Volodymyr Vikhrenko

A Vinnytsya master – a pipe maker – has already been manufacturing these folk instruments for 18 years with his own hand. His instruments are highly rated and are used by well-known musicians but Volodymyr is a musician himself. He became interested in piping back during his student years.

Creative work

The master manufactures quite a range of different pipes: dentsivkas (flutes with bottoms, diatonic and chromatic); alto, tenor, bass pipes; dzholomygas (double dentsivkas); telenkas (open flutes). For manufacture of his favorite instruments the master uses practically every kind of wood. He sometimes makes even oak and birch pipes though most of all he likes pear, guelder rose and horn-beam.

Besides wooden instruments Volodymyr also makes a range of clay (ceramic) instruments which are called “ocarynas” (more widespread name in Ukraine is “a cuckoo”): piccolo ocaryna, tonic ocaryna, alto ocaryna, tenor ocaryna, and bass ocaryna.