Hey Duco,

I can't blow the darned thing either. My brother is great on kaval, essentialy the same technique i think. I've tried and tried, but nothing, and i go back to low whistle and flute. But recently i was lucky enough to purchase a nice whistle type instrument tuned like a kaval on ebay. It's a duduk from bulgaria, witha simple fipple type thing happening, so its easy to blow, but since it's tuned like a kaval, it sounds like one.

I've got a good friend here, rob, who has been making bamboo flutes for 30 years and has gotten damned good at it. I took him the duduk/kaval, and within a few minutes he'd made me a transverse flute/kaval, and i like it even more than the one from bulgaria. Actually, a lot more, the sound is awesome and it's easy and a lot of fun to play ........i'd wanted something that would make me sound mid eastern and this sure does that. People really like it.

It's got me wanting him to copy all sorts of ethnic flutes. I think he might have a future in making custom flutes. I think he's a master craftsman, making high quality instruments and selling them to tourists, more or less, at renn faires and shows. I think he needs an internet outlet for his flutes ( the life on the road has gotten way old) and i'm trying to make that connection for them.

Anyway, my brother tells me to do a blowfish imitation, and to be loose in playing kaval...............but i never got much of a sound out of it. Good luck to you in the effort.