A Band Teacher’s Guide to Fixing Every Imaginable Flute Problem From the Start

Do you teach elementary band, middle school band, high school band, orchestra, or some combination of those classes? “A Band Teacher’s Guide to Fixing Every Imaginable Flute Problem From the Start” is a go-to reference that empowers you, the educator, to rapidly find the solutions to your flutists’ problems during your all-too-brief prep period, regardless of whether they started playing yesterday or six years ago.The book begins at the first year, a time when most bad habits are formed. Music instructors teaching older students may want to revisit this first chapter, the book’s longest and most in-depth, for answers as to why their middle & high school flutists are having problems.Chapter two moves into the second year and the middle school years, a time when listening to themselves, the flutists they sit next to, and the band as a whole becomes increasingly crucial if improvement is to be made. Special attention is given to tuning, a mysterious and often frustrating process for band teachers who specialize in instruments other than flute. (Here’s one freebie: never, ever tell your students to roll their flute in or out to adjust the pitch!)In the book’s third chapter, the issues most commonly faced in high school are addressed. A checklist of the common bad habits that accumulate over the years is included at the beginning and special attention is paid to the important but confusing task of not only choosing a step-up flute but, once a parent has been convinced it’s a worthwhile investment, how to help the student unlock the full potential of the instrument.Chapter four covers playing flute in the orchestra and how being a flutist in band is a totally different ballgame than playing in orchestra where you are one on a part and sitting back four rows instead of in the front row.The book begins at the first year, a time when most bad habits are formed. Music instructors teaching older students may want to revisit this first chapter, the book’s longest and most in-depth, for answers as to why their middle & high school flutists are having problems.Chapter two moves into the second year and the middle school years, a time when listening to themselves, the flutists they sit next to, and the band as a whole becomes increasingly crucial if improvement is to be made. Special attention is given to tuning, a mysterious and often frustrating process for band teachers who specialize in instruments other than flute. (Here’s one freebie: never, ever tell your students to roll their flute in or out to adjust the pitch!)In the book’s third chapter, the issues most commonly faced in high school are addressed. A checklist of the common bad habits that accumulate over the years is included at the beginning and special attention is paid to the important but confusing task of not only choosing a step-up flute but, once a parent has been convinced it’s a worthwhile investment, how to help the student unlock the full potential of the instrument.Chapter four covers playing flute in the orchestra and how being a flutist in band is a totally different ballgame than playing in orchestra where you are one on a part and sitting back four rows instead of in the front row.Chapter five explains what to look for in a student’s first flute and chapter six explains how to purchase a step-up flute. Recommendations of specific makes and models are included.Chapter seven looks at the tiny little monster called the piccolo, detailing tips and tricks revolving around one core message — the piccolo is not a small flute, it is an instrument all its own.This book contains over 20 pages of fingering charts, trill charts, common misfingerings, and out of tune notes, all presented in the cleanest, easiest-to-read format to date. Best of all, by purchasing the book you are allowed to make copies of these pages and hand them out to your students. Read more