Doctor Flute Blog

Musings on the Flute
Breathing Quickly Quietly & Deeply

Breathing Quickly Quietly & Deeply

Breathing in the middle of a solo can sometimes be quite tricky when done properly. Actually, I don't think it's that tricky, we just think it's tricky and so we don't do it properly. Generally, when we're playing in the middle of a solo and we need to grab a breath,...

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Are You Rushing? Here’s How to Fix it!

Are You Rushing? Here’s How to Fix it!

Everyone has problems rushing. In life and in music. Rushing is what makes a passage not sound smooth as glass. It is what makes the fingers and tongue get out of sync with each other in a double tonguing passage. There are times where you don't even know that you are...

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Marcel Moyse Scales and Arpeggios

Marcel Moyse Scales and Arpeggios

In any flute journey there is always room to add something new. Anyone is bound to get bored with their routine after a certain amount of time. New exercises to work on the same old problems are always welcome in my book. With that in mind I want to bring up Marcel...

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Single Tonguing 3 Different Ways

Single Tonguing 3 Different Ways

We have all been taught to tongue notes. This skill is learned from the earliest days of flute playing. We all have our way of single tonguing some of you have been taught one way, and some have been taught another way. But have you ever explored the idea that...

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What Do You Say After a Performance?

What Do You Say After a Performance?

What do you say when you've just ended a performance and someone comes up to you and says: “Oh, great job!” And inside you're thinking: “Ah, I wasn't very good. I messed up here. I messed up there. I didn't do this right. It's not the best I could have done. The piano...

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Fixing 3 Double Tonguing Problems

Fixing 3 Double Tonguing Problems

Double tonguing is a double edged sword. It can sound fantastic or it can sound like a bunch of hens came out to peck for bugs. But there is hope for your double tonguing. There are ways to get your double tonguing in top form, and they don't take forever to learn! I...

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Embouchure Flexibility Within Your Solo

Embouchure Flexibility Within Your Solo

It's all well and good to practice flexibility when you work on exercises specifically designed for that purpose. But, do you work on it in the middle of your solo? Often times in when we are in the middle of a solo, right in the thick of it, the idea of moving your...

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Opening Your High Register

Opening Your High Register

One of the hardest things that we flute players have to deal with is our third octave. Our instinct is to close it right up. The embouchure gets smaller and the teeth move closer together because that helps us to control that upper register. Control is what you want...

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Getting Your Tone Back in Shape

Getting Your Tone Back in Shape

I've just come off the holidays as it's been Christmas vacation. It's been so massively busy that I haven't gotten much good solid practice. I feel like even when I've played a lot of flute for various Christmas gigs, I still can get out of shape if I'm not working on...

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