Basic Flute Lessons for Beginners

The flute is a beautiful and melodious instrument that also happens to be one of the oldest musical instruments in the world, since humans harnessed wind to create music which gradually developed into a major art form. The versatility and simplicity of the instrument make it a great favourite with music lovers. You can play the instrument with a band, an orchestra, with singing accompaniment as well as all on its own. Let us see what kind of basics you will have to learn while taking flute classes for the first time.

Holding the flute

How you hold your flute depends on the type of flute you have chosen to rent or buy. There are basically two main types of flutes – those with holes at the end of the flute, known as end blown, and those with holes at the sides, known as side blown. Your fingers will play a major role in playing the flute, so learning how to hold the instrument properly is of the greatest importance. Expect to spend a couple of lessons in learning how to do it in a way that is both comfortable and technically sound.

Producing sound

While it looks easy to blow on a flute and produce sounds, it actually is not. You cannot just blow anywhere and expect to make a sound. The right way to do it is to raise the flute in front of your lips and blow into the blowing hole, covering only about 1/5th of the hole during the attempt. You will have to vary your blowing intensities until you get it right. Don’t puff up your cheeks when you blow. You need to sustain the playing for a while, so the air must come from the diaphragm directly. This technique can be picked up quickly, but it is essential to get it right before moving on to learn how to actually produce music.

Fingering

The flute produces music when you learn how to blow on it and finger the holes properly. This is one of the basic techniques you will learn in your flute lessons. Without learning this, you simply cannot proceed with learning to play the flute. It is advisable to use fingering charts during your flute tutorials so that you avoid making mistakes in your finger placements. It might take some effort to learn how to read the chart first, but it drastically improves your performance and will enable you to learn far quicker than otherwise. Covering and releasing the different holes in the flute at the right time and synchronizing it with your blowing will take quite some time to master, but it will produce results.

Posture

Posture is very important while learning the flute. It is important that you maintain the correct posture because it will help you to produce more consistent sounds, and also improves your air capacity. You can sit or stand according to your convenience. The important thing is that your breathing is not affected and you are able to sustain the position over a long period. Your posture must also be developed properly in order to ensure that you don’t develop aches in your muscles and joints after practice.

Flute teachers generally recommend that you use flutes classified as beginner flutes for best effect when you start learning. Over time, you can graduate to a more professional flute! If you are considering flute lessons, Singapore has a large number of opportunities for learning, teaching and playing the instrument, making it a good choice for most people.