At last week’s flute choir rehearsal, we were discussing how often we might have to tune during the concert because of people having to change to different instruments for different pieces. There were several suggestions made about how to peed the flutes warm so they wouldn’t be so flat when they are picked up for a new piece (maybe there’s a new product or gimmick to be developed here!)
One flutist described a really thoughtful, ambitious method she uses to deal with this situation. She practices the pieces as if in performance and checks the general pitch of each new instrument as she picks it up and has to play it cold. By doing this, she gets at least a general idea of how to adjust the pitch so she anticipate what she needs to do to play in tune when the flute is cold. Paying constant attention to pitch (which she should be doing anyway!) allows her to adjust as the flute warms up. Wow! This person is really thinking! Wouldn’t it be nice if everyone did this? Just one more thing to add to the list of things to do in order to be prepared for every contingency in performance. Thank you Judy for that wonderful, smart idea!