If only Gustav Leonhardt had recorded the other movements of the Bach Partita! There's so much depth in this rendition, whether in terms of sound quality, understanding, and internalization of the music that I feel like you really get a glimpse of the universe.✨

While we can't play more notes than physically possible on the traverso, we can create some acoustical effects with the means that we DO have to expand our sound and expression. That means, understanding our instrument by experimenting with:

✅Slowing down the airspeed, reducing air pressure so that we get a pure tone with minimal noise around the sound.

✅Dropping the lower jaw and opening the nose to create more space and depth in the sound.

✅Training the lips to be flexible and knowing exactly how to move between registers. For example, the lips need to be a bit forward for the higher register, along with just a slightly higher air pressure. However, these are absolutely micro maneuvers which need to be internalized like a string player knowing exactly where to place the finger on the fingerboard. This feeling of security also requires great physical strength, which can only be built over time. Practicing with harmonics can be a good approach for this. Make sure you still create the best sound possible for the harmonic tones.
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✅At the end, it's like a singer who knows where each note is coming from in their body. You can test this by going over the piece of music inside you without your instrument, perhaps also fingering along. Can you recreate that sensation of playing, can you feel how the air would move inside you, how the embouchure would feel, how and where each note would resonate in your body?

I thought to use Bart Kuijken's recording of the Mozart C Major Flute Quartet as an example. Start from around 7:00 and listen especially for the phrases that involve only a few "simple" notes (the simpler the more difficult!). You'll hear that Bart's sound is completely calm, "straight" without the modern concept of vibrato, yet supple and flexible. It embodies musical tension which draws one's attention and leads you along note after note, phrase after phrase. Especially from the middle to higher register on the flute, we actually need an incredible amount of physical strength and support (strength in the embouchure and strength to manage the breath) so that it sounds elegant and deeply meaningful.  It is the way for us to bring out the essence of the expression AND to experience maximum joy and connection with this music. This is the way to create what I like to call a 3-dimensional sound.

As they say in German, "Strength lies in tranquility" (In der Ruhe liegt die Kraft)!

So after my last post talking about Wilbert Hazelzet's idea of "don't play", I thought to follow up with this list of common issues we encounter when playing the baroque flute. Just off the top of my head, these are movements or tendencies that are unnecessary and prevent us from playing in an efficient way. The more we can reduce, the easier and more enjoyable playing becomes. Go through this checklist as you play - maybe you'll discover more and I'd love to hear from you! 
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✅ 1. The baroque flute takes less air and slower air compared to the modern flute.
 
✅ 2. When moving upwards to the mid and higher register, keep using the slowest air possible and avoid overshooting.
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✅ 3. You can influence intonation by adjusting angle of air and/or the airspeed. Sometimes you'll need to do both, but sometimes adjusting air speed is enough and also a better choice than adjusting angle. Adjusting air speed is the more subtle way and there are times when that's all you'd need. 

✅ 4. Lips should remain stable when doing staccato or accents. Refrain from air kissing! 

✅ ​5. In an ensemble (starting with a duo), you'll often have plenty of time to prepare yourself for an upcoming passage. Take advantage of that. You have to check your air, lips, tongue, and also maybe cueing in your fellow musician(s) - that's A LOT that needs to happen! Is it a high note that needs to be soft? Is it a note like F natural or Gb that requires attention in terms of intonation and/or focus? Start taking in air way in advance and don't wait until right before you play to breathe. You can still take a kind of small, "symbolic" inhale to help you be in the movement of your cue (or even none at all but just cue with your flute), but keep your movement simple and precise. 

✅ 6. Avoid breathing right before your entry with your mouth open. Breathe through your nose so that your embouchure is ready for the coming passage. 

✅ 7. Watch out if you're approaching a rather high note, say like F#3 or G3  (or any note that feels unfamiliar to you) to not tense up in the body and literally "shrink" with your flute. Instead stand steady and tall, imagine to release the sound from your hands rather than clamping down on the flute.

✅ ​8. Watch out to not squeeze with your lips to produce high notes. If you're feeling tension in the lips for high notes (signs include when you feel the outer edge of your lips, or when they tremble or produce buzzing), that means they're not quite strong enough yet to handle the slightly faster airstream needed. 

✅ 9. We achieve brilliance and strength with forked fingering notes like F natural, G#, Bb etc. by being able to play them with a focused tone and in tune. They don't gain strength by us blowing more (too much too fast air), although it's very easy to do so, especially due to stress.

✅ 10. Tonguing is more about precision than tonguing hard. Use less tongue surface but back the note with air to create accentuations when needed. 

✅ 11. Explore more the softer dynamics, creating more diminuendo/lightening effects to create contrast. The baroque flute is not known as a loud instrument, but you'll have much more success in creating a rich dynamic range by widening your middle to soft dynamics. And in this way, a beautiful resonance is achieved which shows off the instrument at its best.

Less is more, achieve the maximum with the minimum.

We had a great session with Eve Friedman talking to people about tone development on the baroque flute! It's always refreshing to hear how somebody else explains or approaches an aspect, in addition to feeling a sense of confirmation which reminds me that I'm not just alone and weird in my thoughts and experiences😅....I certainly picked up a number of new ideas and am looking forward to trying them out, whether in teaching or in playing.

In the beginning of the talk, I summarized Eve's first section of the book, which is a summary of various treatises in terms of tone. With the slide shown above, I mentioned that early authors often weren't clear about addressing the difference between the volume of air versus the speed of air used for playing (see first three quotes). The quote from Lewis Granom though struck a bell, as it's very interesting that he uses the expression "retention" [of air]. Neither a lot of air nor fast air contribute to a beautiful, well-controlled tone. 

I'm often telling my learners to slow down with their airstream, the difference is quite significant especially if you're coming from modern flute playing. One imagery that's often helpful is also to think about using "warm air". Compare blowing warm versus cold air, and you'll find that not only the air speed slows down, you'll also naturally lower your jaw and deepen your mouth cavity, which is great for sound. The baroque flute responds so much better when using this approach, whether it's about resonance, purity, improving and stabilizing intonation...the list goes on! If this concept is new to you, do be patient with yourself and don't be surprised that you'll have to keep reminding yourself of this. This is very delicate work that only you can help yourself by constantly feeling and experiencing internally. 

Thus, I would relate to Granom's idea of "retention" as using warm air, not simply blowing, but a kind of a conscious release which uses the minimum to achieve the maximum. This inner resistance against "fast air" is often difficult when you're feeling nervous, and is also something that needs time to develop. (read my blog here about performing in high-pressure situations)
This also happens to correspond to Wilbert Hazelzet's concept of "don't play", which I know can sound so elusive at first! Part of what he means is, again, to discover a way of playing that's efficient and precise at the same time. That we avoid any unnecessary action or movement or energy. I would say though, this idea of "don't play" can also actually cause tension at first, so just keep this at the back of your mind if you're just starting out on the baroque flute. 

The following CPE Bach demonstration video wasn't made to directly address this point, but you can hear the difference between "great deal of wind" versus "retention of wind". Turn up the volume or consider using headphones. You'll hear a loud, rough sound and a softer but more resonant sound. The "retention of wind" in the second version is the type of airstream that will provide a solid foundation for a sound that's consistently pure, flexible, and in-tune. Try it out and let me know how it goes! 

Below is also the video replay of our session with Eve. 

With quick changes between the higher and lower registers, the key to this phrase is letting the air go so that we create that sense of movement. This needs to happen basically in every bar. Lighten up a bit as you play the 8th notes in kind of a bouncy staccato style, and really retract the breath as the notes go up in m. 2. The C should hardly sound and only needs a wisp of air. 

We'll also have to decide what are the various nuances within a dynamic range. The most "energetic" measures are 2 and 4, the two 16th notes really propel the music forward and up into the air. M. 2 is a leap out of our low register and m. 4 goes even higher, plus the rest gives another element of suspense. Thus m. 4 contains the most tension out of all. To create that intensification, make the D sound a little longer and do less of a diminuendo compared to the parallel note in m. 2. We'd still want to retract the breath somewhat, but at the same time there's an intensification of intention which is almost like a crescendo. Also, don't worry about "being on time" after the 8th rest - it's much desired and far more effective to let your listeners hang a bit before the music carries on. The entire sonata has this playful use of rests as a powerful expression.  Keep in mind that all this will also depend on the acoustics - you may need to lengthen notes in a dry location, or stretch the rest even longer in a resonant one. These are all nuances on the micro-level but they'll make a noticeable difference. 

To summarize, I'd say that my intention is to show how the energy bounces around in this phrase. My intention is to create suspense through the phrase and lead my listener from one place to the next. Continuing with my image from last time, each measure in this phrase is like a "strand" of water which makes up this entire waterfall. Each of them has a specific shape, but they all contribute to one form, one gesture, one story.