Native Flute Endorsements

Mary Youngblood

International flute recording artist, composer
and cultural story teller. Gary Stroutsos

Gary Stroutsos
World Flute Master

'What I respect about Vance Pennington is his heart and soul when it comes to the American Indian flute and its on going legacy in today's society. His attention to making the very best flute he can is very important to him, as a maker of high quality instruments. I have two wonderful bird head flutes and his Anasazi flute that I enjoy playing and have recorded with. I commissioned Vance to create a very special Lakota style Woodpecker flute. This flute has a true spirit of what I believe the American Indian flute should truly sound like.

Most important I like Vance for he is an honest man and cares about people beyond his gifted flute making ability'.

In Spirit,

Gary Stroutsos - International World Flute Recording Artist

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Charlie Wayne Watson

2004 Native American Music Awards (Nammy) nominee.
Recording artist and performer.


"When playing Waking Spirit Native Flutes, I am constantly amazed at the ease of note changes and tonality. There is no 'hiss' to be heard which, as a recording artist, is very important to me. 'My newest release, Waking Spirit, is dedicated to 'Waking Spirit' Flutes, and to Vance Pennington, the flute maker that creates these incredible masterpieces, and I will treasure these 'Masterpieces' always. I highly recommend that anyone looking for Native American Flutes with absolute quality, craftsmanship and uncompromized playability, to purchase a Waking Spirit flute. Understand, that one does not blow into these flutes for sound, but rather, breathes life into them. These flutes are as I've said, uncompromized in every way. I Highly recommend Waking Spirit Flutes to all professional Flutists, as well as beginners. The craftsmanship, and quality is EXCELLENT!! They are of the highest caliber available on the market today and I endorse them in the highest regard. His unique design of the leather lacing makes his flutes one of a kind. If you are shopping for a valuable, playable Native American flute, you have found the flute maker to buy from. My personal theory; any player will sound only as good as the spirit of the flute that they are playing. Waking Spirit Flutes do indeed have that WONDERFUL SPIRIT!"

Charlie Wayne Watson.

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Low C Drone:

I am without words to explain how grateful and honored I am about this drone. It gave me chills the moment I picked it up, and the chills last for as long as I play it! That's all the words I have. CHILLING, can't even begin to explain how I feel. This flute is astounding, with so many songs in it that it totally amazes me. Such a beautiful voice.... EXACTLY the sound that I have been searching for!! Vance, I am absolutely without words. Please, dear friend, feel what I feel, my grateful heart, if you can. You are indeed a loving and generous spirit. I feel it in this flute, like no other I had before. The bears (blocks) are BETTER than the heartline bear on the flute that I sent photos of. The heartline on the top front REALLY sets this flute apart, and has special meaning to me. I think you knew that when you made it though, right? The bears, again, are AWESOME. I could go on forever, and probably will, about this flute. Thank you, Vance, thank you! Thank you for taking the time. Man, I can't wait to record this flute. It WILL BE on the (next) CD!

Note: This flute (and others created by Vance) has since been recorded on Charlie Wayne's latest CD release, and Nammy nominated recording, 'Waking Spirit' - named in Vance's honor.

Jack Rich
Flute Player/ Instructor
Hawks Gallery and Trading Post

Waking Spirit Flutes are simply the easiest flutes I have played! Created in harmony with the principles of Nature, Waking Spirit Flutes balance air pressure, physics, and mathematical precision to achieve optimal resonance and clarity of sound with minimal effort. No lung bursting effort is required to play these flutes, only a whisper of breathe, or as I discovered on the beach one day, a gentle ocean breeze.

Although aesthetically, the Waking Spirit Flutes I own rage from simple elegance to playable works of art, there is no difference in the high quality of their sound. I have tested them with a sound meter and have found each note right on.

I have been a Native American style flute player and instructor for over five years and encourage all levels of students to try these flutes for themselves. Like a Les Paul guitar, once you have one you will not want to let it go!!!!!

Thank you Vance for the gift of Music that your instruments allow me to play.

Vince Chafin

Vance and his wife Marby are amazingly beautiful souls and I LOVE his spirit, and his Flutes....

Dennis Sizemore

Commissioned:

To Create a Loon Spirit End Flute in the key of G minor (extended pentatonic) with orchestral tuning capabilities at both the lower and upper ends of the instrument.

Feedback:

'Dear Vance:

Thank you again for this most incredible flute! I can honestly say I have never played a flute that allows so much versatility and invites so many different applications. I will be eagerly using it in performances this coming weekend. Although I will not have had the chance yet to use it in rehearsals for this performance, I feel confident that the flute offers a predictable and stable intonation, which eliminates a huge amount of need for rehearsal. I anticipate admiring looks from my group when they no longer have to combat the intonation problems that I have brought to the group with previous flutes. We have scheduled recording sessions in March for our current CD project and this flute will definitely be a central element in those recordings.

I am also in Admiration of your sensitive and beautiful artwork. The carving and coloration are a perfect compliment to the walnut wood, and the Loon is absolutely striking! As I had told you in previous emails, I hope to use this flute on my upcoming performance with the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra, and that was made possible by your phenomenally quick work. I have no idea how you are able to create a flute with such careful attention to detail in such a short time.

Again, please accept my deepest gratitude. I look forward to our future collaboration.

Warmest regards,

Dennis Sizemore.
WorldWind Music and Publishing (2/23/07)'

Dennis  playing his Waking Spirit 'Mallard' flute.




Dennis Sizemore

The Open Dorr's
Don and Shirley Dorr

Vance Pennington is one superb flute maker.

We have purchased seven beautiful flutes from him. All of them play in perfect concert pitch, which is very important since we usually play duets and harmonize. His flutes also play excellently with guitars, piano, trumpet, violin and keyboards, all instruments we play in our concerts.

Vance Pennington crafts his Waking Spirit Flutes not only out of various cedar woods, but also out of many hardwoods. Artists who seek the full range of possible flute timbers will find them in these instruments.

Vance's artistry and mathematical precision used to produce his flutes are to admired. He is continually perfecting his flutes, and he stands out as one of the most dedicated Native American flute craftsmen making flutes today.

We are most fortunate to have Vance Pennington as our flute maker. We highly recommend him to everyone who desires to own or play a clearly superior Native American Flute.

The Open Dorr's