If we remove all the wood from the piano and only the strings remain, we don’t hear much. The piano needs its shape to make the sound stronger. If you look at a flute, you might feel sad. Compared to the piano, we don’t have much of a sound board, because the flute is just a simple tube. Fortunately, we do have a sound board and that sound board is us. The flutist is the sound board. It is very interesting to be aware of that and to take the time to let that sink in.
In this article I want to discuss the importance of the shape of the mouth and the position of the tongue and how you can practice that with extended techniques. Let’s start with a small exercise.
Harmonics
There are two ways to practice harmonics. The first is by increasing the air speed and pressure. When you practice it that way, you work on support. The other way is also very interesting. When you use vocalization, we practice the embouchure and you become aware of the space in your mouth. Start by saying ‘Ah’ as in ‘Father’. Do that a few times. What is the shape of your tongue? Where is your tongue in your mouth? Now do the same with ‘ee’ as in ‘cheese’. And again the same questions. What is the shape of your tongue and where is it in your mouth? Now alternate between both vowels: ‘ah’ – ‘ee’ – ‘ah’ – ‘ee’ and so on. Try not to move your lips too much. Become aware of the difference between the position of the tongue in ‘ah’ and ‘ee’.
Now do this exercise with the flute:
Example 1
Start on the low note with your tongue in the ‘ah’ position and gradually move your tongue to the ‘ee’ position. Support with air, but just follow the movement. Just keep going until the next note appears. It’s not about getting to the next note. It’s about the movement and becoming aware of the different space in your mouth. When you have reached the second note. Start on that note with your tongue in the shape of ‘ah’ and move your tongue back to ‘ee’ until the next note is there. And so on. It should feel very relaxed.
You’ve probably noticed that when you say ‘ah’, your tongue is low in your mouth, shaped like a bowl. And when you say ‘ee’, your tongue is higher in your mouth and more forward.
Multiphonics
When you play multiphonics, you play two or more notes at the same time. Each note needs its own air speed. But since we have to play both notes at the same time, we need a different approach. Here we can also solve this challenge by using vocalization. Let’s try it:
We are going to play these two notes at the same time:
Example 2
You need to use the fingering of the D6. Now use this fingering and use the vocal ‘ah’. Don’t use too much air. A nice C5 will sound. Don’t force the sound, just enjoy the weakness of this note. Now gradually move your tongue to ‘ee’. Be patient and wait for D6 to appear. Go back and forth from C5 to D6 (don’t change the fingering, play both notes with the fingering of D6). Just try to use the tongue position as much as possible and go back and forth ‘ah’ (C5) – ‘ee’ (D6) – ‘ah’ (C5) – ‘ee’ (D6), and so on. Now we need to combine both notes. Start at C5 (use the fingering of D6 and the vowel ‘ah’) and gradually move to D6 by moving your tongue to ‘ee’. There is a point where you can hear both notes at the same time. It will be at a point where the vowels ‘ah’ and ‘ee’ are merging. It feels a bit like going to the dentist when you combine ‘ah’ and ‘ee’. It may take a while, but remember to be curious, have fun and know that it is more important to enjoy the journey to your goal than to reach the goal.
Whistling Tones
An extended technique that benefits greatly from the position of the tongue is whistling tones. Whistling tones are very soft sounds on the flute. You can play them by relaxing your embouchure and using very little air. It should feel like you are not using any air at all. If you hear air going into the flute, you are using too much. The position of your tongue can help you make the whistle tone more stable. If you want to know the correct tongue position for a whistle tone, whistle the note with your mouth without the flute. If you can’t whistle like that, pretend to do it. Your tongue will be in the correct position anyway. Then use that position while you play the whistle tone.
It is also fun to play a whistle tone and move your tongue slowly around your mouth. The whistle tones will change.
Regular Flute Playing
Becoming aware of the shape in your mouth and the position of your tongue while playing is not only useful for playing extended techniques. If you want to play the second register for example, especially if you want to play softly, it can help to use the vowel ‘ee’. If you want to play forte or louder, it helps to change to ‘ah’. Becoming aware of the shape in your mouth and the position of your tongue is interesting. Sometimes it can really help.
Visit www.flutecolors.com/pieces for practice materials and examples.
Rogier de Pijper
www.flutecolors.com
Rogier de Pijper (1982) is a Dutch flutist and Altus artist. He is regularly active as a soloist, has acted as a substitute in various orchestras including Philharmonie Zuid Nederland and has given concerts and masterclasses in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, the Czech Republic, Italy, Finland and the United States of America. Various composers have written works for him, including Sandro Fazzolari (Italy) and Gregory Glancey (America).
In 2016 he published his book ‘Flute Colors’, 112 exercises to improve your flute playing with extended techniques. The book was sold in more than 20 countries around the world in just one year and translated into German within a month of its release. Rogier also wrote a beginner’s method for flute ‘Fluitmethode.nl’ and ‘Fluitmethode.be’.
Rogier has made various recordings and CDs. Some are played regularly on national radio in the Netherlands. He also played live on national radio the world premiere of ‘Chatouille!’ by Matthias Kadar.
