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SOME THOUGHTS ON TECHNIQUE

Dr. Constance G. Lane, Professor of Music - flute
University of South Carolina
CLane@Mozart.sc.edu

TECHNIQUE--as defined by Nancy Toff in THE FLUTE BOOK

"Technique is the control and coordination of all muscular actions that flute playing comprises... Technique is the vehicle of melodic motion."

Marcel Moyse says:

"One can have technique without music (all too often unfortunately), but one cannot express the music without technique."

FACILITY

American Heritage Dictionary:

"done or achieved with little effort or difficulty; easy"

As flutists, we know that this is not achieved without a great deal of hard work, but in the end, the performance must sound like the definition above.

FINGER TECHNIQUE

William Kincaid (in KINCAIDIANA by John Krell) refers specifically to finger technique when he says:

"In spite of the differences in endowment and aptitude, the instrumentalist, with patience and determination, can do almost anything with his fingers. Although there is a kind of onerous drill and routine required, it should be remembered that the professional athlete is likewise involved in the same repetitive situation of calisthenics. Finger technique refined early in study is, so to speak, money in the bank."

Kincaid points out several essential areas that must be mastered in order to gain facility on the flute:

• Finger position

• Even playing (Notes will sound faster if evenly distributed rather than faked through as a smear of sound.) Acute and analytical listening will help.

• Practice on scales, arpeggios, and assorted etudes
  ("The numerous and assorted etudes, frequently deplored by the student, are also essential)

• Repetition ("Thoughtful repetition is the key to facility.")

• Persistence ("Dogged patience, time, and drill will do [it].")

• Metronome practice ("...is the instrumentalist’s best friend and surrogate teacher... Besides supplying an unyielding discipline, it also provides a reassuring measure of progress.")

Louis Moyse on Technique:

"One should not practice technique only when a difficult section is found in a piece, but to practice scales, arpeggios, and any kind of exercises in advance, in order to be able to face any difficulties in any pieces. In fact, I do believe that if one would 'store’ enough technique in advance, most of the pieces written since the Renaissance period to the beginning of the twentieth century could and should almost be played at sight."

Some suggested finger technique exercise books:

Taffanel-Gaubert--17 DAILY EXERCISES (Leduc)
M. Moyse--EXERCISES JOURNALIERS (DAILY EXERCISES) (Leduc)
Georges Barrere--THE FLUTIST FORMULAE (G. Schirmer)
Trevor Wye--TECHNIQUE (Novello)

Dr. Constance G. Lane, Professor of Music - flute
University of South Carolina
CLane@Mozart.sc.edu