I’ll start off by saying I’m not a flute player…at all…but I bought a bamboo flute last summer, made some sounds out of it, then put it away.
The other day I was cruising around on youtube and found some videos of fantastic Irish flute players that inspired me to get the ol’ branch of bamboo out and try to play, but I think that instrument can only take me so far.
I’m keenly interested in learning to play. Are there any flute players/workshops in the Dallas area?
I’m also looking for a decent instrument, but might have a problem in paying some of the prices I’ve seen online for flutes. I guess I have an issue in paying $1000 or more for something I can’t drive. Does anyone have information on a store in the Dallas, TX are that will accept payments or let me put an instrument on layaway?
For flutes, go to Irishflutestore.com…Doc Jones runs the place and has flutes at prices ranging from $350 to over $2,000…if you call Doc, he can also help you with what each of the flutes particular playing/sound characteristics are…the good news, is…if you pay for a good instrument, you normally can get your investment back out of it if and when you choose to sell.
Oh boy, are you in trouble! You’ve just found a home for flute players, and from here on in it just gets more interesting. Please, stick around, for you will meet numerous players of varying opinion, and, yes, there are some players here from somewhere near your Texas home.
I wouldn’t say I’m a flute player…yet, but I’ve always been interested in the flute and love the sound when it’s played well.
I’m looking forward to listening to those first Saturday sessions in Dallas, making some new friends, and learning to play this beautiful instrument…um…but I have to get a flute first, I guess.
I currently have a bamboo banger loosely keyed to “D”, but I’m finding the tone very “breathy” and it’s difficult to get a clear distinction between the notes when I’m trying to move my fingers quickly. I’m spending my next bonus on a good flute that will last and keep the playing fun.
If I can fall in with some patient people willing to teach I’ll be joining in some Saturday in the future!
Playing the flute is a lot like playing the tin whistle. You can get started on whistle while you are waiting to get a new flute. The way you finger and ornament both instruments are much the same so whatever you learn on whistle you can transfer to flute. There are great tutorials on You Tube from this priest named Ryan Dunn and also on several web sites out there that will get you started. If you hate the whistle, you can still use these tutorials to learn the flute.
I’ve been watching some videos on youtube, but have been having a hard time getting my “instrument” to do the same things those real flute players do with theirs.
That’s why you ought to look for Ryan Dunn’s tutorials. They are also linked from the WhistleThis! web site. He shows you exactly how they make the music sound that way with the ornamentation. It won’t be easy, but you can do it. The ornamentation, which is really a misnomer because it’s really articulation, is the key. Irish music is played legato with ornamentation to articulate the notes. The tongue is used a little, but not as much as with other music.
No question that there is some portability of the skills acquired on the tin whistle but in reality the flute is a much more demanding instrument and quite a different beast, not unlike comparing the mandolin and the fiddle. For starters, the embouchure vs the fipple. We all know embouchure can take years to develop. Secondly, breath support is somewhat different, not necessarily more air, just different. Thirdly, there’s the physical size, something like the difference in handling between a sub-compact a truck. Finally, there’s a significant difference in the way the instruments are held.
Any tune that I know well on the whistle attempted at full speed on the flute as a first try, usually results in a crash and burn. So I’ve revisited all the those tunes I learned years ago. It’s not hard work and besides, it’s a good opportunity to do some things that you can’t do on a tin whistle. (Yes, there are other differences).
The best advice I can give from one newbie to another is, just play play play.
It’s around 4 months in now and I’m finally to the point where I can consitantly hit all the notes in the first two octaves and a few in the third solidly when I want to.
My biggest problem now is losing the low D once I’m playing in the second octave a bit, but I’m starting to get a handle on it. From here, I’m moving from Airs and Polkas into Reels finally. I figure I’ll be playing at 1/2 speed for a bit longer until I get my lip worked in a bit more, but I’ll gradually increase speed.
Tips and Cuts…easy. I still can’t get a roll to sound good on the Flute (what I can manage on a whistle sounds like slush on the flute) so I need to work on that more. Also, I need to breath a bit more with the Flute, so I’m working on new places to catch a breath in tunes.
Those tutorials are oustanding! Now I know what I’ve been doing wrong all week (yeah…I’ve really only been playing for a week…bear with me).
Thanks to everyone for all of the great tips!
I saw a video on youtube for a song called “Cat in The Fiddle Case” that seemed pretty challenging(I think the person who posted it posts on this forum, too). I think I pretty much have the first phrase of the tune down, but I’m having a hard time with the second part (the bridge, I guess) where the song heads to the upper (second) octave. I just can’t get this stick of mine to produce a note higher than a G before falling apart.
I feel like I’m really fighting this “flute” of mine to hit some of the higher notes. Is that common? Are there any pointers anyone could give a noob like me?
The best advice for me (in other words, not necessarily the best advice, but what worked for me) was to do two things.
1). Work on the G in the high octave playing as softly as you can and still get a clear tone. Play and hold it. Play it a lot. It will annoy you…keep doing it.
Then work on the A…etc. This forces you to get those notes with your lips and NOT by increasing how hard you are blowing.
2). Try playing the THIRD octave. Try overblowing that E or F until it spikes into the third octave. Hold that for a bit. Keep it up. You will find it surprisingly easy to hit the higher notes in the second for a bit.
I was blowing so hard trying to squeeze out notes in the second octave I thought I was going to pop a vein in my head! Jeez, I have a long way to go and a lot to learn. sigh
The pretty lights I saw and the dizziness I experienced when I played were cool, though!
You aren’t blowing harder. That’s your mistake. You are tightening your lips to make the opening smaller, thus with the same amount of blowing, it comes out at a higher pressure.
Think of placing your thumb at the end of a garden hose…same theory.
Aaaahhhh…much better. It’s still shaky, but I think I get your point.
At the risk of completely changing gears (again) and having one of the mods spank me for my schizophrenic posting…
I’ll soon be in the market for a real flute. I’ve heard all sorts of horrible things about Pakistani flutes and such. I admit to my ignorance about flutes and will be looking to people here for a bit of guidance…but can anyone tell me anyhing about this flute:
It seems that at least as far as Irish Flutes are concerned, if it’s named after a store, or doesn’t have a maker’s name associated with it, it’s probably dodgey to consider buying it without playing it first. Don’t be duped by claims about cocus wood or African blackwood, either. You can make a crappy flute out of this stuff, too.
This forum represents views from a wide range of experience and budget. And I think that the available market of Irish Flutes has been scoured quite well here. If there are gems out there, you’ll find it here.
Take a chunk of time and read the whole sheebang. If you are lucky enough to live near a music store tha sells simple system flutes, take along someone who knows how to really play one. Anyone who can make a sound on a flute can make a pretty sound on even a lousy instrument, and think “it’s so haunting”, and all but if the intonation is all wonky (which is the big problem with no-name flutes in general) then it will sound awful when you try to play with others.
So I’ve revisited all the those tunes I learned years ago. It’s not hard work and besides, it’s a good opportunity to do some things that you can’t do on a tin whistle. (Yes, there are other differences).
If you are lucky enough to live near a music store tha sells simple system flutes, take along someone who knows how to really play one. Anyone who can make a sound on a flute can make a pretty sound on even a lousy instrument, and think “it’s so haunting”, and all but if the intonation is all wonky (which is the big problem with no-name flutes in general) then it will sound awful when you try to play with others.