Pure Ocarinas are concert quality ocarinas, designed from the start as serious musical instruments. They are designed to help you to preform your best, and make difficult music possible.
Pure Ocarinas are handcrafted ceramic ocarinas, made by Robert Hickman, who strives to make ocarinas to the highest quality:
To be ergonomic means that something is designed to fit the human body, and Pure Ocarinas place ergonomics as first priority.
Pure ocarinas have a clean sound, with a timbre that is balanced over the instruments whole range. The high notes are clean and 'just work', with no need for gymnastics like the acute bend. Having a balanced volume and timbre works better in a musical performance. You don't need to worry yourself with inaudible low notes or screeching loud high notes.
Benifits of 10 and 11 hole ocarinas.
Pure Ocarinas are tuned with an even breath curve across the entire playing range, including the subhole on ocarinas featuring one. Having a predictable breath curve helps you to play complex music in tune, as the pressure changes between notes are smaller, and more consistent over the instrument's range.
As ceramic is a variable material, the holes of each ocarina are adjusted individually to be perfectly in tune. They are tuned twice to catch errors before being shipped to you. As the ocarinas tuning depends on the relative sizes of the finger holes, glaze in holes will negatively effect the tuning. Due to this, I painstakingly wipe all the glaze out of the finger holes and do not spray apply glazes.
Having a gentle breath curve makes it easier for you to play fast and intricate music, as the pressure changes between notes are smaller. You don't need to exert yourself playing a high note with huge pressure, only to switch to a low note, with a massive pressure drop and risk playing it sharp.
My name is Robert Hickman. I discovered the ocarina in roughly 2008 and immediately found a liking for their ethereal tone. My interest in the ocarina is that of a musician. The transverse ocarina is a highly capable musical instrument and fully chromatic over its sounding range.
I started making ocarinas in 2011 and my current design has evolved with my skill as a musician. Being both a player and a maker allows me to understand exactly what is needed to make a great ocarina. As my musical ability developed I noticed areas in which the instrument was limiting me, and modified it to work around them. This process continues to the present day, and as such Pure Ocarinas are a continually evolving product.
To me ‘Pure’ signifies a number of things. In a literal sense the ocarina has a very pure/ethereal tone. It is also ‘pure’ in its simplicity, a hollow lump of ceramic with holes. However in capable hands, this simple thing is able to produce beautiful music.
I mostly play Irish, Welsh and similar traditional folk music, and enjoy its social aspects. It is fun to be able to play in group music sessions with others I've never met before, and learn new tunes from other musicians.