Did I learn the flute completely wrong, or what?

[ShortButSweet]

So this has been scaring me lately...

I've been playing the flute for about eight years, and I picked it up relatively fast; By now I'm first chair in the highest band at my high school and I've won several competitions and have been in regionals the past 3 years. Ever since high school my best friends have also been in band, not surprisingly, and two of my best friends are also flautists. I've been getting concerned lately because I noticed that they can both double tongue and I can't, sadly...

It seemed to just come naturally to them, and they do it with no problem, but I've tried numerous times to learn and I always end up getting frustrated with myself and just stopping. Which brings me to the problem that i've started to realize: I don't tongue the way everyone else does, I don't even think I use my tongue at all. I don't say "tu tu tu," it's more like "huh huh huh," even though it sounds basically the same as normal tonguing would. I'm thinking this is the reason I simply can't learn to double tongue (but i've developed a ridiculously fast single tongue to compensate for it... ).

I don't know if i'll ever be able to learn double tonguing without completely relearning the flute and starting from scrach. The frustrating thing is, I'm doing lots of pieces that require double tonguing and I have to slow them down to my single tongue pace... like right now, i'm working on Faure's Fantaisie Op. 79. It's supposed to be about 121, and i have to play it at 100. That's also because I have problems learning very fast runs. It's like my fingers just won't do it... I know that you're supposed to take everything way down in tempo and practice it a thousand times really slow, but I'm not a patient person.

Any tips? :/

[fluteguy18]

First of all. If your tongue does not contact the front part of the roof of your mouth [like saying Tu, Du, Da, or Ta], you possibly aren't tongueing. A "Huh" syllable uses a diaphram attack. These are important to use, but are usually used to help give the actual tongueing [articulation] a good amount of tone behind the tongue.

I strongly recommend going to Youtube and watching Nina Perlove's videos on articulation. They are great.

Double tongue is a very valuable tool in the flutist's palette of articulations. There are countless pieces that require it. It is all a matter of time and patience to get it right.

At some point, we all have to go back to scratch and relearn things. I started taking lessons 1 month before my college music major auditions. After the auditions, my teacher took me back to basics: embouchure, hand position, posture, breathing, tone, scales, etc. etc. When I switched teachers once I started at the University, my new teacher redid my embouchure again, articulation, and tone. I was playing whole notes and half notes in my lessons for a long time. But returning to basics every now and then saves time in the long run. Everyone does it, and everyone needs to do it. We all have our own little habits that are counter-productive, and returning to scratch fixes them.

As for the Faure. I worked it up in a couple weeks this past summer, and will be playing it this spring in my Junior Flute Performance recital. With this [and all things], you MUST take it slow, and build it up. Why learn it fast? Doing so will only make you learn mistakes and result in frustration. If you slow it down, and keep track of your progress [with the metronome markings in your music], it will give you a sense of achievement. Make it a goal to go up 10-15 clicks a week. Try playing it with different rythms, different articulations, try playing it backwards [reading from right to left- it works!]. Try playing everything on the up beats. Try everything! Try watching your hands in the mirror: are your fingers too high off of the keys? are there any extra movements that you aren't aware of? Are you fingers moving together?

Don't give up. Patience is the key. Patience now will build a strong foundation for the future.

[ShortButSweet]

thank you for the advice.

so the question is, if I am tonguing wrong, or not "tonguing" at all, what can I do about it? Is it going to hinder me a lot in the future? will I ever be able to learn double tonguing that way?

when I've practiced competition pieces in the past, I never had the patience to slow it down and learn all the runs correctly so my fingers had muscle memory, but with the Faure, I have been doing that lately and found that it actually does help a ton. But I still have to train myself to practice like that every time.

[vampav8trix]

if I am tonguing wrong, or not "tonguing" at all, what can I do about it?

I suggest that you get a good flute teacher and explain what you are doing and demonstrate what you are doing to him or her.

That way they can start you over with the basics and you can learn to toungue correctly and eventually learn to double tongue.

[ShortButSweet]

I've been taking lessons from the same teacher for probably seven years, and she's never mentioned anything about my tonguing. Like I said, it sounds just like normal tonguing. I'm sure she would have mentioned it if it was a major concern... I've mentioned it to her before, but she didn't seem too worried. Maybe I should stress the point a little more.

[vampav8trix]

Maybe you should get another teacher. I tried several before I found one that was good.

[fluteguy18]

I second that suggestion. It is good to switch teachers every now and then. I would definitely bring this issue up in a lesson, and keep at it. Be persistent and share your concerns. Be polite and sincere, but make your voice heard. We often forget that lessons are a two way street. It is good to have communication flowing because it sometimes will help the teacher understand your struggles and will help you improve. Playing a flute is a very personal physical activity, and the more we can describe what we are doing, the more accurately we can address problems.

But, if your teacher insists that your tonguing is fine, and you know without a doubt it is not, it is time to switch. Any teacher worth studying with will want their students to be the best they can be. This is a BIG issue and if it isn't being addressed [after you put your foot down on the subject], then I would strongly consider switching teachers.