Well, my Sweet Folk Fife in D arrived today. It sounds about 1000% better than the Renaissance fife in D I have of his. I wonder if it’s the conical bore of the folk fife that makes the difference (the other is cyclindrical bore)?
Anyway, it’s hard to hold on to compared to a flute. Any advice on hand position tips for such a small instrument? When I play C# it almost jumps out of my hands!
The other question is on embouchure. I’m fine up to the second octave A, but with B and up I almost feel like I’m spitting at the darn thing…it’s most unattractive. My guess is you all will simply say practice (which I already plan to do), but I didn’t know if any small fife/piccolo players had any advice on this either.
One last question. Instead of cork it has either felt or fine thread on the tennons. Do I need to cork grease that or not? I’d guess it’s thread, but it looks suspiciously felt like…
Thanks,
Eric
[ This Message was edited by: Jayhawk on 2003-01-08 20:26 ]
Hey Jayhawk keep me posted as to how you like your fife. Last night on my way to a session I stopped to talk to an old guy busking with what I thought was a fife. We ended up talking about everything but what he was playing so I never did find out what it was. This was down town in the big city and yet I could hear him play a block away. He was very good by the way. Did you say where you got your fife? Just curious. Is it a 6 hole or 8. I think I want one.
mine came from the whistle shop — same place my Dixon flute is coming from. Thom at the shop has a great reputation, and I can see why.
The fife is 6 holed, so it isn’t too much different from a side blown whistle in D. It’s really quite attractive. It was a gift, and I thought they ordered a cherry one for me, but I’m pretty sure this is maple. Personally, I don’t really care what the wood is when it sounds this nice. I really like whistles, but I prefer sideblown instruments since you can really change how it sounds depending on how you play. You do need a small, focused embouchure to get a good tone, but when I get it right it sounds so much richer than when I play whistle.
Most traditional fifes are in B flat, but I got the D so I could play more Irish tunes. Basically, think minature flute one octave higher than a normal sized Irish flute.
As for price, I think the Whistle Shop sells them for $75 which I think is a bargain. I have read on this board that Ralph Sweet’s flutes and fifes can vary in quality (from quite good to not so good), but my experience has only been good. Also, I’ve e-mailed Ralph before and he was most helpful when I was talking flutes/fifes with him. I always consider it a plus when the flute maker is willing to help out if necessary.
Eric
[ This Message was edited by: Jayhawk on 2003-01-08 22:41 ]
Thanks for the info Erik. I`m going into the big city again tomorrow to find that guy and see what he was playing. He also told me about a place in town that he saw a couple of keyless flutes for sail and a fife or two. Boy two trips to town in the same month. I hope my nerves can take it. Have fun with that little thing. I wish you would get that darn Dixon so I can here what you think of it.
Here’s how to keep it from moving around when playing the C#. Think of the fife as a seesaw. The fulcrum will be your right hand thumb, so hold that underneath. One kid will be the right hand pinkie. Hold that down on the top. The other kid is trickier - you should be gently squeezing the fife between the side of your left hand index finger and your left hand thumb. The left hand fingers are not held perpendicular to the fife - they come in at about a 45 degree angle, with the hand being held closer to the head of the fife. If you bring your left arm around far enough to come straight at the tone holes with your fingers, you’ll feel an uncomfortable stretch across the back of your shoulders and neck. This would be easier to explain if I could show you a picture, but I’m not technologically advanced enough for that.
Jim - even without pictures you did a great job explaining that. I never had this problem with a flute, but the fife, especially the D fife, is just so small.