Learning Flute - Beginning a Long Journey

[dfernandez77]

It's just a long empty space.

Laozi: "Dao De Jing": 11th chapter
Thirty spokes meet at a nave;
Because of the hole we may use the wheel.
Clay is molded into a vessel;
Because of the hollow we may use the cup.
Walls are built around a hearth;
Because of the doors we may use the house.
Thus tools come from what exists,
But use from what does not.

老子: 「道德经」: 第十一章
三十辐，共一毂，当其无，有车之用。
埏埴以为器，当其无，有器之用。
凿户牖以为室，当其无，有室之用。
故有之以为利，无之以为用。

I have a beautiful wooden flute.
I have a book for learning wooden flute.
It's so enticing.



I have listened to many recordings of traditional Irish music.
I have read many articles on playing wooden flute.
It's so challenging.



Last night I had my first lesson with a musician who plays Irish flute.
Last night I watched a flute player play my flute.
It was so amazing.



I saw how to hold the flute, balanced and relaxed not controlled.
I saw how to breath into it, it sings by encouragement more than force.
There is so much to practice and learn.



My assignment in the next two weeks.
Play one note, any note, with full and rich tone - fill the room,
with no more breath than quiet conversation with a lover.



Today I practiced breathing, balancing, relaxing, and encouraging one note from my flute.
At times, very briefly, a hollow wooden tube came alive and sang in my hands.
With my breath, from an empty space, a voice grew, filled the room, and vibrated at my fingertips,



Today I practiced playing my flute.
Today I had just a tiny bit of success.
It's so encouraging.

--
That's my baby steps with my flute this week.
In two weeks I will play more notes, in six months maybe I can play a tune.
In a year perhaps I will play a tune for someone else to hear, with confidence.

Oh! such a long way to go. It's a good thing I don't own a television.

[Berti66]

thank you for sharing this with us.
love speaks out of your words.
remember this when you play your flute and everything is gonna be all right.

cheers
berti

[Lambchop]

Daniel,

I am so glad I stopped to read your post this morning.

How lovely your flute is, and how lovely your words.

Thank you for sharing. You have restored my spirit.

[chas]

Geez, Glenn made lovely flutes. How old is yours? Mine only has the one little bulge in the neck, none on the left-hand piece. I'd thought mine was from his last batch (~4 years ago), but the wood of yours looks younger.

You have a great attitude, as does your teacher. The slower you take it, the better you will learn, and the less frustrated you'll become.

[dfernandez77]

Geez, Glenn made lovely flutes. How old is yours?

I don't know when Glenn made the flute. I've had a couple Water Weasels and a Thin Weasel High D Whistle for a while. The Thin Weasel is by far my favorite whistle, perfectly intoned, responsive, great breathing, lovely voice - oh! and just plain beautiful.

In November 2005 I was curious about High G Whistles and Paul Brewer (maker of Busman Whistles) said Glenn made some High G wood Whistles. I contacted Bree (Glenn's daughter) and she sent me an inventory list of the instruments they still had. Among the list was 2 High G Blackwood Whistles and 2 Rosewood Flutes.

I had not planned on taking up flute for a couple years, I'm still barely above beginner on a whistle. But, since Glenn passed away in June, the opportunity to get two of his remaining instruments was a chance I couldn't let go. The High G Thin Weasel is as perfect musically and aesthetically as the Soprano D - sweet and powerful through the top of the second octave with not a bit of shriek or shrillness.


My flute instructor Nicolas Buckmelter plays a keyed Olwell in what appears to be Blackwood - what a lovely, smooth, and focused sound it has. I asked him to play the same song on his Olwell and my Schultz so I could watch his embouchure, posture, and fingering from close up, and hear the tone difference.

I'm sure some of the difference comes from him never playing a Schultz before, but the Schultz sounded a touch louder, a little more organic and smokey, and a touch less bright (softer wood and thicker walls?). It's like if the Olwell was K.D. Lang the Schultz leans toward Sheryl Crow. The Schultz has a barely perceptible intonation issue, the C# is a tiny bit flat. Nic says it's so small that a tiny adjustment of my embouchure angle, focus, and breath speed will automatically correct - same as I do with C Nat (breath or fingering) on some of my whistles.

Anyway, to answer your question - I don't know when Glenn made the Flute or the Whistle. I imagine there was not a great demand for the Flutes or the Whistle in High G compared to the Thin Weasels in High D for example. They both were very dry when I received them from Bree. Time, breath, oil, and TLC has brought them back - though it looks like the High G Thin Weasel will never have the mirror finish of my Soprano D. So they may have been on the back of the shelf for some time. In any case, I'm very pleased with both.

[dfernandez77]

Well...

I was practicing a lovely tune called "G in the bottom octave," throwing in an A and an occasional B. I was doing pretty well actually.

Good tone, tight focus, nice volume (my brother/flatmate, in a loud voice, told me to go to the other room so he could hear his TV).

I was quite pleased and feeling a little smug. Then my lower lip died.

No kidding - it just died. Flaccid as discarded bubble gum on hot pavement. Quite surprising and a little humbling.

I laughed, swabbed the flute and tucked it away. Tomorrow I'll work on that tune again. I may even try the ever popular "A in the bottom octave."

Peace,

[pjuuldk]

Hi dfernandez77

Althoug I'm not playing the Irish I have been playing the Böehm flute for years.
The "lipdead" happend to me also in the beginning.
Usualy when I was playing in the harmonyorcestra (brass and woodwind) I was playing at that time.
The lipdead happend when I nervously pressed the flute to tight to the lip, trying to make a sound that I could hear in the noise from the other instruments.

Try not to press the flute to hard on the lip and you will be fine.
Keep on the good work and I know that you will have many good musical experiencesin the future.

Good luck with the flute.

Peter Juul

[GaryKelly]

Oh! such a long way to go. It's a good thing I don't own a television.

Neither do I. Thus do I have five hours every evening after work, none of which are spent staring at a box. The journey proceeds better without diversions and cul-de-sacs.

[chas]

I was quite pleased and feeling a little smug. Then my lower lip died.

Just as with any new physical endeavor, you're using muscles in a way you haven't used them before (or in a long time). It just takes time. My lips go numb sometimes playing the whistle now, and I remember in grade school they did for a long time when I was learning clarinet, and then trumpet, and any time I laid off them for awhile.

[dfernandez77]

Try not to press the flute to hard on the lip and you will be fine.
Good luck with the flute.

Much thanks for the tip and encouragement.

Oh! such a long way to go. It's a good thing I don't own a television.

The journey proceeds better without diversions and cul-de-sacs.

I agree. My brother bought a mammoth 52 inch television combined with a home theatre system in November. I spend much more time in my private room since then avoiding the flashing, thunderous contraption. I was amused when he said the note I was playing was drowning out the sound of his home theatre.

Just as with any new physical endeavor, you're using muscles in a way you haven't used them before (or in a long time).

I'm thinking I should find a kind lady to help me exercise my lips. I just need a qualified person to second the notion that vigorous kissing is good exercise. Any help from the experts here?

[GaryKelly]

I'm thinking I should find a kind lady to help me exercise my lips. I just need a qualified person to second the notion that vigorous kissing is good exercise. Any help from the experts here?

Kissing the flute is a well-known exercise highly recommended for beginners to ensure that the embouchure hole is correctly centred and aligned. That, a mirror, and practice are all you need. The money saved by not having to wine, dine and otherwise entertain the kind lady can go towards that other stunning flute you know you'll be wanting soon

[Wormdiet]

Oh! such a long way to go. It's a good thing I don't own a television.

Neither do I. Thus do I have five hours every evening after work, none of which are spent staring at a box. The journey proceeds better without diversions and cul-de-sacs.

I wish I had a TV that only recieved The Daily Show and ACC basketball. As it is, no TV is better than a cable TV