TIP OF THE WEEK: QUICK BASICS IN ORNAMENTATION

*Appoggiaturas are played on the beat. The reason for this is that they create a dissonance and thus harmonic richness. Keeping this concept in mind will help you navigate more easily through all the various ornaments - it's not so important to know all the "what", more important is understanding the "why". Whether you start from above or below the main note, make sure you stop the previous note with your tongue so that you can truly place the appoggiatura on the beat. This is a small but crucial difference that will bring so much more finesse and precision into your playing. When this technique is not practiced consciously, the appoggiatura easily slips into sounding before the beat, especially in fast movements. And when that happens, we lose clarity, harmonic interest, and rhythmic stability. In the beginning it may feel abrupt and like you're always stopping, but as you internalize this technique, it'll become natural over time. 

*But you might be thinking about the tierce de coulée, which is used in French baroque music when you fill in descending thirds. As the name suggests, it's meant to be flowing and thus are played before the beat. It's also common to have consecutive falling thirds, in which case you'd have a string of tierce de coulées happening between beats. They can either be a sighing gesture or suggesting coquetry. Make sure you always release your air in this "falling" gesture, like you're not playing anymore but just letting the air go. 

*Don't worry too much about all the rules regarding length - I tend to simply go for the affect. Longer appoggiaturas can convey tenderness or also seriousness. Shorter appoggiaturas help to show liveliness. Keep in mind that they can be extremely short - it's sometimes an effective way to play trills if you want this kind of exciting, whirlwind effect. In any case, be sure to release your air after the appoggiatura - remember that we need to have both harmonic tension AND the release of that tension to make it musically effective. Coming from modern flute playing and the late 19th century style, many of us may have been taught to always sustain the sound. Baroque flute playing involves much more nuanced flexibility. Nudge with your air on the beat and then let go of it afterwards. I suggest practice going further than you think you should, see if you can achieve only a wisp of sound as your release. (but watch for intonation, lips ever so slightly forward as you retract the breath!)

*Is it just like jazz? Well, maybe yes and no. I'm not a jazz player so I can't say for sure, but at the end it also has only to do with your concept of playing early music and what you want to do on the traverso. We all can play anything in any way we want - yes that's right! But you have to find the way that's in line with your purpose with the music.

I personally find it's much more fun when I know I have choices, and that I'm conscious of those choices. So the so-called "rules" of early music actually help me gain insight into the composition, as well as freedom, in a way that makes sense to me. I thus create my own style and interpretation of earlier music based on a certain structure, which I find is a fascinating act of balance that feeds my creative interests. Think of it like poetry - you're still working within a particular language, but there's room for a personal dimension within that structure. 

What are your thoughts on baroque ornamentation?