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Question: How can I play these notes properly on flute!?!!?
I'm a beginner at flute, trying to get ready for grade 1!. I can do most of it but sometimes not the high notes (well, what I know as high notes)!. Basically E in the space below the top line upwards!. I keep practising, every day for at least half an hour but it won't come naturally, I have to constantly think about the shape of my embouchure!. Is this what you do have to do all the time!? Its ok in scales when I go gradually, but with big leaps it goes all funny!. I try tightening but then sometimes I get no air coming and my lips hurt :(
Sorry, long whingy question!. I probably won't get much further if I find the easy stuff at grade 1 hard!. Please help, any tips!?Www@QuestionHome@Com
Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:
As one answerer said, what's going to help you A LOT is to make sure you're using the correct fingering for this E!. Use the 23123T fingering instead of 123123T!. Using this fingering for this note makes it substantially easier to leap up to those higher notes from the bottom notes, especially because if you don't use this fingering and you don't use enough air, the E note sounds exactly like an A natural (I believe!. It could be a G natural!. At any rate, though you're trying to play an E, you will hear either an A or G, my memory fails me at the moment)!. The KEY (ha, no pun intended) in reaching the higher notes is not so much your embouchure, but rather the amount of air you're putting into the note!. You need enough to support the note and sustain it but not too much, or else it will come out airy (use more air for lower notes)!. Just open your throat and make sure that you're using your diaphram to breath from, because this gives you better range and the ability to sustain a note longer!. also adjust your mouthpiece if you need to, in order to get more air through the flute!. Remember also to make sure that you're not playing too loudly---control your volume (more done by controlling embouchure), and this, too, will come with time!.
Another important factor in getting these notes out is to make sure that you're practicing proper posture!. Make sure you're sitting on the last couple inches of your chair, with your feet flat on the ground, back and chest up!.
Other than that, continue practicing as often as you can!. Start on an E-flat major scale, from second octive E (or even first octave, it doesn't matter how low you wish to start) and work your way up to this higher E flat!. Start at a slow tempo, and hold the notes out as if they were whole notes!. Then try them as half notes, quarter notes, and then sixteenth notes!. Then, if you're feeling brave, start all over again but at a faster tempo!. If you have a metronome, this would be a great time to use one!.
You're a beginner, so remember that it takes lots of patience and practice!. When I first started, I could NOT get a second octave F natural out for the life of me! Just practice, and if you really, really can't get it on your own, go to your teacher and ask for some help!.
Hope this helped! Good luck playing :]Www@QuestionHome@Com
1!. Make sure you have your fingers in the right place!.
2!. Try speeding up your air without pinching to get the higher notes!.
3!. If this doesn't work!. you might have an instrument repair problem!. Take it to an expert repairman or at least your flute teacher!.Www@QuestionHome@Com
Contrary to the belief of many, I think that when expanding the range of a flautist, one should focus on the firmness of the lips, not the size of the opening!. Make sure that when you breathe, you don't try to breathe downward to meet the embouchure hole!. also, be sure you're using the x23123 T fingering for the D rather than 123123 T and then put your left index finger down, while bringing your right ring finger up, to form the E fingering!. It's alot easier to start at a comfortable note and then slur up!. Alot of times you'll hear professional trumpet players making a soft toot and then BLASTING their next noteWww@QuestionHome@Com
Relax your throat!. Only learn high notes one at a time, starting low and working your way up slowly, say one note a month!. After a few months of concentrating on a perfect embouchure it DOES become second nature and very comfortable!. With time and practice, you shall overcome! I absolutely guarantee it!. Just keep telling yourself that the trials and tribulations are worth the glory in the end!. That's the only thing that kept me practicing when I was learning scales and new notes- that's the hardest time in an instrumentalists learning curve!. Stick to it and be patient with yourself!.Www@QuestionHome@Com