What is the Process For Making a Ceramic Ocarina?

The Ocarina is a stunning and ancient instrument thought to date back over 12,000 years. It is a wind instrument that contains from four to twelve finger holes and is generally made from clay or ceramic. How do you turn clay into a sweet sounding instrument? It is a delicate, detailed and time-consuming procedure. Continue reading to learn how.
Initially the ocarina maker spends time producing just the right shaped plaster mold. There are generally two different molds, one for each half of the ocarina. Then ceramic is put into or wrapped around the mold.
As soon as the clay has solidified a bit, the ocarina maker joins the two sides by using a slip as glue. A slip is watered down clay. The two halves are smoothed together with special clay tools and water to create one piece.
Next, finger holes are drilled into the ocarina. The precise size of the holes rely on the relative volume of the inner chamber.
The ocarina is then tuned by using a chromatic tuner to check the pitch. The finger holes are inspected one by one and are made larger or smaller depending upon what pitch is desired. The ocarina maker understands that the clay will shrink about 10% to 12% in each direction when fired. She or he accounts for this reality when developing the holes.
As soon as the desired pitch is attained the ocarina is placed on a special drying rack to prepare it for going into the kiln. The actual drying time will differ according to the size of the ocarina and the thickness of the clay. If the clay is not completely dry before placing it into the kiln the ocarina can explode!
When the ocarina is completely dry it is placed into a kiln. The very first firing is called bisque firing. This firing hardens the clay enough to hold up against moisture. Various sorts of clay mature at various temperature levels. The temperature it is fired at is measured in cones. Some common temperature levels are cone 06, 07 or 08.
This term refers to the clay test cones placed into kilns that melt at various temperature levels. The ocarina is baked for roughly 18 hours.
The ocarina is then removed from the kiln and cooled entirely. When cool, it is wiped down with a damp sponge. This eliminates all the dust and particles that the ocarina could have acquired during the kiln firing and guarantees a clean, smooth surface to apply the glaze.
Then a glaze or several glazes are chosen to seal and enhance the ocarina. The glaze can be dipped, sprayed or hand painted on the ocarina and allowed to dry. When dry, the newly glazed ocarina is fired again, this time in a glaze kiln. The temperature level the ocarina is fired at is figured out by the temperature requirements of the glaze. The ocarina is generally fired for an average of 18 hours and then left to cool inside the glaze kiln for a couple of days. The ocarina must cool entirely in the glaze kiln before the door is opened. If the door opened even a tiny bit before the ocarina is cooled entirely the change in temperature level inside the kiln might be extreme enough to entirely destroy it!
As soon as the ocarina is effectively removed from the glaze kiln, the ocarina maker wipes it down with a damp sponge again and checks it for any flaws. Now it is ready to play!