Month: February 2011

  • Composer Profile: Amanda Jane Fox

    I absolutely love the music of Amanda Fox. She is a wonderful combination of classically trained flute player and natural jazz pianist. She has an amazing way of performing her own music, her rhythmic understanding being instinctively different from the ordinary musician. She once described to me an astonishing list of styles that she has…

  • Open G#: To open, or not to open?

    If you look at your flute, you will find that all the keys are sprung open except for D#, G# and the trill keys. The reason for this is that Theobald Boehm, the inventor of the mechanism on the modern flute, designed the keywork on the principle that all the keys should be open, and…

  • Headjoints: A Guide to Choosing

    The headjoint of the flute is probably the most ‘personal’ part of the instrument. A headjoint that plays well for one person may be another player’s idea of hell! For this reason, no hard and fast rules can be given as to what makes the “best” headjoint, but a few guidelines may be useful.