Teaching
the Flute Embouchure
by Bruce Pearson
When
I began playing flute as a woodwind “doubler,” I assumed that
making and teaching the flute embouchure would be easy. It came easily
for me so it should come easily for everyone. Right?
Wrong! After observing literally thousands
of young flutists, producing a good flute embouchure and consequently
a good tone and intonation can be a challenge for some students and teachers.
To assist the students in forming and developing
their flute embouchure, have each flute student be responsible for providing
a small mirror that is to be placed on the students music stand. This
will help the students to see that their embouchure is being formed properly.
To ensure a good formation of the embouchure
have the students do the following:
Without the flute head joint
- To aid in the development
of jaw flexibility, bend your arm at the elbow. Hold the arm so that
the arm from shoulder to elbow is parallel to the floor and elbow to
hand is perpendicular to the floor. Take a full breath and expel the
air up and down the arm, without moving your head. By projecting the
jaw slightly outward, the air stream will rise. (Click
here for photo 1)
- With the lips in a natural
closed position have the students draw the corners of their mouth into
a gentle smile. The lips should remain closed.
- Place the index finger horizontally
on the lip as if it were a flute. (Click
here for photo 2)
- Take a full inhale and expel the air, whispering “tu”.
With the flute head joint
- Place the inner edge of
the “blow hole” on the lower lip where the wet and dry part
of the lip meet. The lower lip should remain soft and should cover approximately
1/3 of the blow hole. Check it with the mirror. (Click
here for photo 3)
- Using the mirror, check
to see that, when expelling air, the opening in the lips (aperture)
is centered in on the blow hole. Adjust, if necessary. Another way of
checking to see if the embouchure is centered is to look to see that
there is a compact “triangle of condensation” centered on
the opposite side of the embouchure plate as your lips. (Click
here for photo 4)
- Roll the head joint in or out to create the best tone. The tone is created by splitting the air stream with the opposite side of the blow hole.
If the embouchure is formed properly and the end plug is adjusted properly, you should play the following with a closed head:
You should play the following note on an open head joint:
To
aid in the development of the embouchure, have the students learn to play
Merrily, We Roll Along and other three-note songs by inserting
their right index finger in the end of the head joint. (Click
here for photo 5)
By following these simple steps, students
will learn to form a good flute embouchure that will be important in the
development of a beautiful flute tone.
About Bruce Pearson
Copyright © 2000
Neil A. Kjos Music Company. All rights reserved.