Having played the flute for about a year I find that I have finally figured out how to achieve great tone. I feel that my particular path to enlightenment might be instructive to new flute players. I have been fortunate in that I have had a number of excellent flute players to guide me in my endeavours. From the beginning it has been stressed upon me to keep a very tight embouchure to get that authentic Irish flute sound. However, it is only after a year or so that I have finally grasped exactly how much effort that requires. From the first time I picked up a flute I had no problem producing a ‘good’ tone - I’ve been complemented a number of times on how good my tone is, however, it is only in recent weeks that I’ve finally realised what it takes to produce excellent tone. What is required is hard work - lots of muscle tension around the embouchure to create an extremely focused stream of air. To me it always seemed improbable that what my teachers were saying to me was to be taken at face value, as I could achieve a good tone already I thought that all I need to do was to focus the air stream a bit more etc etc. I never appreciated how different/difficult it is to go from a good tone to an excellent one. My good tone I achieved from ‘puffing’, the great tone I’m now working at is achieved from considerably more effort, I find that I can’t play a tune without considerable muscular fatigue.
I have read on this forum that one should learn to ‘relax’ the embouchure to get good tone, or at least this has been my impression. From my experiences and from what every teacher I have had I think this is somewhat misleading. This advice is either wrong, and all one will achieve is a good puffy tone, or, after one has achieved a firm (and I stress firm) embouchure then ‘relaxing’ in this context could mean not focusing on the embouchure since it has already been developed which I am not experienced enough to comment but seems plausible good advice.
A further point to developing good tone that I feel is worth mentioning is that the flute is above all an instrument of tone. So whenever one plays the flute the emphasis should always be on creating as pleasing a tone as possible. It has been stressed to me that tunes should be learnt on the whistle and only when they have been fully developed (with ornamentation etc if so desired) do you move them up to the flute. This way one is not dividing ones mental focus between getting good tone and getting the tune right.
So to sum up I’d reiterate that playing the flute is not easy and requires a lot of muscular tension to get a great sound and one should be careful not to fall into the trap of ending up playing lots of tunes with below par tone.
I think different people read different things into the same words. I certainly don’t think that when people talk about “relaxed” embouchures, they’re talking about having your lips wobbling in the breeze. I think they mean what I would call “flexible”. In the same vein, I would take issue with your use of the word “firm,” or some people’s use of “tight” to describe a focussed embouchure. The first thing Chris Norman said to me when he watched me play was that my embouchure was too inflexible. Not supple. It was plenty focussed, but wasn’t flexible enough to get a uniform tone and volume across the octaves. The embouchure needs to be focussed, but supple. I think that’s what some mean by relaxed.
A further point to developing good tone that I feel is worth mentioning is that the flute is above all an instrument of tone. So whenever one plays the flute the emphasis should always be on creating as pleasing a tone as possible. It has been stressed to me that tunes should be learnt on the whistle and only when they have been fully developed (with ornamentation etc if so desired) do you move them up to the flute. This way one is not dividing ones mental focus between getting good tone and getting the tune right.
Part of tone is how it fits in with a tune – you don’t want to play a rip-roaring reel with the same tone as an air. You might not even want the same tone for the B part of a reel as for the A part. I’ve found that learning a tune first on the whistle, it has to be to a great extent, relearned on the flute in order to get the subtleties right.
These are just my point of view. Different people learn different ways; I was pointing out earlier today that two teachers, both of whom I have great respect for, have given me some conflicting advice. I’ll continue to try to learn as much as possible from both of them.
Now, I’m off to read Quantz’s book, which I just received and from which I’m sure I’ll get an entirely different set of opinions.
Last year, I attended a 3-day workshop with a well known flute teacher - who really emphasized the importance of a tight embouchure, the no pain no gain approach. A couple of weeks later Chris Norman taught at a workshop I organized, and really emphasized the need for a more relaxed, flexible embouchure!
Both of these players have great but different sound, and in the end, as a flute player, you have to decided what it is you’re trying to sound like, and what technique will help you to achieve that.
It also has to do with your physical makeup - the shape of your mouth, jaw and teeth will have a huge impact on how you produce a sound.
It also has to do with the sort of tunes you want to play - the modern Irish sound might not be the best for Scottish slow airs or pipe marches.
With a good foundation, lots of practice and work on things like breathing and harmonics, your sound will continue to develop - for me, one of the most important things has just been time, and practice.
I appreciate Nitterwhiskers sharing his/her thoughts. However, it needs to be noted that he/she is a natural talent, able to get a decent sound very quickly. Most are not so blessed, so what worked for him/her may be a poor choice for another beginner. Many beginners may be doing well after a year to get a similar tone to what Nitterwhiskers was able to acheive in one week.
