Dawn’s Flute Notes

A professional flutist shares her experiences and insights - practical advice from practice room to stage and beyond.

Written from the personal experiences of a professional flutist, Dawn’s Flute Notes, Practical Advice for Flute Players from Practice Room to Stage is a look inside the real world of flute. It’s a book designed to help both those who already do play flute and for those who are just contemplating flute for themselves or their children.

This book is written for:

* anyone who thinks they might want to explore playing music, particularly flute;

* anyone who already plays flute who comes to those crossroads of what to do and where to go next, and maybe wonders if they should even go there;

* parents who want to know what to expect or wonder at the wisdom (and expense) of starting their child in the art and discipline of studying music;

* those who, having put aside their instrument for long years, wonder if they can pick it back up;

* and, finally, those seeking to climb the ladder to the heights of ‘renown’. 

Written in three parts, Part I, What You Don’t Know Can Hurt You explores the world of flute as I know it, while the highly illustrated Part II, What You Know Will Help You shares some technical knowledge that can help you and can aid you in identifying which teachers do and don’t know their stuff. In Part III, Coda, I share some parting thoughts about music as a career, especially as it applies to flutists, and some end notes on why and what I did and didn’t include.

For all levels of flutists, the beginner, the intermediate player, and for those thinking of maybe going on to major in music and go pro-, this book contains some eye-openers and some advice as well as practical hands-on technical knowledge. I share solutions to flute-specific problems often overlooked in standard study and give you tricks to help you avoid disaster in juries, recitals, tests, on stage in concert, and in the recording studio. 

For parents, this book will give you solid idea of what to look for in a teacher and what you and your child face both in study expectations and financially while advancing through levels of proficiency. 

PART I, What You Don’t Know Can Hurt You includes
 
1 - Crucial First Lessons
 
2 - Who Can Play Flute
 
3 - Learning to Play
 
4 - The New-Again Flutist
 
5 - Should You, Can You?
 
6 - The Right Flute
 
7 - A Place & Time to Practice
 
8 - Play, Read, Play Some More
 
9 - When to Say “No”
 
10 - The Competitive Flutist
 
11 - Intonation is Everything
 
12 - Working with Conductors
 
13 - Know Your Repertoire
 
14 - On Being a Member of a Great Orchestra
 
15 - The Soloist
 
16 - Performance Anxiety
 
17 - In the Studio
 
18 - Life as a Musician
 
19 - Attire, Decorum, & Safety
 
20 - Attitude is Everything

PART II, What You Know Will Help You includes
 
21 - Body Position, Posture, Breathing
 
22 - Flute Assembly
 
23 - Flute Placement & Position
 
24 - Embouchure
 
25 - Articulation & Effects
 
26 - Vibrato
 
27 - Tone & Intonation
 
28 - Harmonics & Long Tone Work
 
29 - Scales, Intervals, Arpeggios
 
30 - Perfect Practice
 
31 - Overcoming Obstacles
 
32 - Practice Regimens
 
33 - Reading Music
 
34 - Memorization
 
35 - Embellishments & Cadenzas
 
36 - On Stage & In Concert
 
37 - More Performance Notes
 
38 - “Whizmos” & Gadgets

 
* 

PART III, Coda includes
 
39 - Music as a Career
 
40 - End Notes
 
and About the Author