The end-blown flute is a simple woodwind instrument where the player directs air against the end of a pipe or tube. Although the required embouchure is difficult to master — many hours of practice are required to even produce a single tone — once acquired the player can make music on even the simplest tube or pipe from a hardware store. Unlike a panpipe, both ends of the tube are open, and unlike a recorder or tin whistle, there is no fipple.
End-blown flutes are widespread in folk musics. In the Mediterranean and Middle East the ney are frequently used, constructed from reed. Depictions of early versions of the ney can be found in wall paintings in the pyramids of Egypt, indicating that it is one of the oldest musical instruments in continued use. In Turkey the nai and kaval are both end-blown. Japan has the shakuhachi and hocchiku.
The same part of the bamboo plant is used to produce the shakuhachi but, unlike that kind of Japanese flute, its inside bore and outside surfaces are left unlaquered and its mouthpiece is not inlaid.
Hocchiku are sometimes referred to as jinashi nobekan, meaning "one piece flute made without ji (a paste used in bore construction of shakuhachi)." Hocchiku are not cut in two pieces for crafting or storage, unlike the standard shakuhachi.
The angle of the utaguchi, or blowing edge, of a hocchiku is closer perpendicular to the bore axis than that of a shakuhachi.
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