ive been playing flute for about 3 months and i still have an airy sound. it doesnt sound pretty like a flute is supposed to. ive even been praticing every day and doing what my teacher says but it seems my playing is still the same. any advice?
2006-12-23 08:24:59 · 11 answers · asked by cowmoomoo 3 in Entertainment & Music ➔ Music
Some people never get over their airy sound. I doubt that the problem is a leak or not covering the holes sufficiently. If that were the case, the note would not sound right at all.
The problem is probably in your embouchure (the way you position your lips). Make sure to tighten the corners of your mouth at all times. You can practice that by putting bobby pins or paper clips in the corners of your mouth while you are playing. The key is to hold them in place. It will strengthen your embouchure.
In addition, keep moving around your head joint and experiment which position produces the clearest sound. Ask your teacher for help on that. If my headjoint is not in the exact position I like it, my sound is off, especially if the headjoint is rolled out too much. When you position your headjoint, start out by lining up the embouchure hole with your keys. Then you can adjust from there.
Good luck!
2006-12-23 10:40:36 · answer #1 · answered by smeiou78 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
First off, remember that you have only been playing for three months. The flute is a rather hard instrument to learn, so you can't expect perfection right away.
To get rid of the airiness you may want to try moving your flute around. Some teachers are more strict about this than others (when I was first starting out my teacher put pencils in the end of our flutes so that we would hold them up straight) so if your teacher is picky, this suggestion won't work. But if not, move your flute up and down, back and forth. Spend some time playing with it, some movements will make it sound ickier than others, while some will make it sound great.
Another suggestion is rolling the head joint in and out. Again check with your teacher before doing this, my high school band director would throw a fit if he caught anyone rolling in and out, he thought it was a bad idea, but then again he was a brass player. While holding a note roll the flute towards you and away from you. Do this while looking at a tuner, because it will affect your pitch, but it can also help to make the tone less airy.
You can also try moving your embouchure around, making the apature smaller or larger. It sounds a bit complicated, but basically just move your lips around to make your air stream wider and narrower.
Hope this helps.
Good luck!
2006-12-24 16:29:22 · answer #2 · answered by BandGeek 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Remember that it sounds much "airier" in your ear since the mouthpiece is so close to you. Try recording your practice and see if it sounds better on the recording. Recording yourself is a good idea anyway, since it can let you listen objectively.
Check to make sure you're covering the keys well. Also check pads and springs (your teacher can help you with this) and check the way you're angling the hole in the mouthpiece - if you find it's you've shifted the flute considerably between the beginning of a piece and the end, yoiu might want to look at trying some different positions.
Keep up the practice. 3 months is not so terribly long, tone takes a long time to fully develop. If after about a year you're still not happy with your tone, check into what's called a "butterfly" head joint. The plate is shaped to direct more air into the flute, and can help considerably. Unfortunately, they're still fairly pricey, so that's why I recommend waiting because you might in fact want to upgrade instruments at that point if you're serious about playing. Good luck and stay persistent with the practice!
2006-12-23 16:36:12 · answer #3 · answered by Fed_UP_with_work. 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
i've been playin the flute for 7 years now so i guess i can help u.
my teacher told me in 3rd grade when i first played the flute is to take the mouth piece and blow in it to get a sound if it sound airy u either have to ajust where u blow or theres something wrong with your flute. when you hear the sound its supposed to make put the flute together and try blowing on the mouth piece on the same spot u did when it wasn't together!!!!
2006-12-23 16:38:06 · answer #4 · answered by rose13688 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
i have played the flute for about 4 years.i love it!!!it's sooooo fun!!!!!!!my advice on you is:keep your flute up and don't sag it keep it straight so the air will go through straight and not get a airy sound.if you keep it up,you will get a good sound!!!!all i have to do is keep my flute up and wherever my flute goes,my mouth goes to get a good sound!!!!my teacher taught me soo well i am 1st chair!!!!!!GOOD LUCK ON THE FLUTE AND KEEP PRACTICING!!!!LIKE THEY SAY,"PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT!!!!!!!!"KEEP IT UP!!!GOOD LUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
2006-12-23 16:31:38 · answer #5 · answered by butterfly_gurl_#1!!!!!!!=) :) =) 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
i played 1 for a year a few years back. it all has to do with the way u position ur lips. like ur blowing on something hot to cool it off.
2006-12-23 16:28:32 · answer #6 · answered by brock 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Its all good. better tone of the instrument comes with time. just match you lip up directly on the edge of the hole. and put your lips together so that they feel almost tense. Dont worry you will get it! just dont quit.
2006-12-23 16:31:32 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
take it to a music store and see what they say..it sounds like you may have a leak in one of your keys...or you may not be playing right..best thing to do is get it checked out...
2006-12-23 16:28:09 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Try twisting the head towards yourself. Or put your mouth more on the hole.
2006-12-23 16:33:19 · answer #9 · answered by Moll 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Make sure you cover the holes, Fit the peices together correctly, and blow air good!!!:)
2006-12-23 16:28:35 · answer #10 · answered by francis scar 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋