With a title like “Practicing With Your Eyes Closed,” you may think this post is about memorization. Well it is, in a way. It’s not about memorizing pieces, it is about memorizing what you need to do to to make every note in a piece sound great. When I’m learning a piece, rather than playingContinue reading “Practicing With Your Eyes Closed”
Tag Archives: practicing flutist
Skype Lessons on Intonation
Hey Everyone! I’m thinking about offering flute lessons and intonation coaching via Skype. If you have experience giving or taking Skype lessons, I’d love to hear about it and get your opinions and input about the process. Thanks in advance!
Tuners, Tuners, Everywhere!
It has been a long time since I bought my current tuner (a Seiko Chromatic Auto-Tuner) so I thought I would browse around and see what’s available now. I found lots of tuners and a large range of prices. Unfortunately, what I see most are tuners that only read pitches, without an internal tone generatorContinue reading “Tuners, Tuners, Everywhere!”
Leaning In for Musicians
I have to admit, I have been ensnared by Sheryl Sandberg’s book, ‘Lean In,’ and the movement inspired by it. But while it is about women and how they are being held back and are holding themselves back, I found a lot of similarities to my own experiences, not only as female, but as aContinue reading “Leaning In for Musicians”
Calming Pre-Concert Nerves
Before our flute choir concerts, I like to do a calming exercise with the group so they can play with more relaxed bodies and clearer mental focus. It is a simple breathing exercise that has had good results so far. I have them breathe in through their noses for a slow count of 4, thenContinue reading “Calming Pre-Concert Nerves”
Chasing the Tone
When I haven’t been practicing regularly, one of the things I tend to do is something I beg and plead students not to do. Simply put, I chase the notes with the airstream. I shoot the air up at high notes and dive down to scoop the low notes, drawing the shape of the melodyContinue reading “Chasing the Tone”
Thoughts on Conducting a Flute Choir
I’m just recovering from the most recent performance of the flute choir that I conduct, (the Tampa Bay Flute Choir). It was a lovely performance in front of a large, enthusiastic audience. It could hardly have gone better! I have to admit that I was VERY, nervous going into the performance, almost unreasonably so. IContinue reading “Thoughts on Conducting a Flute Choir”
Greg Pattillo brings “Bach to the future”
Sorry for the terrible pun, but it fits! If you like what you hear in this video and want to try it yourself, Pattillo has transcribed this version of a Bach flute staple as one of 4 beat-box etudes. Who ever thought they would hear those two terms in the same sentence, beat-box and etudes?Continue reading “Greg Pattillo brings “Bach to the future””
Flute Practice Epiphany 1
I think one of the benefits of getting older is that I have had the opportunity to hear many different ideas and perspectives on flute practice. Every once in awhile one of these ideas will spark an epiphany, a little bolt of intellectual lightning that lights up my brain. The solution to a problem suddenlyContinue reading “Flute Practice Epiphany 1”
Intonation Book Update, it’s on Amazon.com!
Just a quick update: my practice book is now formatted for eReaders and can be purchased through the Kindle store at Amazon.com. The content is the same as the PDF version I launched earlier, but formatted specifically for Kindle eReaders. Soon it will also be available through several other outlets such as the iBooks store,Continue reading “Intonation Book Update, it’s on Amazon.com!”