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 my technique and my tone.

So, now I’m getting back in shape.

I’ve been doing a lot of technical exercises because working on my technique is what is going to get me back into shape the fastest. But now it’s time for me to work on tone. Now when I’m out of shape, I don’t love working on tone because I feel like my tone is not there and we all love our tone. When you’re in shape, it’s wonderful to practice tone because you like your tone, and your lips can work on the subtleties of your tone. When you’re out of shape, those subtleties aren’t there and it’s just depressing.

My embouchure muscles are still feeling like they need more work but they are beginning to respond. So, today I’ve done a lot of technical stuff and now I’m ready to work on some tone. I’m not going to go right into long tones. Instead, I’m going to take out Moyse’s book Tone Development Through Interpretation. I’ll start in number 36 and stick to the low register exercises.

Remember that it’s all about the embouchure, getting the lip to be flexible. When the muscles are out of shape, they’re not going to be flexible. Just like in basketball, if you can shoot a hoop every time, and then you take a massive amount of time off, your muscles are probably not going to remember exactly, precisely how to shoot that basket.

It’s the same thing with flute. Our muscles atrophy a little bit. We need to get them to remember what it is they’re supposed to do. So, when I start this number low tone exercise, I’m not going to try to get the best tone I possibly can. I don’t want to fight my embouchure that is a little bit out of shape. I want to play very lightly as if I’m doing one of Trevor Wye’s flexibility studies. I want to play very lightly. I want to hold my breath because I’m going to make my lip do all the work. Whatever tone comes out comes out. It’s not my number one priority.

This exercise has a very narrow range but there are still some higher notes that work my embouchure. I need to get up close and personal with my embouchure. I’m also thinking about keeping that lip plate very light on my lip. I even pull it away ever so slightly as I play.

I’m going to do it very, very carefully, very lightly. I’m holding back all my air because a lot of times when you’re out of shape, you tend to blow more air. So, just get used to holding that air in again, and getting the sound back slowly and carefully. This is going to do it.

When you’re out of shape and you’ve done your technical exercises (I mean who can play tone exercises when you’re out of shape? They’re just depressing!) then begin to work your tone by playing Tone Development Through Interpretation and play only the low register. Play them softly and lightly. Hold in your air and make your lip do all the work. You will find that you get back in shape faster, and your lip will start working.

As I always say, slow gets you faster, faster.

Enjoy working on your tone and getting back into shape. It’s not as depressing as you think.

Have fun!

DoctorFlute

Watch me demonstrate this Getting Your Tone Back in Shape FluteTips 89