I've included here an earlier post plus an expanded section talking about the opening of Telemann's D major Fantasy: 

Wilbert Hazelzet often said, "Don't play." We train ourselves so that we "don't play" in the end.

​This sounds so cryptic at first! But in the context of music-making, he's referring to how we should internalize everything so that we no longer feel like we have to "do something". The sound, the music just flows, emanates out of us. It becomes a part of us and is not something external. In passages that are challenging technically, I have often found it's much better to have the intention of "backing off" as opposed to "I have to get this". It's about working with paradoxes. We train to do something only to let go again.

In this way, playing becomes more and more effortless and you expand your realm of expression. Also, you realize the difference between the notes you see on the page compared how they actually should sound. As an educator, I can't stress this enough, and I love seeing those "ah ha" moments with my learners when the light bulb goes on.
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For example, these dotted notes in the opening of Telemann's D major Fantasy all LOOK the same, but they certainly aren't. On a very basic level, we can say the notes on the main beats need more presence compared to the 16ths, but those main beats also have their nuances and not all beats are equal. We'll also have to temper our air on the low G#, for example, to accommodate the natural tendency of that note on the baroque flute, but at the same time still make it sound as a main beat. (this is a more complicated subject but to be continued!)
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In essence, try to get away from the notion that all notes need a full sound. Use historical articulation "türü" or "tüdü" which will bring out the gesture of that dotted rhythm much more musically. Not all notes will sound equally "clear", and that's just so beautiful.🩷🎶

Here's ​that (in)famous Nr. 26 in Bach's Christmas Oratorio III - so what's happening here is that the shepherds say to each other "Let us now go to Bethlehem to see what God has made known (the birth of Jesus)." It should show the joyful expectation of the people. The general performance tempo can vary quite a bit here and there are some very tricky passages for the flutes, which are in unison with the strings. So here are some of my tips for all flutists playing it this season, which I hope can help one or the other! 

- It's not a solo, but a musical backdrop that shows the excitement of the people. I personally don't think it should be super fast, but you may not have a say about that. There are many nice details in the entire passage, beautiful and surprising turns both in the harmonic and melodic material, which would be a pity to just rush and gloss over. The dynamic should be a very exciting piano, using articulation to delineate and carve out the fun shapes. Think of it like people chattering and getting ready to go to see something amazing. (perhaps also consider, the text says "go", and not "hurry" or "flee")

​- Make sure to keep the air flow constant, smooth, and slow enough for sound production. Due to nerves, we can easily tense up in the throat and then the air becomes kind of "crumbly", resulting in a loss of sound and ending up with only dull-sounding articulation noise. This may be hard to control and comes with performance practice, as the air speed goes easily up when we're stressed! 

- Don't forget to look up and breathe, always. 

Here's another upload for the Solo of the Month group, this time the Presto from Tromlitz's Partita in G major - this was a great exercise for a couple of different reasons, from using the different F# fingerings to avoiding cracking on delicate notes on the keyed flute. And yes, I got water under the key on that G#😅

It's a bit tricky rhythmically to get the right swing, the piece definitely has an attitude! I'm not happy with everything yet, and I think partly is because I'm influenced by the word "presto" unnecessarily. Like I told my workshop participants lately, speed contributes to an affect, but speed itself doesn't express much. Although presto does mean "quickly", the piece sounds really fun (and above all, really fun to play!) when there's that rustic, burlesque character to it. To do so, you'll need just a bit of time to express those subtle rhythmic nuances, and rushing past them would simply be less than half the fun.

The T R' T' tonguing creates rhythmic stability and interest, and also makes phrases sound much more effortless. Try this with equal tonguing (all t t t) and you'll immediately notice the difference! The application of diverse articulation certainly goes beyond baroque music.🎶

Here's a possible articulation solution for Telemann's B minor Fantasy for solo flute, end of first movement. The 't can either mean closing the sound at the end of a note or to start a note. It means the tongue is back on the palate and ready to go. The alternating blue and red is just to make it easier to read.

Notice also I prefer to use a "d" for the low notes for a better and more secure sound production. Remember that how you work your air and the characteristics of particular notes are also important aspects in articulation, so it's not just reliant on the syllable alone. A "t" could potentially also be useful for a soft effect, such as for the high A# at the end since it helps to bring clarity to the otherwise dull-sounding note.

With all these differentiations of t, d, r and in combination with variations on how/when to stop the sound, one can truly bring out the "Vivace" of this movement - "lively". I think liveliness through articulation is one of the hallmarks of baroque music and you can see here how effective this is. If you'd play this movement just fast and without any of these nuanced details, then you're missing out on a lot of fun and so is your audience! Try it out and let us know what you think!
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To hear this passage from a practice session, refer to my video here: