Flute Family (& related) instruments.

Croaky Keith

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My interest was awoken again when I came across the Yamaha Plastic Fife.

I already owned a pre used Gemeinhardt (student) flute, purchased in about 2002(?), any way, I couldn't get a consistent embouchure & put it away for another day.

I came across it again when sorting through some stuff, gave it a try, & I got some musical(?) notes out of it. :)

Went looking online, as you do, & found that fife, so bought one - but that sparked off my long held desire to try a piccolo, & looking around online I came across a Yamaha YPC-32, a student model, half price, looked in very good condition, so I bought it!

Now I seem to have a case of FAS - Flute/Fife Aquisition Syndrome. :uhoh:

Today, I found a German made Fife, (about twice the price of the plastic Yamaha), made out of a Bakalite type material - it's on order. :cool:
 
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I play the recorder :)
Folk style mainly
 
Well, Keith, we seem to have the same tastes in music--ukuleles, recorders, harmonicas and now flutes. I play concert flute, alto flute, Irish flutes, fifes and piccolos. My piccolos are wood and made like very small fifes. I use the Irish flutes to play the melodies to help me learn the Irish banjo. I use the concert and alto flutes for classical and Golden Oldies music. I usta play alto and sopranino recorders, but I thought I was playing too many instruments, so they had to go

What kinda music do you like to play? :eek:ld:
 
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Just getting back into it, but I tend to play ballad types of tunes, some classical, folk, trad jazz, a bit of early rock, that sort of thing.
I usually start practicing with Scarborough Fair or Banks of the Ohio these days, like to try to play Summertime, Lara's Theme, Wonderful World, that kind of thing.
(I had a collection of recorders but passed them on about a year ago.)

So - ukes, harmonicas, & now flutes - if only I could be good at them. ;)
 
Keith, here's a littie tip for you. Many piccolo players put an earplug in their right ear to cut down on the loudness. I do it myself sometimes. Might save your hearing some.

Piccolos are a joy to play. I've even thought of buying a regular, keyed one, but I'll bet it wouldn't be as much fun as my two little wooden ones. The fifes are fun too, but a can't play the high octave anymore. My weak old embouchure won't allow it, so I just play the bottom two octaves. It's fun to play old Revolutionary War Tunes (begging your pardon) on it.

I think music, like almost everything else, needs some variety. Playing the same way over and over gets stale. :eek:ld:
 
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I've read that elsewhere also about using earplugs, particularly if you use the top octave, but I expect I'll be in the lower two & not get up to the third.

I found another forum that has an active flute section, (Chiff & Fipple), so I've registered, it seems, on a look around, to mainly be key less flute players that frequent it, but likely I'll pick up some good tips on there. :)
 
I've read that elsewhere also about using earplugs, particularly if you use the top octave, but I expect I'll be in the lower two & not get up to the third.

I found another forum that has an active flute section, (Chiff & Fipple), so I've registered, it seems, on a look around, to mainly be key less flute players that frequent it, but likely I'll pick up some good tips on there. :)

Chiff and Fipple is a great forum. There are plenty of folks there using keyed flutes, but they are mostly concert/Irish style.
 
My fifes are all about 16.5 inches long, and my two piccolos are 12.75" long. I have one Revolutionary War type fife, one American Civil War type, one cheap plastic one that plays very well without becoming waterlogged and a bamboo one that I made myself. The one I made plays okay, but unfortunatly, through improper planning, the bottom hole is too close to a joint. It's difficult to get it to speak properly, but it does. I usta carry the plastic one and a tin whistle to the park on my bike. I played there for the birds and the squirrels. They seemed to enjoy it.

All of these instruments have six holes. The fifes and one piccolo are wooden cylinders, and my best piccolo is two piece. The piccolos are both a blast to play. I would enjoy the fifes more if I could play the top octave, but I just can't.

I also have a Baroque Flute that's very difficult to play in tune (I understand that they all are.), so I don't play it very much anymore. I usta bang away at Baroque music with it, but I tired of the challenge.

I understand that this is way more than you wanted to know about my instruments, but I enjoyed writing it. :eek:ld:
 
More than I asked for, but very much appreciated, as I wasn't at all sure of the differences. :D

I had two short practices on my piccolo today, & managed to just about get up to 2nd C. :)

Lots of practice will be needed. ;)
 
I had a look at them, & wondered how good they might be. :)

Your whistle playing's not bad at all. ;)
You are too kind, but thank you very much.

I've owned 6 Doug Tipple flutes from G to D.
The ones I've had were various set ups, round embouchure, oval embouchure, lip plate, no lip plate, two piece, three piece and four piece.
I thought they were all very good for the money. (You understand that I've got no depth of experience.)
The sound was great and I didn't have much trouble with my embouchure or keeping the flute full.
My issue is either old hands or bad ergonomics, or both. After playing them for a while my hands would hurt for days.
I have the same issue with more expensive conical Irish style flutes. So I sold them all off.

One thing I will say is that the spacing between the holes is slightly more and the holes themselves are largish compared to conical flutes.
Probably not a great flute for small hands.
You can sometimes find a used Tipple on C&F for $50-80 which I find really attractive.
 
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