Chapter 2: Getting to Know the Flute suit. Rather than doubling on a handful of woodwind instruments such as clarinets and saxophones, many jazz players are now specializing in flute. The flute lends itself well to jazz because it plays fast scales readily, it slides around on pitches easily, and it lends itself nicely to special effects such as flutter tonguing (see Chapter 16) and percussive sounds (see Chapter 18). It’s also relatively easy to amplify, which is often necessary in jazz venues. In pop music, you can often hear the flute in mellow, singing lines. Who could ever forget the beautifully placid flute solo in the 1970 hit song “Colour My World” performed by the band Chicago? Unless you’re too young to remember it, in which case, don’t tell me — I don’t really need to know about it. Speaking of the ’70s, Ian Anderson gave the flute a voice in rock and roll via his band, Jethro Tull. The band’s breakthrough albums from the early ’70s include Aqualung and Thick as a Brick, on which Anderson gives the flute some serious attitude by singing into it and making cool growling noises on it. The wellknown album Songs from the Wood, with a slightly more folk/acoustical feel, came out a few years later. (These three Jethro Tull albums are all available on the Capitol Records label.) Jethro Tull’s music has withstood the test of time. The band has explored rock, folk, blues, Medieval, Classical, and Far East genres of music. Ian Anderson’s unique approach has also inspired a number of classical composers to incorporate his modern flute sounds into their music. The latest innovation in flute playing styles is beatboxing, a style of vocal percussion associated with hip-hop music, pioneered by Greg Pattillo on YouTube. (Just type his name into the YouTube search box, and get ready for a big surprise!) Pattillo manages to transform the flute into a melodic percussion instrument that you’ve got to hear to believe. The flute can accomplish just about any task the player sets for it. It is an amazingly versatile instrument. You never know which way the wind will blow next!
Getting to Know the Flute Repertoire The flute has a vast classical repertoire from as far back as the 1600s. Even if you don’t end up playing every major work in the catalog of flute literature, you’ll want to get to know some of the most widely performed flute music. These pieces are essential listening for every flute player — they’re generally considered to be central to the repertoire and will inspire you as well as show you some of the wonderful things the flute can do. I indicate the approximate level of technical difficulty (in parentheses) on a scale of 1–5, 1 being the easiest and 5 being the most advanced. I also recommend my favorite editions in case you want to buy the sheet music. However, I’m not suggesting that you necessarily attempt to play any of these pieces as a beginning flutist — many of them are quite challenging. I would never claim that this list is exhaustive;
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