Question for my flautist friends

[leanne]

Of which I know there are at least two and possibly more ...

OK, so if you're intending to play a C on the flute, what is the right way to support the flute with the rest of your hands? I have been mostly just holding it tightly under the left forefinger, between the forefinger and the hand, which makes that joint very achy. That strikes me as a suboptimal way of doing things, but I'm not sure what a more robust way to hold the flute would be like.

(yeah, I know, I should probably take some lessons, but I'm currently flat broke. /: )

Also -- beginning to be more My House. Have noodled around on both flute and piano. <3 Yay!

Comments

[jenett]

Tightly is generally not the right answer with instruments: it's the fastest way to RSI issues.

I'd have to actually dig out my flute, but I seem to remember the method being to rest it on the thumb knuckle of the left hand, with the right hand supporting most of the weight (as it usually does) on that thumb. It's a sort of rolling motion when you move from having the left thumb down to not, onto the edge of the knuckle.

[leanne]

Yep, and I do not want repetitive stress injuries -- 's why I stopped and asked. Thanks!

I will try that motion out and see how it works. Thanks much. (: I suspect I may not be holding my right hand correctly either, so I will try to do it the way you've mentioned and see how it is.

[jenett]

I did a little poking on YouTube before needing to focus on work, but there are videos out there on how to hold flutes, fingering, and so on. (onlinebandteacher seemed good: he didn't have one specifically on the C fingering, but the bit I saw of the "how to hold the flute" was solid.)

[leanne]

Excellent. I'll hunt that up later. (: Thanks again! <3

[leanne]

Thanks for the reference -- I can see where some of my problems are, and they start with setting the flute up wrong. I'll probably trawl through a whole pile of his videos. (That'll take a while!)

[leanne]

Experimented with it quickly, and yes, that works much better, though I've got tightness in my right pinky instead. I will need to work on the right hand a little as well and see if I can fix that.

Thanks much!