All,
I found a teacher, but her simple system flute is ceramic? Should I be worried?
Thanks,
Tony
Rama, you’re a trip!
Yes, you ought to be worried. If you want to learn traditional Irish music played in the traditional Irish way then you’ll want a teacher who is an expert at said music/style and plays it on a traditional Irish style wooden flute.
Chris
Be afraid. Be very afraid.
(What is a ceramic flute, anyway?)
Call me a hypocrite … that looked really dumb with my signature, didn’t it?
Okay, MOST of the time don’t be afraid to try something new.
No need to worry Tony, I’m sure you will do fine.
She probably just one of those flute players out of Lugnaquilla in Wicklow. Ceramic flutes are pretty
common in this area, you’ll see quite a few at the Gurukula summer school.
Don’t be afraid if she’ll ask you to wear a special ISKCON session outfit during practice, it’s just one of those trad things.
If the tunes you’ll learn all have the same base rhythm
(Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare)
then you can be sure it’s Gurukula style you’re learning.
Another good indication is that everybody else at the session also brought their bed sheets along
and all the bodhran players use tiny drums with bells on.
Best of luck!
/MarcusR
Tony, if you’re after learning Irish style playing, I would think that a wooden flute would be what she should be teaching you with (or a Boehm instrument second, IMHO), unless she can get the same sounds out of a ceramic instrument, and the embouchure techniques are the same. If not, well…maybe you could get the fingering techniques out of her, but I think that tone and timbre count. If it’s all the same, then go for it.
And they’ll want you to paint symbols on your ceramic flute. Something about the wind and fire. After you name it, of course.
The only way is to try her, or at least find out more about her, from other students and stuff.
She might be a very good player and teacher, and you might learn some really good stuff from her that you would’nt learn from other teachers.
Living in the cutural wasteland of southern Idaho I also have had difficulty finding a teacher.
Eventually I took some Boehm flute lessons for a short time (had to stop due to scheduling problems).
The lady knew nothing about Irish flutes but knew a great deal about embouchre, breathing, phrasing etc…
I learned a great deal.
My advice would be; if your lady can make beautiful music with her “elongate ocarina” learn all you can from her. 
Doc