Practicing the Flute « Practicing Flutist

Looking for a Pitch Tendency Chart?

February 7, 2012 at 8:42 pmCategory:Practicing the Flute

I’ve noticed that one of the most popular pages on this blog is the page on creating a pitch tendency chart. I have a feeling that what people are really looking for is a chart that will tell them what the pitch tendencies of the flute are, so I thought I would explain why I haven’t provided such a thing, but instead tell you how to create one for yourself.

While there are some pitches on almost all flutes that can be counted on to be sharp or flat intonation-wise (c# in the staff, e and f# above the staff), individual players and different flutes will each have their own tendencies for all the other notes. A note that is flat or sharp for one person may not be for another. And if you play on different flutes for different purposes, especially if you play alto, bass, picc, etc., you will want to chart your tendencies on those flutes as well.

There are two purposes for charting your pitch tendencies. One is so that you will know what your own tendencies are so you can learn to adjust for them. The second is that just by doing the work of charting your tendencies, you become more aware of your tone production and improvement begins almost automatically. This is why I don’t provide a chart of generalized pitch tendencies, because they might not apply to you! So spend a little time, make a nice chart and start measuring your own personal pitch tendencies. You might be surprised at what you find!

A Flutist’s Education is Never Finished

October 10, 2011 at 8:21 pmCategory:Practicing the Flute

As I was practicing my daily dose of Moyse exercises (I’m on Day 13 now, more ABCD), I experienced a tremendous feeling of gratitude for the kind of flute education that I have received. While I feel that I have learned many things on my own, and that students (myself included) are largely responsible for what they learn, I felt very grateful for the lessons my teachers taught me and for the many things I have learned.

For some time now, I have been feeling pretty isolated, flute-wise and education-wise. I do not meet too many people who have had the advanced music education that I have. Most people make a lot more money than I do, or are at least employed in their field, but these are all results of choices we each make. Lately I’ve been meeting flutists who would love to have had the teaching that I received, that are craving knowledge that I have been taking for granted. Reading posts on the Flute List regarding Sir James’s Moyse scale challenge have also reinforced this. There are so many people who have not had a teacher that really taught them the basics of how to play the instrument. Those of us who have had an intensive, thorough flute education are very, very lucky.

But, we shouldn’t stop there! I’ve also been reading stories, articles, and posts about flutists that continue their learning every day. Their curiosity and enthusiasm and determination never wane and neither should yours and mine. There is always more that you can do to improve as a musician. You can read about music and musicians, study scores, compose and arrange pieces, listen to recordings, go to performances, etc, etc, not to mention practice!

As a flutist with a day job, I often bemoan the time that I cannot spend on music and the education that is not being exercised and utilized often enough. Today I was able to remember that I am very lucky. I hope I can carry that feeling around for a long while! Now, go practice your scales and see what you can be grateful for!

Sir James’ Scale Challenge

October 4, 2011 at 5:55 pmCategory:Practicing the Flute

Have you heard about Sir James Galway’s scale practicing challenge? It has been the buzz of his forum for weeks. He has challenged all flutists who are willing to put some serious work in to go through Moyse’s Daily Exercises method book with him. He has pledged to do the practice routine prescribed in the book every day, no matter where he is, and wants others to do the same. Neat, huh?! Can you imagine yourself practicing the same exercises that this legendary flutist is doing every day?

I have to admit that I got so enthusiastic that I jumped the gun and started right away. Turns out that the challenge didn’t get started ’til Sept. 26, but I figure that I might miss a day here and there so I’ll probably finish along with everyone else. These are some pretty rigorous exercises, and if I hadn’t worked through them before, I would probably be pretty intimidated to try it now. You start out with basic scales, then work through ever-widening intervals and iterations of broken chords. It is a terrific workout! I believe that working on the wide intervals is one of the keys to developing a flexible sound that is consistent in all registers.

Copy and paste this link into your browser, it will take you to a video of Sir James demonstrating why and how to practice these scales.

http://galwaynetwork.com/scale.htm

This could be some of the most important practicing you ever do!

Cats and Flutes

August 28, 2011 at 5:32 pmCategory:Practicing the Flute

I’ve noticed that many flute people are also cat people. I have always had cats and I seem to know more flute people with cats than with dogs. Maybe this is just my experience, but I wonder if there is something to it.

Cats do seem to make good musical companions because they are usually pretty disinterested in what you are doing and will leave you alone when you practice, though they may complain if you spend a lot of time in the high register. Some flute friends were at my house last week to read quartets and I was certain one of my cats was about to swat the person playing the first part of a particularly high-reaching piece. Turned out that he just wanted to see if he could get her to share her chair.

My cats do seem to have an affinity for my flute bag (and anyone else’s!) so I can’t leave it lying on a table or else it will be covered in fur. The same goes for open flute cases. Very cute, but not good for the flute! A couple of them also delight in clearing any table or desk of music, tuners, metronomes, etc., with reckless abandon. They then look up at me as if to say “I was only doing my stretching exercises. Didn’t you want this table cleared off?”

One of my cats particularly likes the Baroque flute. When I play it for him, he gets this beatific look on his face and he gives a lovely little meow in the pauses between phrases.

I probably sound like the crazy cat lady, but I share my home and often my practice space with a colorful cast of feline characters. I just hope they get as much out of it as I do!

Flute Practice and Technology

June 13, 2011 at 1:17 pmCategory:Practicing the Flute

There has been a little controversy raging on Flute List lately regarding approaches to flute technique, specifically tone production and intonation. Some contributors are very scientific in their approach and others are not, and I think the science-oriented people got a little offended by some comments that may have made it sound like they were going about things the wrong way.

Personally, I think it’s great that some people can think about precisely aiming their air stream at very specific angles while blowing the air at a controlled and measured air velocity of x/per second, etc. That someone knows these angles and measurements impresses me to no end, but how do they know they are accomplishing this when they pick up a flute? If it were essentially that simple, then why can’t all flutist be taught to do this from the very beginning? And, when we can program a machine to do this, why do we find the results unsatisfying?

I agree that the air must be aimed at appropriate angles at sufficient velocities to produce good results. But, how each individual accomplishes that feat is less a matter of meeting specific criteria, than it is a constant exercise in trial error. Each person’s physiognomy is unique, the physical properties of flutes varies hugely, environmental conditions add to the list of variables, on and on and on. It’s a wonder that anyone learns to play well!!

But some do learn to play excellently, and many learn to play well, and I like to believe that most can achieve decent tone quality and better than passable intonation. Technology can be very useful; I use it in my practicing and I teach others how I think it should be used. But when we perform, or when we play with others, we have to be able to play without the benefit of meters measuring our pitch or our tempo or our air speed, etc. We have to learn how it feels to produce a good sound, how it sounds and feels to be in tune. Our bodies and our brains are what measure and evaluate what we are doing when we play, so we have to train them to be able to do that reliably and confidently, and then to make the necessary and constant adjustments that will get us the result we want. It’s not enough to say, “Blow at this angle and at this speed.” That is only the beginning!

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