Now, any experience I have with either of these instruments is hardly worth a grain of salt, I’ve been playing the whistle for about four months (Low and Soprano D’s), and I’ve been playing flute for about 4 days.
Obviously, my blowing technique sucks. I think I have slightly better feel for correct wind velocity because of the whistles, but it’s still pretty terrible. That’s to be expected, I suppose. These things take time. Tone comes with practice and learing more about technique (listening to folks on the around here probably doesn’t hurt much. Harmony Central boards did wonders for my guitar playing. I degress)
That’s mostly all besides the point, only to say that my flute tone is pretty bad, but I don’t begudge it (much), because that’s the way it goes with learning instruments. My whistle tone is pretty good, and has actually improved noticabley since I started to get notes out these side-blown terrors a few days back.
But back on track here. I thought most of my whistle finger technique would transfer to the flute pretty easily, but it seems that I have to play much more slowly or things get messed up. This could be because I an consentrating very hard on getting a sound out of the durn thing, and it affects the way my fingers move (or don’t move, as the case seems currently to be).
So, when it comes down to it, is the whistle a little easier to play fast stuff, and grace notes and bends on than the flute, or is it just my lack of experience that slows me down? (interestingly, I was listening to this “World Flutes” CD, and Joanie Madden was definately playing the fastest, most ornamented stuff, But I guess her style of music calls for it more that, say, shakuhachi music).
That’s probably it along with the fact that your fingers are probably in a different position than they are when playing whistle. I wouldn’t say that the whisle is necessarily easier for playing fast; it’s just what you’re used to. What it boils down to is practice- spending lots of time w/ the flute. Yes it’s frustrating at first but the rewards are great. The tone will come w/ practice, as will speed and dexterity. Don’t give up! It takes time.
paradoxically, the answer is to throw speed out the window. take the same tunes that you play fast on whistle. on flute, play them slow enough not to make mistakes. increase your speed bit by bit, by the week, not by the day. it will come.
I also was surprised how much more difficult the fingerings were on the flute, coming from the whistle. But, you know what? Now when I pick up a whistle to play a tune I learned on the flute, it takes a little while to get the fingerings right on the whistle. I think, for me anyway, it’s largely a matter of muscle memory – the hands are in a different enough position that you use different muscles to make the fingers go onto and off of the same holes.
I just started on the flute as well, and am dealing with the exact same issues you are. I figure it will all be a matter of practice. I’m going to take some lessons for a month or two. Hopefully my teacher can help set me on the right path.
To me, it’s also a matter of position. Let’s face it, the flute is not exactly the most graceful or symmetrical thing to hold at first! So perhaps you might experiment with your arm position (esp your left arm!) within reason, and of course your posture (see chas’s thread). Sometimes notes get muddy and funky when your fingers aren’t completely covering/sealing the toneholes. However, this does not mean to clutch at the thing – it just means check your hand position and finger placement. In my experience, peoples’ LH 3 and RH 3 (i.e., their ring fingers) are usually the culprits in leaky notes or wobbly sound; they tend to sneak off the toneholes just a bit, especially when the going gets a little heavy (i.e., when people are trying to play faster).
Other than that, you go, guys! Keep hammering at it, it’ll get better eventually, and of course – do try to have fun.
Face it - the whistle does have a little less to think about when you are trying to make music. When I first started playing the flute (not very long ago, admittedly) I had a dickens of a time keeping all the balls in the air. I would concentrate on the embochoure and the fingering would slip; concentrate on the fingering and develop a “death grip”; ease off the grip and my posture slid into a creditable Gollum impression. And so on. The cure is (so I’m told) PRACTICE. As posture and grip become second nature they require less attention from your CPU and allow more for the other bits.
I took up the whistle because I was assured by certain C&F members that it was indeed the easiest musical instrument to learn to play. So naturally, I took up the flute.
I would urge beginners out there to browse the archives. Not search, read them starting with Page 1; read any thread that looks like it’s about playing, unless you’re into timber, then read threads about flutes, too. With respect to what Cathy says above, I remember someone saying that once he thought of his fingers as raindrops falling on the toneholes, everything became much better. There are tons of nuggets of wisdom in the first 88 pages.
Home-made PVC. I’ve made four of them so far. In my estimation, I’m doing ok at it. They sound like flutes, and they are pretty easy to get a sound out of them. (I can generally get all the notes out of both octaves, and I’ve only been playing five days, so it musn’t be too aweful).I’m gonna start making some stencils for them and spray-paint on some Decals and sell them on Ebay for 20 bucks or so.
Still want to get Owell Bamboo flute or a Tipple one of these days, Maybe this summer, if I can afford it. A four or five keyed M&E is kinda the light at the end of the tunnel, But man, They ain’t exactly cheap, and I’m a poor college student. Hence the selling of flutes rather than the buying.
I’ve made a G, a Low A (which I don’t really play because it hurts after only several minutes), and two D’s (one with a pinky an thumb holes for Eb and F. I’m a chromatic whore).
I’m about to go and drill the bodies for a C and another G (a G which is also destined for a chromatic fate). Pentatonic flutes are on the way before the end of the week.
Getting any good at an instrument takes time. I just got my first flutes this weekend and … it’s an adventure.
And that’s being very kind with myself. I’m excited, though. Flutes are definitely something I’ve always wanted and thought about but haven’t invested in til now.
I bought an ocarina years ago that got me kind of started on the whole wind instrument thing. I’m struggling with the embouchure combined with the fingering, especially on the bigger flute with my smaller hands.
I think the first thing I would let a flute player know about is the importance of a soft mouth. If the lips are dry or wet with saliva the saliva may dry and pull the lips tight enough to affect the shape.
