Doctor Flute Blog
Musings on the Flute
New Open Hole Flute? What About Those Plugs?
What do I mean? When you have just purchased an open hole flute and now you are trying to figure out what to do with those plugs. Do you take them out one-at-a-time? Or, do you plunge in all-at-once, much like ripping off a band aid? Here is what I do with my students...
Interesting Change in Flute Choice
I recently attended the Mid-Atlantic Flute Convention in Reston, VA. While in the exhibit hall I made an interesting observation. The flute that I thought had my name all over it - was not the flute for me! We flutists get the itch every so often to change up our...
Playing Delicately Rather Than Softly
Sometimes when we look at our music, we see it says piano, and in thinking piano, we tend to squeeze, instead of thinking, "What if I kept that sound glorious and beautiful, but just used a different adjective to describe it?" In the Cantabile et Presto, in the...
The Glitch Hitch
That hideous thing called the glitch. That little thing that is the difference between flawless and imperfect. It separates the amateur from the professional. I remember listening to great flutists on recordings (you know back when the only way to listen was offline:...
Getting Back in Shape
Have you ever taken some time off from playing flute, then when you pick it back up… YOU SOUNDED TERRIBLE?! Well, I have! Everyone has those times every now and then. Sometimes it’s because work has taken over your life. Sometimes it’s because you were sick or had...
Reflections from the Mid-Atlantic Flute Convention
What a wonderful weekend it was - filled with flute! The Washington Flute Society did a great job of putting on this convention. There was something for everyone and more. The exhibit hall was filled with flutes and music and the sessions were a nice mix of recitals...
Improve Your Tone by Opening Your Sinuses
Try this out for me. Pick up your flute and play a scale. While you are playing, analyze what the back of your throat is doing. Is your throat open? What about the back of your throat, going up to your sinuses? Is the back of your tongue down so that your throat can...
Piccolo Embouchure Placement
It is a common belief that we flutists can play piccolo just because of the nature of the flute and piccolo are from the same family. This usually occurs in high school where the band director needs someone on piccolo, and points to you. So, you just pick up the...
Practice with Me Low Register Tonguing
Today's practice with me is Low Register Tonguing. We all have trouble getting our low notes to come out with a very short tongue. If you have to triple tongue or double tongue in your low register, it often comes out as big puffs of air. Even when you use a short...