Flutelab has a huge experience in making adaptive wind instruments for players with special needs. These photographs represent a small portion. A more extensive archive you will find here (Dutch language).
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This handicapped girl has a deformed right hand. Introducing a D/bD key and porting C and #C to the left pinky she can play the flute. | |
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The player of this basset horn was not at all physically challenged. She had just small hands so a simple key extension was made to improve ergonomy... | |
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and an adjustable leg was made to support the instrument. | |
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This lady had trouble keeping the instruments and her arms up in the air. A one-legged stand (monopod) clicks on the instrument. Leaning into it provides pressure to the embouchure. Due to the single leg design she still has full freedom of movement. | |
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suffers from a brain injury so she cannot play with her right hand anymore.
On the one-handed flute I made, she performs and has recorded 2 cd's.
Fingering table (xls file) Her own homepage. Image of instrument. |
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This girl suffers from juvenile rheuma and has trouble holding the clarinet up. The one-legged stands simply clicks on the clarinet. Also not-handicapped players have reported that they find this arrangement very comfortable. | |
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After a work accident, the owner of this saxophone could not play anymore. With our design, the lower section can be played with two fingers. | |
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A woman born with one arm requested me to make a one-handed tenor recorder. The system is very easy to learn. The thumb has 3 keys for the thumb hole allowing 3 different apertures. The lower thumb key will change a C into a #C and a D into a #D. C and D are both played with the pinky. | |
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If you need my services, I strongly recommend to visit me in Amsterdam. In an unusual procedure, the plywood dummy flute was sent to Iceland, and the player made the remarks on the dummy and sent it back. The adaptive recorder was a succes! It is also possible to buy my design service and have your adaptation made locally. For advice, please contact me. Contact page. |
“On
my workbench it is just pieces of metal and wood, but in the hands of my customers
they come to life.”
