My recent post regarding the different embouchure cut of my revamped Firth, Pond & Co. flute has got me wondering if there is a beneficial outcome to playing flutes with several different embouchure cuts? Would it strengthen one’s embouchure overall, or cause some undue stress and/or confusion? Or, would it just be a matter of a period of adjustment between the two?
Arbo
People say that when playing a smaller flute or fife and then moving back to the D flute, it will sound better because you had to focus your blow to adapt to the smaller blow hole. And after playing a low C or Bb, the D will feel easier.
I’m heard of people (here on the forum) who play an easy blowing flute in a “lazy” way that were amazed by it after coming back from a harder to play flute (like maybe from a pratten to a rudall).
No direct experiences though, sorry…
I have 2 Bb fifes that are dramatically different in bore and embouchure. While working on the upper octave I found the rectangular embouchure on one was an all or nothing embouchure, either I hit the note or I was blowing air. The round embouchure would give a very weak note if I was close and I could get feedback until I could get a clear, controlled note, after that I could go back to the other fife and nail the note. For me a different embouchure helped, but I’m no pro.
I play three distinctly different types of flutes – baroque, a Noy small-holed, and Olwell small- and medium-holed Irish flutes. I don’t switch among them frequently. I’ll usually play one for a month or two, then switch to avoid confusion both in the embouchure and in the approach to the tunes. I think there are benefits and drawbacks to this.
The major benefit to me is that I tend to be restless, so when I get bored with ITM, I switch to Playford tunes on the Noy or early music on the traversi. I agree with Lorenzo, too, that switching back from the much more demanding embouchure of the traverso to the more forgiving embouchure of the Irish flute, I will often have more power and a more focused air stream. OTOH, jack of all trades, master of none. I’m not picking up any style of music as well as I would if I was playing it full-time. But that goes back to why I play three different types of music; I don’t think I’d be happy playing one all the time.