by Dr. Angela McBrearty | May 8, 2018 | Breathing, Embouchure, Practice, Tone
Be Flexible! No, I’m not talking about being limber in the gym. I’m not flexible at all! But, my lip is amazingly limber. Your lip is the entrance to fantastic control over your tone. By working on embouchure flexibility, you learn so-much-more about tone....
by Dr. Angela McBrearty | Apr 19, 2018 | Breathing, FluteTips, Support
Does your throat make an unwanted inexplicable noise sometimes when you play? There are a couple reasons why throat noise occurs but usually the reason is because your throat is too tight. When your throat is too tight, it engages your vocal cords. While that is the...
by Dr. Angela McBrearty | Feb 13, 2018 | Breathing, FluteTips, Practice, Tone
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...
by Dr. Angela McBrearty | Dec 21, 2017 | Breathing, FluteTips, Performing
I’ve heard competition judges at the NFA convention discuss with the audience how competitors need to learn how to take quieter breaths. Their estimation of the competitor went down simply because the breath was too loud and distracting. It especially took away from...
by Dr. Angela McBrearty | Oct 5, 2017 | Breathing, FluteTips, Support, Tone
We all know that when you breathe for the flute, you need to breathe from your stomach. But what do you do with your ribcage? Have you learned to breathe and expand your ribcage at the same time? Some teachers call that back breathing. You want to breathe from your...
