The use of raven feathers for quills
This shows the initial cutting and voicing of the raven quill. The outer end of the feather is cut away until the white inside of the feather starts to become hollow. This weak end of the feather is used for the treble notes. Gradually as more and more quills are cut from the feather it becomes stronger and more and more hollow and can be used for notes lower down in the compass. The photograph above shows the feather after several weak quills have already been removed. The end of the feather is sharpened and cut square to the long direction. The sides of the feather are tapered so that the quill fits snugly into the quill slot in the jack.
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