Good tone on high notes intermediate and pro flutist

sinebar · Post by **sinebar** » Thu Jul 26, 2007 12:15 pm

I just wanted to ask the intermediate and pro flutist how long it took for you to be able to get a good consistent tone on high notes above the staff. I've been playing 7 months and I am struggling with these notes up to high G#. Sometimes I can get them and sometimes I can't. My duration is short lived to when playing high notes too.

Iolaus · Post by **Iolaus** » Thu Jul 26, 2007 6:02 pm

#1 Make sure your instrument is in good adjustment. (have someone test it)
#2 I know some people in my college band, that have been playing for several years, that aren't comfortable above high G.
#3 It's been thirty years since I was a beginner, but I seem to recall being at about the same range after my first year of band class.

fluteguy18 · Post by **fluteguy18** » Thu Jul 26, 2007 7:20 pm

Iolaus wrote:#1 Make sure your instrument is in good adjustment. (have someone test it)
#2 I know some people in my college band, that have been playing for several years, that aren't comfortable above high G.
#3 It's been thirty years since I was a beginner, but I seem to recall being at about the same range after my first year of band class.

Agreed. I consider myself to be a decent player [a fairly competitive collegiate performance major who is in their opinion worth their salt as a player], and one of my strengths has always been tone and range.

In addition to Iolaus's advice I also recommend making sure that your oral cavity is nice and open. You dont want to pinch with your lips or have your throat closed. Both of those are counter-productive to achieving a nice range. I notice particularly when I am working on my extended upper range [between B3 and F#4] that I really open up as much as I can, and air my airstream downward. However, that is just how I play, and that technique is what works for me.

Also, concentrate on air speed. Higher notes typically require a more narrow air stream with faster air behind it. Lower notes require adequate airspeed, but not as much speed. In addition to this, make sure that your embouchure is relaxed and flexible. You need to have control and appropriate tension/pressure in your lips, but not enough that you will be quickly exhausted. Think of your embouchure sort of like a water hose. When you place your thumb over the end of a water hose, the water sprays everywhere. When you take it off, the water is a nice stream of fluid. So, treat your air like the water, and your lips are the hose. Too much tension will cause the air to 'spray' yielding in unsavory results.

sinebar · Post by **sinebar** » Thu Jul 26, 2007 7:56 pm

fluteguy18 wrote:
Iolaus wrote:#1 Make sure your instrument is in good adjustment. (have someone test it)
#2 I know some people in my college band, that have been playing for several years, that aren't comfortable above high G.
#3 It's been thirty years since I was a beginner, but I seem to recall being at about the same range after my first year of band class.
Agreed. I consider myself to be a decent player [a fairly competitive collegiate performance major who is in their opinion worth their salt as a player], and one of my strengths has always been tone and range.

In addition to Iolaus's advice I also recommend making sure that your oral cavity is nice and open. You dont want to pinch with your lips or have your throat closed. Both of those are counter-productive to achieving a nice range. I notice particularly when I am working on my extended upper range [between B3 and F#4] that I really open up as much as I can, and air my airstream downward. However, that is just how I play, and that technique is what works for me.

Also, concentrate on air speed. Higher notes typically require a more narrow air stream with faster air behind it. Lower notes require adequate airspeed, but not as much speed. In addition to this, make sure that your embouchure is relaxed and flexible. You need to have control and appropriate tension/pressure in your lips, but not enough that you will be quickly exhausted. Think of your embouchure sort of like a water hose. When you place your thumb over the end of a water hose, the water sprays everywhere. When you take it off, the water is a nice stream of fluid. So, treat your air like the water, and your lips are the hose. Too much tension will cause the air to 'spray' yielding in unsavory results.

Well my flute is in good shape so I know it's just me. How far down on your chin do you rest the flute? That's something that still confuses me. Is the lip plate supose to rest right in the dip between the bottom lip and chin? When I try that it takes the pressure off my bottom lip but It's very difficult to play it. I have to place the edge of the blow hole on the border of my bottom lip to get a decent sound but my lip tires quick.

Iolaus · Post by **Iolaus** » Thu Jul 26, 2007 8:16 pm

I place it right into the curve, and have the head turned out slightly. My teacher wants me to leave as much of the hole as possible uncovered, but when I watched her play her "winged" lip plate, and when I saw a closeup of Galway, they both had half or more covered. I guess you just have to play around with it a bit to find the sweet spot.

I don't know it this will help, but here a link to some youtube clips of a Galway masterclass; some of it is about setting up the embouchure.

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_q ... ss&search=

Even it it doesn't help you with your high notes, it's a great way to waste an hour or two.

sinebar · Post by **sinebar** » Thu Jul 26, 2007 8:36 pm

Iolaus wrote:I place it right into the curve, and have the head turned out slightly. My teacher wants me to leave as much of the hole as possible uncovered, but when I watched her play her "winged" lip plate, and when I saw a closeup of Galway, they both had half or more covered. I guess you just have to play around with it a bit to find the sweet spot.

I don't know it this will help, but here a link to some youtube clips of a Galway masterclass; some of it is about setting up the embouchure.

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_q ... ss&search=

Even it it doesn't help you with your high notes, it's a great way to waste an hour or two.

Thanks I'll have a look at them.

fluteguy18 · Post by **fluteguy18** » Fri Jul 27, 2007 1:25 pm

You should have it on the 'dip' and have your lower lip covering about 1/3 of the embouchure hole. Some people play with more coverage, some with less. If you have it set too high up on your lip, then your tone is far more likely to be thin and airy.

It takes a while to get used to, but there is no need to rush something like this. A good range, and a good tone isnt built in a day.

sinebar · Post by **sinebar** » Sun Jul 29, 2007 2:39 pm

fluteguy18 wrote:You should have it on the 'dip' and have your lower lip covering about 1/3 of the embouchure hole. Some people play with more coverage, some with less. If you have it set too high up on your lip, then your tone is far more likely to be thin and airy.

It takes a while to get used to, but there is no need to rush something like this. A good range, and a good tone isnt built in a day.

I watched the James Galway videos very carfully and it looks like he had the flute a little above the dip. Not right in it which would be extreamly low. Am I right?

fluteguy18 · Post by **fluteguy18** » Mon Jul 30, 2007 10:48 pm

A lot of it has to do with your bone structure. For my bone structure, and the proportions of my lips and the size of my lip plate, the flute rests in the the dip, but just above the actual bone that forms my chin. Some people have thinner lips and a more pronounced jaw, and vice versa. I have a very slight bone structure [as in a smaller frame overall] so, for ME, it practically sits in the dip of my chin.

For you, it could very well be higher up. Just keep in mind that you do not want your lip to become restricted by pressure from the lip plate.

sinebar · Post by **sinebar** » Tue Jul 31, 2007 8:05 am

fluteguy18 wrote:A lot of it has to do with your bone structure. For my bone structure, and the proportions of my lips and the size of my lip plate, the flute rests in the the dip, but just above the actual bone that forms my chin. Some people have thinner lips and a more pronounced jaw, and vice versa. I have a very slight bone structure [as in a smaller frame overall] so, for ME, it practically sits in the dip of my chin.

For you, it could very well be higher up. Just keep in mind that you do not want your lip to become restricted by pressure from the lip plate.

Yeah I think that has been one of my problems. I was resting the edge of the blow hole on the edge of my bottom lip with the lip supporting the flute. It didn't take long for my lip to tire and my tone to suffer. I'm now trying to correct this.