Musicians interested to play flutes with a directed airflow might find my remarks helpful today concerning end-blown flutes without those details. I insist they are much more interesting because they have more expressive possibilities.
What is an end-blown flute? This is somewhat self-explanatory, but a distinction I like to make is the way air is directed over a resonant cavity. If there is a built-in passageway to direct the air, (as in Ocarina or Recorder) it makes the flute simple to play, but it does remove a large portion of the dynamics of breathing available. When the breath is directed largely by the lips and palate, and the various angles the flute is held against the mouth, the tonal qualities increase dramatically. But there is a learning curve, and to that area I would like to direct my thoughts for you, the reader.
“It’s fine that you are all deep into music. But there’s something deeper and if you would go deeper, if you go to the source of where the music is being made, you’ll find something even more interesting. At the source, everyone’s individual music is made. If you ask what the deep place is, it’s ur own life and it’s knowing your own life, that own way that you live.” — Watazumi Dōso, わたづみ どうそ) Roshi (November 20, 1911 – December 14, 1992) was a master of the end-blown Japanese bamboo flute. He studied Rinzai Zen, attaining the title of rōshi (老師).
Here are some examples of embouchures on different flutes. the bottom one is a Xun.
This is an example of an Utaguchi
Shakuhachi is a traditional Japanese end-blown flute of a specific length, but often now this length is ignored and is used generically. The notch on the end is called the Utaguchi. We can use this for reference as to how to shape your embouchure, or mouth position.
What is the ideal mouth shape and position to voice an end-blown flute?
This is a fairly standard notch or “utaguchi” for Japanese Shakuhachi
This is a fairly standard embouembouchure
Each flute will present a different set of changes to your embouchure, and to hit the higher notes will often need a slight change of position and shape. No two flutes are alike, though they may appear to be the same.
Start out by blowing very softly. Remember that you are not only perturbing the air at the top of the column, but at positions along it there are harmonic nodes from the interaction of air and shape of the vessel. Sometimes just a little air is needed to activate the whole column.
When the openings are made for your fingers along it, they change the airflow. This is how the gamut of notes are achieved. Often the changes in your lips will be needed to reach the tones you require.
This flute is made in Arundo Donax, a type of river cane. The utaguchi is a little different, with a broader notch. The semicircular opening at the edge is also smaller. This requires a different embouchure to play it.
Finger holes
When you place your fingers over all the holes along the tube it becomes a simple resonant cavity. As you open each by lifting your fingers the resonance changes dynamically. Most often you might begin by opening the holes from the bottom, each in turn. But this is not always the case. Learn by experimenting that some notes are achieved by alternate opening of holes out of sequence.
This is a ‘vessel flute’, or Xun.
Without the basic “training wheels” of an Ocarina you will need to shape your mouth correctly. Why bother? It will allow you to play much more dynamically once you learn it.
Since the vessel flute is essentially closed at the bottom, the dynamics throughout are rather different. There is a more cumulative effect overall. More open holes raises the note by amounts related to the air pressure released. There is no big opening in the bottom as in the Shakuhachi model we began with. You can change the pitch by opening more holes, somewhat at random.
Here are some drawings to illustrate ways to shape your lips to achieve the tones you want. Learn to adjust these basic shapes for nearly any instrument you may pick up.
Remember that at certain points the opening in your lips might be more useful if they are not simply a flat oval, but the bottom lip may need to be forced a little upward.
