I’ve been playing the flute for a couple of years now but still manage to have the liffy flowing out of my flute after 10 mins.
Is it the whistle tonguing technique that I still have traces of?
I’m getting better at the “teh keh teh keh” technique (tip then back of the tongue on the roof of my mouth) but am not quite there yet. Will this solve the problem once mastered?
When watching Mr McGoldrick play there’s hardly a drop (if any). There’s a clip on youtube where he’s on RTE with Dezy and at one point he’s holding the flute vertically, with the bottom of it resting on his leg whilst being interviewed. If I was to do that it’d look like my dog had cocked his leg up on me.
Joking aside it really does get on my nerves and is somewhat embarrassing when playing in a session, having to swab out all the time.
If my mouth is wetter than normal when I’m playing then naturally there is some flute drool. In the pubs, when I’m having a pint of anything, my mouth tends to be wetter. The moisture in my breath is carried into the flute, where it condenses and results in a tasty froth that comes out of the end of the flute. I don’t think there is any more mystery involved than that. Some people might naturally have moister mouths than other people and so will have more condensation.
If the flute is cold, or if the environment in which I am playing is cold, then there will also be more condensation and more flute drip than there is normally. I don’t think that tonguing vs. glottal-stopping has much to do with it.
On a related issue, lately I have been refusing to let people have a go on my flute. I wouldn’t like to kiss them and playing my flute just after they do is just too nasty a prospect for me to be overly generous with it. I assume that the breath condensation is pretty filthy and contains whatever opportunistic germs are waiting to attack fresh flesh.
I can see where tonguing could create more moisture in the flute than not tonguing. Glottal stops are best performed by saying “Eh” rather than “Keh.” Try it. Also, I suggest using cuts and strikes to get your phrases started. Most of the time, your fingers can do the articulation.
I’ve been a heavy dripper myself for a few years. But lately, with the help of a teacher, my emboucher has been improving and I can play using less air. And I think I’m noticing less condensation too. I still have a long way to go with my emboucher…but I seem to be swabbing less.