Today is

By: Ikedi Ani-okoye.

Buying a Flute

Flutes that come back from the rental program can be a good deal for purchase. The store's repairman will overhaul the flute and then it is offered at a reduced price from new.

You can also find a flute for sale in the classified ads in the newspaper or just by asking around. Stop over at a local university and you will probably find notices of flutes for sale on bulletin boards in the music department.

In these instances, have a professional look at the flute first and give you an opinion. You can find flutes for sale on eBay, too. Be sure that you have the option of trying the flute out first and sending it back if you aren't happy with it.

The Flute

Your flute should come with a rod that has a long skinny hole at the end of it. Go to a store and buy a handkerchief; put about half of the handkerchief through the hole in the rod and put the rod and the cloth through the flute a few times. When you do this make sure that the flute is in the three separate pieces; clean all three pieces. The head joint will be the hardest of the three because the rod will not go all the way through the entire piece.

The bamboo flute makers

The bamboo flute makers in Ban Laos (Laos Village) however started off as musicians when they first settled on the Thonburi side of Bangkok. Later, they took to making flutes instead, an instrument as old as music. The wisdom of this cultural heritage of two centuries has been preserved to the present day.

Native American flute

Blow into your Native American flute and sound the fundamental note. Pause and breathe in and blow again after raising the ring finger of the left hand to sound a second note. Keeping the ring finger up take and breath and raise the middle finger off of it’s hole and blow into your flute again to sound the third note.

Do the same with the index finger. Skip the ring finger of the right hand and raise the middle finger of the right hand and blow into the flute to sound the last note on the scale. Pause and raise the index finger of the right hand and blow to sound the second octave fundamental.

CONCLUSION

Dreaming of playing the flute?

Did you miss out on learning to play the flute as a youngster? Think it's too late?

It's never too late to follow your passion. Flutists definitely have a passion for their instrument.

A popular misconception is that adults can't learn to play the flute and that only children have the ability to pursue musical studies.

A variety of reasons are given...

• Lack of time
• Lack of motivation
• Inability to learn as fast as young people
• Too old, thus not worth the bother

To all of the above, I would like to say, not true so get practising.