Buzz but no Bark

Irish Flute
1

Last night I was practicing on my Ward Hawks version unkeyed blackwood flute. I was playing slowly and working on tone, accuracy, and volume control (of course compared to most I’m always playing slowly, but I’m just a year into the flute now). Anyway, I had just gotten myself and the flute warmed up and achieved that lovely reedy, focused tone that the Ward rewards me with when I’m having a better evening. I then tried to get it to “bark” or “honk” on the lower couple of notes with no success. Is there some kind of trick to achieving this? I assume some flutes are better for this than others, but I’ve only really played three for any extended time (keyless Ward, polymer Seely, and an older M&E), and never suceeded getting that low D bark. I assume it is most likely deficient technique on my part, for the Ward flute is certainly capable of more than I can give it at the moment. For those who don’t know the Hawkes model is often described as a compromise between the volume of a Pratten and the speed and sweetness of a R&R. I find it very similar in volume, and tone hole size, to my Seely “small hole” Pratten (though for some reason the Ward sounds a better crossfingered C nat with my preferred OXXOOX - only preferred because that was the first one learned an I still revert to it unless I make a special effort).

Sorry for rambling on so much. Any advice?

Thanks

2

You might try this. I generally play with the embouchure hole in line with the finger holes. I’ve been taught to do that by two teachers, and I personally recommend it. The way to get the honk
is to roll the flute in slightly and focus a sharp stream of air on the opposite edge so that the note is balancing between the first and second octave. Practicing long tones is very helpful.

Perhaps others have more advice.

3

What’s wrong with having a ‘buzz?’
Arbo

4

Nothing. Poster wants to honk too.
The ‘hard D,’ it’s sometimes called, I believe.

5

I wouldn’t know anything about THAT!
Arbo

6

I used ta know Buzz, back in the late 60’s. Guitar, singer & some writing.

Wonder what happened to him…

7

There are so many honks, barks and what have you … it’s hard to guess exactly which rackety noise you’re after, let alone me describing how to achieve it. However, the potential futility of an effort has never stood in my way before … :smiley:

In many cases, these “effects” are achieved by taking the tone to the verge of overblowing or breaking, so it’s important to use them wisely or you end up with a bunch of texture but minimal tone. Me, I’m trying to honk less! I’m thinking of starting an HA (Honker’s Anonymous) chapter.

Finally, these are what work for me on my Murray, Olwell, Forbes, and Copley flutes (the Copley Eb with a square blowhole is the king of notecrackers – wheeee!). I have no ideer what for on a Ward.

  1. For me, a “honk” is achieved more by “bearing down” into the flute; rolling it in just a TOUCH and aiming my airstream down into it (think of a frown) while giving a bit of a diaphragmatic push. Sometimes to achieve this, I actually tuck my chin down/back on those notes and sort of “scoop into” the bottom D, BUT that’s probably incorrect; I don’t know if I’d recommend making a regular habit of that.

  2. There’s also that cracking or ringing (to me it sounds more metallic) middle and bottom D you can get when you basically close all your fingers (top-hand index finger, too) and just hit it with a blascht of air. This sometimes seems to vary according to humidity and general embouchure conditions. It really bangs on a middle D and is great fun in passages with a repeating middle D – Lord McDonald’s or stuff like that.

  3. Finally, a real hard D, at least in piping terms, is achieved with a ring-finger cut. At the very beginning of that low D, sort of as you come into it even, just BARELY cut it with your top hand ring finger. It’ll break the note but when you get it just right and control the tone on the other side it breaks it … well, just right.

Moderation in all things, though … you might be surprised that it takes LESS to achieve what you’re after, so it never hurts to pull back and see if you’ve been overdoing it. In my painfully-gained experience (and still being gained every day), even though it sounds like some players are beating the bejeezus out of their flutes, they’re NOT. And some flutes respond better to less pressure, if that makes any sense – you just sort of create the environment that lets ring or hum and then push just a wee bit.

8

In addition to what Cat wrote, this put me in mind of a letter Paddy Ward sent me a few years ago on getting used to his flutes. Probably you are already doing this:

“try a soft focussed blow and gradually increase the pressure as you become more accustomed to it”

The only point I’d add is when you do that soft bit, don’t use less air, use more air with a smaller hole instead. I would play around with this during an air or something slow where you can concentrate on the tone rather than the fingers.

This also puts me in mind of something John Skelton once said about getting a honking sound. I’ll have to paraphrase as I never wrote it down, but it was on the order of playing a low G (not D) someplace where you can clearly hear yourself, like in front of a reflective wall, and push the air, but then after about a minute of that, stop beating your brains out and just get on with playing. Maybe Cat can give us a better rendition of what he actually said? :laughing:

9

My limited experience tells me that it all depends on the flute, and how the player plays it.

Having previously played only so-called “Pratten” designs, the “honk” was for me as easy as pie. But now having switched to a so-called “Rudall” embouchure cut, I’d found the customary bark almost impossible to get - but I’m getting it now - and in my case the solution had nothing to do with the head’s position, as I obdurately prefer playing with the headjoint turned in for tone purposes (although I’m not saying that positioning it out is not one way to go; it’s just a preference based on my own goals and situation, and it saves me the trouble of rolling the flute inward manually as I play to get the desired “bark”. Some fluters cannot play my flute with the headjoint positioned so, while others have no such difficulty, these things being largely individual, IMO. Everyone’s got their “sweet spot”.). Instead, the solution had everything to do with changing my technique and habits.

For me, with this flute, relaxation of my own embouchure (counter to Jim’s suggestion, but again I suggest it depends on the flute you play; Jim’s suggestion of tight focus would have merit in other cases, I’m sure) has been the key to getting a good bark, coupled with feeling the breath driven from the diaphragm instead of feeling it from the mouth, as as I used to do before. It’s more a breathing than blowing, and it’s taken me about four years to “de-Prattenise” my mouth technique. Slow learner, methinks.

So, I guess my point is that you can wind up trying too hard using old habits, as I did, and get an opposite result from the one intended, depending on the flute. Worth thinking about. I must say that the embouchure cut I’m working with now has proved challenging (I was warned), but most rewarding in the end. It suits me. Happy camper? Yes indeedy. It further occurs to me that if your flute is a “Rudall compromise” setup, as mine is, Latticino, then the cut’s the thing. Try various approaches, mine included if you like. It may work. Also, much depends on your mouth dimensions, inner and outer, as well as how you use your lips. With my cut and my mouth, a somewhat canopy-like overprojecting upper lip (it’s subtle) with a dropped jaw helps a lot.

Or, you can position the headjoint out and roll the flute inward as needed if that’s what works for you all in all. There’s more than one way to skin this cat.

10

I rather think that the whole turn the headjoint thing is not the correct way to look at it.
dons fireproof suit
I’d say that one should play the headjoint and turn the flute to a place where the hands are comfortable.

I’ll be hiding out bac…ah somewhere!

11

That would be the easy, and probably more sensible, way to say it. :wink:

12

:blush: how odd :blush:

13

Yer gettin’ old, Denny. :poke: :wink:

14

ah, I guess that explains the miserable beard going white… :smiley:

15

Jayzus. You’re probably looking dignified, too. Whaddayagonna do…

16

dignified? Shirley?!!?

:open_mouth: :astonished: :open_mouth:

17

I hate to be the one to say it, but, yeah.

18

Thanks all for the help with technique (particularly Cathy, Nano and lesl). I’ve been working a bit on getting the honk, but trying not to obsess about it. Got so much else to improve that it would be counterproductive to just concentrate on that.

I had kept my HJ turned in with far edge aligned with center of tone holes, and find it a bit tough on my fingering to change that now. Will try tweaking it little by little to see if I can get that honking movement to flow with the rest of the tune. Even once I get a bit of a crack in the low D it becomes a real trick to not lose the tone for the balance of the tune. Practice, Practice, Practice I guess.

thanks again.

19

That’s my standard, too. Sometimes I set it just a barest hair forward of that; depends on the day.