Melanie Chiragnan – Master Flute Class

Program Description

Flute is the one woodwind unlike all the others, and it’s difficult to teach good sound and intonation if it isn’t your primary instrument. This program can help. I will start with a short performance so they have the opportunity to hear a professional musician. Having the concept of sound in their head is the first step to having students produce a better tone. Then we will have a group warm-up, where I will have a worksheet to hand out with tone and technical exercises. On the worksheet I’ll include famous flutists they can listen to for further enrichment. Then, we’ll have a master class, where students perform for the class. I’ll point out specifics of what they’re doing right so they know what to keep doing, and tips for improvement. We’ll cover the essentials of posture on sound, how wall sits while playing can drastically improve sound by using the core effectively, where to blow depending on the octave (and how the pneumo-pro can help), embouchure shape and size, vowel sounds that we can help open the throat, singing and playing to help open the throat, breathing exercises to help expand breath support, and more.