(Part 2) Reddit mentions: The best books about woodwind instruments

justanotherflutist is amazing, I would recommend watching this video of hers first, it teaches how to put the flute together. The only thing is that at one point she said to put your finger into the liphole, I would not recommend doing that. I'm probably being overly scared but that's the part of the flute that produces the sound so I wouldn't want to risk damaging it. Just pick the headjoint up like a normal person would, honestly. She also has this one which teaches how to make a sound and this one which mentions a few music related items you may need. Some items in this video are more important/necessary than others.

Here is a good fngering chart I found online.

Here is a compilation of major scales and arpeggios from flutetunes. Their website is amazing and has some great free sheet music.

Nina Perlov also has some good instructional videos to watch, but not as beginner oriented.

This video from the flute section of the US Army band is interesting if you have time but not as useful/informative to a beginner, though definitely cool for learning about the flute (or maybe I'm just a total nerd).

It is really beneficial to listen to good flute players in order to hear and then be able to develop a good flute sound. Some of these include Emmanuel Pahud, Jasmine Choi, and Gudrun Hinze, although there are probably many I don't know or am forgetting. Good luck on your flute endeavors!

Edit: I don't why I didn't think of this sooner, but if you're willing to purchase a book this Pares Scales for Flute is good for scales and arpeggios.

Tell him to try playing the inhaled notes in the first four holes. That's where you find the heart of the blues rock sound. This puts you in the key of G instead of C, but that's how you get that sound.

Here's the thing, though. If a song is not in G, you need to get a harp in the key that lets you play in that key. For tunes in G, you count four steps up the scale: -1-2-3-4 = G A B C - so, play a C-harp. And for a tune in, say, A, you'd count up A B C D to find that you'd use a D-harp. This way of playing is called "second position" and also "crossharp."

Playing in second position is not a strict rule for rock (or, for that matter for blues). Someone like Neil Young almost always plays a harp in the same key as the song. This is known as "first position" or "straight harp." Same for Bob Dylan.

On the other hand, rock players like John Popper, Steven Tyler, Mick Jagger, and many others mostly play harps very similar to the Special 20 in your link (SP20 used to be Popper's favorite harp until he picked up a Fender endorsement) and mostly play them in second position.

There are other ways of playing a harp in a different key from its named key. But second position is by far the most popular.

The other big thing to learn along with second position is note bending - making a note slide down to a lower note. This is done partly to create an expressive wailing sound and also to supply bluesy notes that aren't built into the harp.

Hope this helps a little.

Winslow Yerxa

Author, Harmonica For Dummies, Second Edition and Blues Harmonica For Dummies

Available for lessons in person or online

tl;dr - see bolded sections.

Welcome! It sounds like you match the profile of a lot of amateur/hobbyist bassoonists. You should absolutely keep playing if you want to. (One of us! One of us!)

If you're going to college for something else, it would be totally normal for a non-music-major to still hang out around the bassoon studio, audit some studio classes, take lessons, play in the lower-ranked ensembles, and so on. The universities I attended had 1-credit lessons for non-majors and loaner instruments as well. It's less money than a lot of college students spend on other hobbies, and it's an arts elective credit. If your school has loaners, that puts off the purchase decision another 4 years or so. (At which point, well, everybody has their own pick for best "value" bassoon. I'd say Renard 41 on eBay if you're on the tightest of budgets. Other folks disagree.)

A plastic Yamaha isn't terrible, but Jones reeds often are. You should probably find a teacher sooner (not later) and take a couple lessons - they might even be a student at the university you plan to attend. Any halfway competent teacher will help you find a reliable source of cheaper-but-hopefully-not-crappy reeds, which will make your Senior year... better. They'll also provide a "sanity check" to make sure you don't have any bad habits that are making it harder for you unnecessarily.

If money is a concern, intermittent lessons are enough, if you actually do what the teacher tells you to do. Get this book, bring it to your first lesson, and have the teacher help you develop a practice schedule. (Not unlike a training schedule for weight-lifting. Your trainer will help teach your proper form, but most of the work is on your own and consistency is key.)

Since you sound pretty self-motivated, I'd say get a copy of the Weissenborn method book too, to work through on your own, and learn those scale etudes. :-)

Good luck.

Probably best to start with something that might be too easy and work up so here's a good book to start with. Be sure that you play all exercises very, very slowly at first with absolute 1000% accuracy, start by tonguing each note very, very short at first. Imagine a hammer and anvil. Then work on other articulations and work up the tempo. Work with a metronome.

To drill on rhythm read the theory in the back of that book.

Set the horn aside to drill and Clap the rhythms out (on all exercises, then play on the horn later) while counting as suggested in the book; being sure to say the syllables for the divisions of the beat. "One, two, three, four'; (quarter notes) One and, two and, three and, four and (eighth notes), etc. Drill on this night and day until you're doing it while brushing your teeth! Get a pair of drum sticks and pound out rhythms on a table top. Keep up the counting and clapping, tapping! It's very important to be able to count and play simultaneously. The counting may drop into the background later but be able to bring it up to the conscious level at a moment's notice

Then play the exercises on the horn and yes, (music directors will hate this) tap the basic beat with your feet. Learn to suppress the foot tapping to maybe moving the big toe inside your shoe.

Can't emphasize the importance of playing slowly enough at first so you have accuracy BEFORE speed. Playing an exercise too fast will drill in wrong fingerings which will be hard to iron out later.

!Thou Shall Practice Every Blessed Day unless sick in bed. At first about 10-15 minutes (stop when you get tired or you'll just start making mistakes) and then work to about 30 minutes. Ok to do the 30 minutes in two sessions.

The band builder book is a bit short on material so you'll want to find supplementary material right away. The Rubank series are excellent, the exercises with simple rhythms will allow you to practice counting while playing.

I'm wondering if some of your technique issues would be resolved by learning the note fingerings-our cognitive processes here are tricky, we may feel we know the sax fingerings but with so much else going on, the mind has issues resolving what needs to be done next. For this, attack the issue of learning fingerings by silently playing without placing the mouthpiece in your mouth and just finger the notes. Then set the horn down and 'play' the exercise by just saying the note names in strict time. That way you work a different part of your brain which will assist it in pulling up the fingering the note quicker.

I'm a sax player myself (also clarinet) and love to teach music. I'm plowing through Deville's Universal Method for Saxophone; it has an excellent set of drills in the first 100 exercises. Bit pricey but worth it if you want to motivate yourself

Here's website that explores rhythm subdivisions-very important to understand this. Again, take your time and allow yourself to approach this across several days so as to give the mind time to absorb it all.

For what it's worth, I'll tell you what I used to teach myself to play sax. Hope you find this information useful.

I already played clarinet since I was a kid, and had wanted to learn to play sax for many years. Finally picked up a used alto a few years ago, and I taught myself the basics entirely from "Play Alto Sax Today!". I bought what they call the Beginner Pack, which comes with a DVD, a book of sheet music (Level 1), and an audio CD -- currently about $15 US on Amazon. It's published by Hal Leonard. Here's a link...

www.amazon.com/Play-Alto-Today-Beginners-Pack/dp/0634052993

I liked the Level 1 package so much that I when I finished working my way through it, I bought the Level 2 book. It's currently about $10 on Amazon...

www.amazon.com/Play-Alto-Sax-Today-Level/dp/0634028928

It's also worthwhile to pick up a cheap electronic metronome (get one that also has a chromatic tuner, maybe $15 or $20 -- Korg has some decent ones). You can find free metronome and tuner programs for computers online, if you don't want to buy one -- as long as you can sit in front of your computer when you practice.

Spend a week or two just practicing with the mouthpiece, without the sax, just to get a workable embouchure and good air support. You want to be able to blow a nice steady concert A (880 Hz), for about 60 seconds or so, before even thinking about putting your sax together.

I saw a good description of correct embouchure on a sax website. Insert mouthpiece, and then try to saying, "EEE" - "YUU" (pronounce like "you"). It's like your lip and face muscles are doing a tug-of-war between the EEE's and the YUU's. You've got the correct embouchure if you let the YUU's win, with the corners of your mouth pushing in against the sides of the mouthpiece. Hope that makes sense!

There are a few really great websites you might want to look at -- Sax on the Web is a great one, as is Best Saxophone Website Ever.

Finally, I'll mention one really great classic book of sax exercises. It's cheap, and it's worth having. It's called "25 Daily Exercises for Saxophone", by H. Klosé. You may very well be able to find a PDF somewhere, but I think it's worth buying.

Just get this book: https://www.amazon.com/Harmonica-Book-Complete-10-Hole-Diatonic/dp/078661370X/

It describes all the chords you can play (including tongue block chords). It describes every major position of the harmonica. Very good for its price.

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Since /u/upper_bounded described scales already, the chord theory that will get you started is as follows:

The Major Triad (C/E/G) is the base of most chords. The harmonica blow notes are composed entirely out of the major triad. (CEG CEG CEG C, for holes 1-10). Whether you realize it or not, by playing the harmonica, you're naturally an expert on the major triad. (Now you know its name!) This is good, every other chord is based on alterations of the major triad.

Drop the middle note by a half-step, and you get a minor chord. (C/Eb/G) Simple enough, eh?

Chords are sometimes written out in roman-numerals. The I chord in the key of C means C/E/G triad. The IV is F/A/C. The V is G/B/D.

Minor chords are usually written out in lower-case roman numerals. The "vi" (lower-case 6 roman numerals) is A/C/E. (The distance from A to C is the same distance between C and Eb. The distance between C and E is the same as Eb to G. Look at a piano if you need help counting all of the steps, and remember to count the black keys)

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Between the major chord triads and the minor-chord triads, you've covered the most common chords. There are a whole slew of chords beyond that.

• Remember: the Major Triad is where we start (C/E/G).
  
• If played in a different order, its called an inversion. (E/G/C is the first inversion. G/C/E is the second inversion)
  
• Minor Triad drops the middle note flat. (C/Eb/G)
  
• Augmented sets the upper-note sharp. (C/E/G#).
  
• Diminished sets the middle and higher note flat (C/Eb/Gb (aka F))
  
• Seventh adds the 7th note to the triad. (C/E/G/B) for the major seventh. But the Dominant Seventh (C/E/G/Bb) sounds cleaner and is more common. There are lots of seventh chords.
  
  Get it? Start with a major triad, and then just move notes around. Chances are, they're named for something. Musicians learn the names and the "feelings" associated with each of the notes.
  
  And really, that's all music theory is. The names of various chords and notes. You don't learn the "feelings" associated with any of these until you actually play them.
  
  -------------
  
  In any case, I can confidently say that all typical music is composed of chords, arpeggios, and scales. An "Arpeggio" is simply the notes of a chord played out like a scale. (Ex: play 1 2 3 4 3 2 1 on a harmonica. Congrats, you just did an arpeggio based on the Major Triad).
  
  A lot of improvisation is simply mastery of scales. You figure out a few chords that sound good on the Blue's scale, play them out with an arpeggio and then somewhat randomly switch between arpeggios and scales. Mastery of other scales (Major scale, minor scale, pentatonic scales, minor pentatonic scales, blues scales) gives you more room to improvise.
  
  That's just classical music stuff too. Harmonica specific tricks (tongue-slaps, bends and such) add to the flavor of your routine.

Hi there!
The dizi is awesome! Welcome to the club! First off, I'm going to assume the green liquid is something to help the membrane stick. When I bought my kit ages ago, I got a small little glue rock thing that works. But anyway, in order for it to make the desired sound, you need to cover the hole after the tone hole with a piece of bamboo membrane. Cover the hole with the membrane stretched tight across, it should look almost like you've scotch taped over the hole. After that you can play away!

Things to keep in mind - the dizi is actually reversible, you can play it on the right OR left side! Which is kind of neat, but if you started on the Western flute (like me), that doesn't matter much since you'll always hold it to the right. Fingering charts for the dizi is complicated because the chinese music notation system is completely different. If you want to ease into it, I found that the book was a really nice way to ease into the music first without worrying about learning a new notation system yet. I don't know about this edition, but I own the previous one and it has a lot of great information on the history and culture of the dizi, which is really nice!

That suave confidence I think comes from your body language. I've read a healthy dose of body language books lately. I don't like books that are total self-help books but books that show bigger picture information and explain the 'why' of what's going on. Some books:

This book has helped me be more aware of my own body language and become more in tune with what another person's body language might be saying. It focuses on when a person may be uncomfortable... but at the same time you can apply that to yourself to not appear uncomfortable:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/0061438294/

I like the ideas the book brings up because there are some very great takeaways but I don't like how the author presents it (so, I enjoyed 2/3 of the book):

http://www.amazon.com/dp/0307453987/

I also just started reading this one that's not about body language but gives a different slant of how to use the right words to better emotionally connect with others:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/0787234796/

if you know someone who is alpha/suave male, you can also learn how to mimic some of their body language behaviors, other people will think you're suave then you'll feel suave too (fake it til ya make it...).

A Native American flute would probably be a great place for you to start. Good ones are easy to play, and well-suited to experimenting and improvising, even if you don't know much about music. Totally appropriate for the porch, under a tree, etc.

The ones by Butch Hall are quite affordable--even some of his professional-quality "concert flutes" are within your price range. I'm a professional musician, and these are my Native American flutes of choice. They are also used by a number of recording artists. They aren't as visually ornate as some by other makers, but they have a beautiful sound, a sleek appearance, and a lovely cedar fragrance.

The "C, E, F-sharp," etc. refer to the "key" of the flute. Some keys are higher, and some are lower. A higher flute is smaller (and usually a little cheaper), and a lower one is larger. F-sharp seems to be a favorite among serious Native American flutists, but you can start with whichever appeals to you.

These flutes don't play as many notes as, say, a silver concert flute. That's not necessarily a bad thing, unless there are certain songs you want to play that need those other notes.

If you decide to go this route, you may also be interested in the R. Carlos Nakai book, which gives some background on the instrument and how to play it. Check out his recordings, too.

The American, French, German, Dutch, etc., schools all have their favoured shapes, but I've seen very nice German scrape reeds (that sounded wonderful when played by their maker) shaped with an RDG 1, so who knows. Maybe someone more experienced can comment.

Reedmaking is definitely a skill worth finding a teacher for. 10 minutes with my teacher when I'm stuck and she's identified 2-3 concrete things that massively improve that particular reed, and every reed I make after that. Of course, it's possible to learn everything on your own... but it'll take a lot longer, and cost a fair amount in destroyed cane.

In the meantime, if you want to see (and read about) a wide variety of reeds, check out David Ledet's awesome book.

It's obviously going to all come down to personal preferences, but if you're looking for more modern, recognizable stuff (particularly if you're looking at busking), you might take a look at Chromatik -- they've recently rolled out a subscription-based plan, so I'm not sure how "free" it is at this point, I think if you're willing to sit through the advertisements, you can still get at all the sheet music.

I've generally had good luck using Google Image search to lead me to places to find the sheet music I'm looking for, just search for <song name> tenor sheet music, and in general, you're pointed to either a free or low-cost option for finding that song.

I haven't made a serious search into finding duet music, but I have been using the Rubank Saxophone Duets book with my daughter, who plays clarinet, while I play my tenor. I also play in the Horn Players Jazz Jam at my local Sam Ash store on Sundays, that seems to vary by location, but at ours, we use primarily the Hal Leonard or Jamey Aebersold play along books & backing tracks.

I agree with /u/nandemo who suggested harmonics. Harmonics will help to develop your embouchure to be able to play the F# with the correct fingering more easily.

IMHO using alternate fingerings without being able to play the standard fingering is kinda cheating. It's the standard fingering for a reason!

Trevor Wye has a good section on this note & E natural in his "Tone" book - he called those two notes "gremlins." My flute teacher also says everyone has trouble with these notes. (You may not have as much trouble with the E if you have a flute with a split E - I do!)

Wye says to practice the G scale. Make sure your air speed is sufficient (you should have no trouble with the G above it). If your air speed is sufficient and your G is fine, then you should practice the notes leading up to the F# (G, A, B, C, D). He says:

> If the air speed is not enough to give security to E natural and F sharp then the air speed is probably insufficient to play the preceding notes with proper intensity of sound.

He also has 2 pages of exercises specifically designed to help with this issue. I highly recommend the book; it's helped me a ton!!

I'd recommend the Trevor Wye books. Lots of great advice in there! For hitting the high register notes, start on the highest note you can play comfortably, and work your way up from there. Use a focused and fast airstream while being as relaxed as possible. Don't try to force it using tons of tension in your embouchure. Quality over quantity-- playing one beautiful note is better than squeaking out lots of bad ones, because then you're just practicing how to sound bad. Eventually your lips will become stronger, and the 3rd octave will become easier and easier.

I've heard good things about these books:

1. The Essential Guide To Irish Flute and Tin Whistle
   
   
2. The Essential Tin Whistle Toolbox
   
   Mary Bergin also has a set of books: http://maryberginwhistle.com/tutor.html
   I don't think I've heard anything about the books, but she's a very well respected whistle player.
   
   Depending on how you like to learn, online resources may also serve. There are quite a lot on the sidebar and if you look back through the history of posts in this subreddit. Brother Steve has a lot of great information. It also helps to listen to a lot of the music, and watch videos. See what people do, when they breathe, etc.
   

Anne Carson -- Autobiography of Red changed my view on writing forever. Bridging the gaps between history, classical studies, poetry, prose, and philosophy it's an adventure in masculinity, sexuality, and longing. I've read every Anne Carson publication since; each is dense and provoking and difficult... she is a genius.

C.D Wright -- One Big Self is an examination of prison life in the south, told through prose and poetry snippets. There is an associated photo-journalist book that accompanies it, and together they're just outstanding. I think it gives one of the best holistic views of the south through really moving and lyrical prose.

Everything by Derrick Brown (Scandalabra, I Love You is Back, Born in The Year of The Butterfly Knife, etc) These are the only books that made the translation to spoken word for me... I'm not always a fan of spoken word poetry, but these made the jump for me. Church of The Broken Axe Handle kindof saved my life after a series of deaths in my family and friend circles; I've watched him read it over 500 times. It's technically about a breakup, but moreso about how you continue to live after the loss of intimacy and self-worth when someone you love deeply leaves (on their own or by death).

Live For A Living by Buddy Wakefield This book is the only other one that made the translation to spoken word for me. I think the writing and spoken poems are equally as good, and are sharp and smart... and I just related, often. "Horsehead" is a good example of the written-to-spoken translation

Take a look at the sidebar. There are pointers to web sites that can get you started. Or you could go old school and pick up a book like Jon Gindick's Country and Blues Harmonica or Harmonica for Dummies. The dummies author, Winslow Yerxa, also has a good Blues Harmonica for Dummies. Or you could just start playing with it. Good luck! Have fun!

I've been learning flute for the past year, and here's what I've found useful:

• cyberflute.com
  
  
• Nina Perlove on YouTube
  
  
• etudes by Anderson (24 Progressive Studies) and Gariboldi (here's the collection I have)
  
  
• The Wye Practice Books for the Flute in one volume - This is absolutely wonderful for learning how to play well. He talks about tone, intonation, technique, vibrato, double tonguing, etc. Definitely worth the price.
  
  My practice is oriented in two directions: Celtic-style songs and techniques, and general classical style. I'm currently working on the Am Partita by Bach. The hardest thing for me about learning flute (I'm also a clarinet/sax player!) is the subtleties of embouchure, and playing in tune (which are related, I suppose).

Here’s what I’d recommend:
-Opperman Elementary Velocity Studies https://www.amazon.com/dp/0825833337/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_WEKBCbVBNYPNY

-Rose 32 etudes https://imslp.org/wiki/32_Etudes_for_Clarinet_(Rose,_Cyrille)

-Rose 40 studies https://imslp.org/wiki/40_Studies_for_Clarinet_Solo_(Rose,_Cyrille)

-Baerman Complete method for clarinet https://www.amazon.com/dp/0825801702/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_cEKBCbHPQ40J3

One more thing,
Especially when you are starting out, try different reeds.
These are a great thing to buy.

Good luck!

This is one of my most favorite pastimes haha!

Hohner Special 20 harmonica in C
[Set of harmonicas in different keys] (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000A2HDXA?colid=1SQ1CCJDQASEJ&coliid=I37C0F3ZI7ZBL3)
Harmonica book
(I really want to learn, half the reeds are busted up on my current one)

PowerSaves for Pokemon
Cigarette case
Window crystal thingies (blue and clear)

https://www.amazon.com/First-Songs-Should-Play-Bass/dp/149503089X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1503702113&sr=8-1&keywords=50+first+songs+for+bass

I bought this book a couple of years ago, it has some of the ones mentioned here, as well as several others that would be worth looking into as a beginner. But as mentioned before, the riff from seven nation army is a really good one to make you feel like you've learned something and encourage you to explore more.

I picked up a used mint condition Ibanez SR500 after seeing it constantly recommended here.

I've been playing piano (poorly) for 30 years and always wanted to play bass.. so here we go.

My wife picked me up 2 books to start learning:

Hal Leonard Bass Method - Complete Edition: Books 1, 2 and 3 Bound Together in One Easy-to-Use Volume!

First 50 Songs You Should Play On Bass

I also picked up a Vox Bass headphone amp to practice while the kids are asleep.

Finally, my late grandfather played bass in many jazz bands, both electric and upright. My father still has all of his instruments. But I just inheirited his Polytone Brute Mini III amp.

So, I'm all set with equipment, now I just need to learn & practice!

> are there any flute books aimed at a player who is excellent at the theory (so sight reading is a non issue) but wants to build finger dexterity? or is it just scales, scales, scales ?

See Trevor Wye's Practice Books For The Flute.

I'm working through this book. I'm not sure if other members will have a better recommendation.

It is also 100% worth buying in paper form. Available on Amazon, Sheet Music Plus, JW Pepper. It is almost impossible to ever outgrow this book. Mine's been repaired with duct tape a couple times now.