Martin Doyle is visiting Tanzania with Nina Perry of Falling Tree Productions at the moment. Nina is making a radio documentary called The Music Tree for the Irish radio station Newstalk and it features Martin Doyle as an instrument maker visiting the area of East Africa where the famous Mpingo (African Blackwood) trees grows. Since the 19th century African Blackwood has been a timber favoured for woodwind instruments as its density, tonal properties, stability and durability are incomparable.
This trip is in its own way an historical occasion as many of the local people of Tanzania, some of whom are involved in burgeoning Mpingo conservation projects, have never before met a European craftsman who uses their timber to make musical instruments. Martin accomplished the task of making a flute with some of the local Mpingo carvers on the third day of his visit and by all accounts they were enthralled when it was played to them.
Nina Perry is kindly authoring a blog (where internet connection allows no doubt) dedicated to the trip — Music Tree — so that we distant onlookers can keep abreast of events.
No story, small or large, is complete without a picture. Here is one from Nina’s Music Tree blog:
Tanzanian street scene
Born in Dublin, Ireland, Martin Doyle grew up in the seaside town of Bray in County Wicklow. One of four children in a family with music in their blood, Martin was influenced and inspired by his mothers melodious singing from a very early age – learning songs that have stayed with him to this day.
Flute Maker Martin Doyle's Weblog is maintained on behalf of Martin Doyle by his friend 
Diane Robinson said
Thank you so much for such wonderful dialogue. I am interested as a researcher of language & spirituality in oral tradition cultures of Irish Celtic and Anishnaabe-First Nations of Canada. This programme was an excellent example of language expression through music and one I would like to add to my ongoing research. Is there any possibility of finding the script of the programme that I might read in totality and details of its copyright citation please.
Miigwech!
Diane
First FSC Certified Blackwood Flute Produced « Martin Doyle’s Weblog said
[...] by Nina Perry of Falling Tree Productions. In 2009, in the process of making of The Music Tree, Martin travelled to Tanzania with Nina where he saw firsthand the efforts being made to manage the sustainable replanting and [...]