Can anyone recommend a book with cds that I should buy, as a beginner flute player? I will be taking lessons, but i figure it’s a good idea to have a book as well.
-Fishie
I have been working through Grey Larson’s book, and I like it quite a bit:
http://www.greylarsen.com/store/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=25&products_id=25 for details about the book, but I think you can find it for less money from another source, like amazon.
HOWEVER – why not let your teacher advise you in this matter? Teachers have preferences, and depending on your teacher’s style of teaching and playing, s/he might recommend something completely different.
My favorite for flute is “Timber” by Fintan Vallelley. You used to could get a cassette with it which was extremely valuable. I gather it can be hard to find the book with the recording anymore, which is a shame.
The Grey Larson book is also good but you need to have hit a certain level already before it’ll be much good to you.
–James
I just ordered this book and cassette, and as a matter of fact, it came in the mail just this afternoon. Now that I’ve loooked at it, I agree – this is a good book for a beginner. It looks like it is quite comprehensive, but still small enough not to be overwhelming, like the Larson book could be to a beginner.
One thing, though – I don’t like how ornamentation is described in Timber. I spent many years not being able to reproduce Irish style. With the Larson book and a couple of months of practice, I sound like a much more sophisticated player than I did in many years of fooling around by ear. Of course, this is my opinion, and YMMV.
Here are the details on where I got it.
I got it online from Ossian music: http://www.ossianusa.com/
The book is $15, and the cassette is $10. It came in the mail pretty quickly – a week or 10 days at the most?