How to Play the Flute: Everything You Need to Know to Play the Flute

by Howard Harrison

Overview

How to Play the Flute is a new kind of flute tutor. It combines over fifty carefully selected musical pieces with illustrations, diagrams, and text to give students a full, clear explanation of the basics of flute playing. Progressing in easy stages, How to Play the Flute takes one from simple melodies to the music of Bach and Scott Joplin.

How to Play the Flute covers all the basics, including:
- Purchasing and caring for your instrument
- Reading music
- Breathing techniques
- Improving tone

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780312288617
Publisher:	St. Martin's Publishing Group
Publication date:	02/09/2002
Series:	How to Play
Pages:	132
Product dimensions:	8.75(w) x 12.20(h) x 0.75(d)

About the Author

Howard Harrison is a freelance composer, teacher, performer, and writer. He lives in Exeter, England.

Table of Contents

	Introduction	1
Part 1	Basics	3
	Your flute	4
	How the flute makes a sound	6
	Shaping the air-jet	7
	Making the first sound	9
	Breathing	11
	How music is written down	14
	Reading music	21
	Holding the flute	23
	Fingering diagrams	27
Part 2	Playing the flute	28
	The note B	30
	The note A	31
	The note G	32
	The slur	35
	The notes C, F	35
	The note B[Flat](A[Sharp])	38
	Centreing the flute	40
	The note F[Sharp](G[Flat])	42
	Tonguing	43
	The note E	45
	The tie	47
	The notes D, low D	49
	Some help with the lower notes	51
	The notes low C[Sharp](D[Flat]), low C	51
	The notes E[Flat](D[Sharp]), low E[Flat](D[Sharp])	55
	More tone improvement	56
	The note C[Sharp](D[Flat])	61
	The note G[Sharp](A[Flat])	63
	A recap on tone quality	64
	The second register	66
	The notes E, F (second register)	67
	The notes F[Sharp](G[Flat]), G, G[Sharp](A[Flat]), A (second register)	72
	Harmonics	74
	Staccato	77
	Dynamics	79
	The notes A[Sharp](B[Flat]), B, C, C[Sharp](D[Flat]) (second register), D, D[Sharp](E[Flat]), E (third register)	87
Part 3	Going on	94
	Where to go from here	95
	Unfamiliar rhythms	96
	Vibrato	97
	Some special effects	99
	Musical terms	101
	Fingering chart	102