Category: exercises
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Multiphonics: Tips for Study
Actually, this is a “notes-to-self” entry disguised as “Tips”. There are good sources for learning and practicing multiphonics such as Robert Dick’s “Tone Development through Extended Techniques” (although I know the term “extended techniques” has gone out of fashion, but the practice in the book is solid). I also have a detailed presentation where I…
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Sixth-Tone Exercise Audio
This is a very simple exercise for playing sixth-tones The audio file has undulations on three notes: (I picked these because they appear in a piece I am coaching.) Bb3 – Bb3 sixth-tone lower Db4 – Db4 sixth-tone lower C3 – C3 sixth-tone higher All you have to do is practice at first playing with…
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Getting Back in the Saddle
I noticed a strange thing about getting back in shape after the last winter break. I was frustrated and, to be honest, a little frightened at how long it took to retrieve my “norm”, and wondered if it was a dire sign of things to come. I decided to blog about it, not only because…
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Intonation Exercises
Here is a compendium of intonation exercises I have written over the years. They require either two players or one player and a sound-generator such as a tuner or an app. (The exception is the “Exchange” exercise.) These exercises are based on being able to discern and manipulate difference tones, and contain a basic introduction…
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No More Tears – Breath as a Leit Motif
For the past year, my colleagues and I have been working with a wonderful vocal coach, Martin Lindsay. His sessions are structured in a way that got me thinking. We start with light stretching and breathing exercises, just enough to activate the abdominal muscles and diaphragm. I won’t go into detail about what these exercises…
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Harmonic Exercises, with Articulation too!
When playing through the harmonic series, the second overtone (a twelth above the fundamental) is a great check point. When students begin learning harmonics, this one often proves elusive because of the tendency to cover too much of the embouchure hole. By rolling out a bit and blowing down, it usually speaks. The following exercise…
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Perfection and Procrastination in Daily Practice
Recently I have spent most of my practice sessions “warming up” and playing exercises. The repertoire I am working on is singularly uninspiring, so this is mostly a maneuver in procrastination. But it’s great: taking the time to do and re-do an exercise while focusing your awareness of what’s going on under your skin is…
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Are intervals born of air or lips? Let the leopard decide.
On forums and in masterclasses there has been a lot of discussion about which element plays a more important role in producing intervals on the flute. Aside from the change of fingering, do we change more with the lips, with the air speed, or with air volume? Take the fingering element out of the equation…