Flat Foot Practice

Irish Flute
1

I think I may have just come up with a new practice technique for learning how to blow a flat food D into tune.

  1. Warm up the flute and play a few tunes, working on bringing up that flat D up by annihilating the fundamental
  2. As the flute warms up, subtly, and without realizing it, let the middle joint start to come apart about 3 mm
  3. Continue your practice, making sure to keep your spirits up as you fight harder and harder to keep your playing in tune
  4. After about 1/2 hour, stop playing, swab out the flute, and tighten the joint
  5. Be amazed at your new found virtuosity

Clinton

2

:laughing:

You forgot the step that says “quit obssessing about the D and just get on with playing the damned thing.” :smiley:

… Oh, wait. That’s what your whole process is. Good on ya!

Although if the middle joint’s coming APART while playing I’d be wondering. About 15 - 30 minutes in is when the joints should be starting to swell up and turning the flute into its happy wonderful “oh my god what an amazing instrument” self. Humidify at 60 - 65% & add a turn or two of Teflon tape, maybe?

3

Thanks Cathy. Quit obsessing about the damned D. I like that!

Considering that the blackwood used in the Murray is almost as dense as Delrin, I am not too sure how much moisture it actually absorbs! It gets played daily and, other than a post swab dry out, lives at about 60-65% humidity. The looseness is entirely the result of me being slightly stingy when rethreading the tenon, as I didn’t want to get it too tight. Now that it has obviously “settled” I can run another lick of thread around it.

I vaguely recall reading somewhere that Sam doesn’t recommend oiling his flutes, but I cannot find that reference any more. Any thoughts on oiling? I was just going to go down the health food store and get some almond oil.

Clinton

4

Bryan byrne isn’t for oiling his flutes
and so I haven’t. I personally think oil doesn’t much
help things, especially after the flute is well in use.

My recipe for the flat foot is to roll the flute out,
or lift the chin, and blow a focused stream of air.
Sometimes a ‘hard’ D, balanced tween
the octaves, lifts the pitch, too.

5

I’ve never heard that about Sam and oiling. I lightly oil both my Murrays about once a month; more if they’re getting drooled into daily. :wink: The boxwood one’s a sponge and soaks up moisture at a great rate, so I figure a little weatherproofing doesn’t hurt.

For what it’s worth, I find that my Murrays get “homesick for Ireland” MUCH more so than any other flutes I’ve played – i.e., rainy days are their days. This past Boxing Day it was raining buckets and we were doing a pub gig where it must have been at least 80% humidity inside; the windows were dripping. Anyway, my little old cracked boxwood Murray, which is a nice-enough playing flute most days, was transformed – it was so responsive and resonant it was like a live thing, a racehorse. I didn’t want to stop!

So basically, for me the days when the flutes are just a little hard to take apart are their best days.

Also, one other thing that helps mine – schmear a little cork grease inside all the sockets; I’m guessing it seals up any microscopic cracks and helps me get to that “fat-tone point” a little faster.

Teflon tape goes on and off my flutes’ joints on a regular basis, sometimes even in the same day depending on the weather or where I’m playing. It’s wood, it changes with the weather (inside the bore and out), so we need to change with it. Also, FWIW, I generally take the Teflon tape off between playing bouts – I figure it might trap moisture otherwise, and at 99 cents a roll it’s the cheapest thing to replace. :slight_smile:

FINALLY, whatever you do, KEEP THAT SLIDE OIL-FREE! I’ve never had a problem with oil on the slide like I have on my Murrays – they just hate it, I don’t know why, but I’ve quit trying to figure it out. If the slide does get oily just keep wiping the slide and barrel socket with a soft cloth for like, a week until the madness stops.

Oh, and one other thing – some people are against it, but I do put beeswax on my slides when they throw their annual January “tantrums,” which solves any leakage there just fine and in a semi-organic manner – just wipe it off if the flute expands and the slide gets too tight.

Keeping the flute leak-free but in a sensible, non-wood-stressing fashion can make your playing ever so much easier (and in tune!). Me, I’d try a little Teflon tape on that joint right away. You may even have to take it off halfway thru your practice session, but I won’t be surprised if any flat right-hand notes get a little better :slight_smile:

Enjoy!

6

No, no, no…Cathy! Stay away from the teflon tape! I think that’s how I damaged my Hudson Pratten.
Arbo

7

Oh Arbo, I’m sorry to hear that – that’s a cool flute! But I’m sure you’ll have it good as new soon. Ve have ze benefits of modern technology … Me, I’ve never had a problem with Teflon tape … Did you use too much or leave it on, or leave the flute assembled for a while with it on?

I’ve found a little can go a long way so I try not to put so much on you have to jam the flute together -– and just to be safe, I remove it between playing sessions.

But bummer on your flute. Danged wooden things!

8

Thanks all.

So: Play the flute, oil the flute, don’t oil the flute, make sure to use teflon tape, don’t use teflon tape…

Ahh, I love C&F! :wink:

Seriously, I appreciate the info. I always wonder why some makers say “oil” and others say “don’t oil” when we are all talking about fundamentally similar sticks of wood with holes in them, made from similar timbers. Nothing certain in the flute world, I guess.

Blowing the low D until just before it breaks, and moving he airstream certainly is exactly what is working for me. I was playing into that Syaku tuner thing that shows the sound wave frequencies, and noticed that when I am doing it “just right” the fundamental peak almost disappears from the plot. Then I think “oh cool” and it all goes to hell! I have also found that solid diaphragm support and an open throat seems to help with the resonance as well.

The wax on the tuning slide worked wonders for the flute.

Clinton

9

I’ve never found any reason to oil blackwood flutes - I used to, then they’d get slick and slippery, then the oil’d wipe off, and all would be well. Or, I would not oil them at all, play them a lot, and all would be well. Blackwood just doesn’t seem to need oil. So I almost never oil, except when I want it to look shiny.

Boxwood seems to need it more - it actually seems to absorb oil, unlike blackwood. So maybe oil slows down the process enough to save the wood from moisture/lack of moisture extremes.

10

Personally, I think my blackwood flutes sound snappier after a good oiling.

Rob

11

I agree. They “sound wet” a lot faster. From what I’ve seen, Mr. Skelton tips a few drops into his headjoint and swipes a bit through the body every time he plays (protecting the key pads with bits of paper towel first, of course)

And ummm, Gordon :poke: ? … it’s, uhhh, not so much about oiling the OUTSIDE …

12

I’m so happy to hear that! Probably a good idea to wipe it off and reapply occasionally – especially this summer if the wax starts to melt in warmer weather. :slight_smile:

It’s amazing how often a flute can be leaking somewhere – even if it’s from improperly covered toneholes.

That’s why leaks, either in the flute, or in my playing of it, are the FIRST thing I look for if something is sounding/feeling wrong.

13

Yes, at a Tional workshop he taught, I was amazed to see John S. oil his flute, looked quite
routine, before he taught. I think I recall an extensive oiling, in fact, but memory may deceive me.
Perhaps you were there.

14

He used to do it before every flute lesson; he was very precise about it. First a few drops into the head, then paper towels under the keys, then tip the head oil onto a bit of paper towel & swab the body with that, then the tenon & socket bits with a Q-tip or bit of paper towel. If he was planning on playing several flutes that day, he’d oil them all while discussing general music stuff. My favorite part of the lesson, before I had to play and ruin everything :smiley:

While I don’t oil every time I play, when I do I follow the same routine – although obviously with, alas, less musically-astounding results.