Ernstalbrecht Stiebler, Gérard Pape, Chris Newman, Artur Kroschel, Jin-Ah Ahn, Jeremy Woodruff, Heiko Müller, Dror Feller, Andrea Neumann, Kasper T. Toeplitz, Luke Martin, Nikolaus A. Huber, Eleftherios Veniadis, Michael Malerhof,
Stefan Streich
Erik has coined the term “glissando flute” as short for “flute with Glissando Headjoint®” – both are correct
In 2017, Multiple Breath Music will publish a collection of short pieces for flute with Glissando Headjoint® written by me and guest composers Lisa Bost-Sandberg, Ursel Schlicht, Dave Soldier and others. Working title: GLISSANDO VISIONS
This list will be updated periodically. Please send info about new pieces for flute with Glissando Headjoint® to <glissando at robertdick dot net>
Here’s a selection of pieces:
PETER ABLINGER:
ss. Giovanni e Paolo (2012) glissando flute and pre-recorded sound — publisher: Zeitvertrieb Wien Berlin http://zeitvertrieb.mur.at
JAY C. BATZNER
Dreams Grow Like Slow Ice (2013) flute with Glissando Headjoint® and Digital Audio
Unsafe Bull Music — jaybatzner.com
AXEL DÖRNER
versicht (2013) glissando flute and tape – contact Erik Drescher
ErikDrescher at web dot de
SABINE ERCKLENTZ
Relatives (2013) glissando flute and tape – contact Erik Drescher
JULIO ESTRADA
yuunohui’ehecatl (2008-2012) glissando flute solo – info: Erik Drescher
CYNTHIA FOLIO
Mad Dog Raga – flute with Glissando Headjoint® and mixed ensemble
cynthiafolio.com
BROOKS FREDERICKSON
Breathing (2015) – flute with Glissando Headjoint® flute, vibraphone, glockenspiel
www.brooksfrederickson.com
BALÁZS HORVATH
Dualith — flute with glissando headjoint®, percussion and piano
balazshorvath.com
JUSEOB LIM
Konzert für Flöte in einem Satz (2015) glissando flute and orchestra
info: Erik Drescher
ALVIN LUCIER
Broken Line (2006) glissando flute, piano and vibraphone
publisher: materialpress
Double Himalaya (2012) glissando flute and tape
publisher: materialpress
PHILL NIBLOCK
DreGliss (2015) glissando flute and tape
contact PNiblock at compuserve dot com
YOUNGHI PAGH-PAAN
“Warte nur II / Gi-da ryu-ra II (2015) a version of “BiYu” (1999)
soprano, glissando flute, violoncello, dae-geum, hae-geum, gayageum
publisher: Ricordi
MICHAEL ROSE
Castor+Pollux (2005) for flute with Glissando Headjoint® and trombone
Toy Suite (2005) for flute with Glissando Headjoint® and trombone
yeolde3eyes at yahoo dot com
MARC SABAT
Swing in sweet summer (a chromatic ground for glissando flute) (2013) glissando flute and electronics
info: Erik Drescher
LÁSZLÓ SÁRY
Voices (1975/2014) (2,5 hours) 2 flutes, version glissando flute and pre-recorded tape
info: Erik Drescher
MARCUS SCHMICKLER
WXYork (for Glissando Flute) (2015) glissando flute and electronics
info: Erik Drescher
SALVATORE SCIARRINO
Il pomeriggio di un allarme al parcheggio (2014) glissando flute solo
publisher: RaiTrade
DANIEL TRAMPTE
i/o (2014) — flute with Glissando Headjoint®, marimba, piano
www.dantramte.com/io
KEN UENO
Building — deconstructed contrabass, C flute, Kingma system C flute with Glissando Headjoint® and percussion
http://kenueno.com/worklist.html
JAKOB ULLMANN
solo I (1992/93 – 2010) — glissando flute solo
la segunda canción del angel desaparecido (2011-2013)
glissando flute, basset horn, bassoon, percussion and string quintet
info: Erik Drescher
WALTER ZIMMERMANN
Shadow of Cold Mountain 4 (1997) glissando flute and tape
http://home.snafu.de/walterz/