Thanks to Kkrell for posting the info. There were about 25 people. Most of the students were classically trained with Boehm style flutes. Mr. Norman commanded full attention, with those young flutists entranced at times and entertained at others. He let them look at the sheet music for the tunes, but then made them put away the music when it came time to play.
Chris talked about the concept of “rhetoric.” Forgive me if I mangle it, but what I got was the breath, the phrasing, the emphasis, the push, the release. Several times he told the class that for this bit, forget about intonation, forget about the correct notes, what matters is the flow, the breath.
The first tune was an old aire, “My Wife Has Scolded Me” taught a phrase at a time focusing on the differences in “rhetoric” in each of the four measures. There was a primer on cuts and taps, and vibrato. Chris mentioned the Super-natural C, a C with only one finger down, and how on many instruments it is almost exactly between C-nat and C-sharp.
For traditional music, generally, you are doing one of two things, telling a story, or playing dance music. A couple of times during the class, Mr. Norman referred to an old TDK commercial, where the guy is sitting at home and being blown away by his speakers. (see end of post for pic) He said that too many flutists and too many instrument makers focus on this kind of experience.
The second tune was a strathspey. Chris got the class up on the stage and had them do a few steps to get the emphasis and rhythm. For the curious readers that were at the event, I was the person who raised his hand on having danced strathspey’s.
For the classically trained musicians, the lesson opens a door. Classical musicians are so used to playing from sheet music, so used to focusing on perfect intonation and volume, that Mr. Norman gave them a lot of think about.
