PROFESSOR ESPOSITO TIP OF THE WEEK! ARTICULATION: THE IMPORTANCE OF VOWELS. For those of you interested in my thoughts on articulation, I hope you will get a chance to read my article in the April issue of Flute Talk magazine “Clarity and Articulation: Clearing Up Common Misconceptions”. The article focuses on several aspects of articulation including common problems and suggestions for improvement. One of these aspects is vowels. Clear vowels play an equally integral role as the tongue in the articulation process. Here is a small excerpt from the article. “Much focus is put on the action of the tongue, especially for double-tonguing, but articulation unevenness often occurs when the vowel is stopped or abruptly cut. Vowels and consonants should be the same length. The type of vowel used might vary slightly due to the musical circumstance, however an ah vowel (ah as in top) generally works well for a standard fast double-tonguing. An ee vowel (ee as in sleep) is generally good to avoid because the back of the tongue is raised in this position and subtly closes the throat and blocks the air stream. An oo vowel (oo as in soup) brings the jaw slightly forward and longtime usage of this syllable can add unwanted tension to the jaw. In the “ah” position, the jaw is naturally open at its hinge point and the tongue is lower allowing for more resonance in the throat and oral cavity”. (Flute Talk, April 2014) Please subscribe to Flute Talk. It is an excellent resource for flute students, players and teachers!
Posted on: Mon, 31 Mar 2014 13:22:58 +0000
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