Burkart piccolo for sale Advice regarding piccolo Beállítások

[joselcollin]

My local orchestra have suggested I double flute/ piccolo; only problem I've never played! I guess I'm about to learn. I'm looking for technical advise( fingering, embrochure differences and how long generally speaking it took to play reasonably well)Also, which piccolo to purchase on a relatively low budget since I spent all my spare money on my Altus. Thankfully my teacher also plays piccolo, but I'd love some infomation from some fellow flautists before I see her next week.

Thanks in advance.

[fillerjupiter]

I'd recommend getting a copy of A Piccolo Practice Book by Trevor Wye and Patricia Morris. This covers technical information and gives a lot of alternative fingerings to aid speed and intonation which the book applies to orchestral extracts.



With regard to which piccolo to buy, try the ones within your budget and see which suits you best. The Yamaha YPC32 is probably the most common entry level piccolo. It has a flute style lip plate which some people find helps with the transition, but it does have a slightly brash sound. The Pearl piccolo generally has a better tone, but the headjoint cut doesn't suit everyone. The wooden Yamahas are better than the YPC32 but - in my opinion - do still sound like Yamaha piccolos (some people like them, some people don't). The Burkhart 'Resona' piccolo is at a similar level to the upgraded Pearl (the one with the wooden headjoint) but has two different headjoint styles both of which have a different cut to the Pearl. Above this, there are lots of options (if you have the budget!) but you really do need to try the instruments out to see what suits you as there are different headjoint options.



I started off with a YPC32 which I never liked, but it was better than the alternatives which were available at that time (the Pearl piccolo hadn't been introduced yet). I have recently upgraded to the Pearl 165. I trialed this against the Burkhart Resona and found that the headjoint cut on the Pearl suited me better (and I liked the darker tone of the bottom octave) but this was personal preference. The Burkhart was also a very good piccolo. I had already tried the wooden Yamaha piccolos and ruled them out because i didn't like the tone of any of them. I didn't try any of the piccolos above these as they would have required more saving. The best piccolo I have ever played was a Bulgeroni but it would take several more years of saving for me to get one. I have kept my Yamaha because its brighter tone is better if I need to play outdoors, but it hasn't ever blended very well for me orchestrally. A lot depends on you, your budget, the sort of piccolo sound you want and how you get on with the different headjoints. One downside of the Pearl piccolos is that the cases are unusually large and don't always fit in combined flute/piccolo carry bags.



As with flutes, don't bother with the budget Ebay options...

[bining]

I suggest you try and borrow one first. A similar suggestion was made to a friend of mine (except that they lent her the piccolo). She has been playing it for a bit over 6 months and has decided that she's giving the piccolo back because she's had enough. She finds it frustrating to play (she can't always get the right note out when she wants it) and claims it is ruining her flute embouchure. If you want to know more details please visit here Burkart piccolo for sale

[ambiguousscourge]

I suggest you try and borrow one first. A similar suggestion was made to a friend of mine (except that they lent her the piccolo). She has been playing it for a bit over 6 months and has decided that she's giving the piccolo back because she's had enough. She finds it frustrating to play (she can't always get the right note out when she wants it) and claims it is ruining her flute embouchure. If you want to know more details please visit here Burkart piccolo for sale

Shouldn't affect flute embouchure any more than a Cor Anglais would affect oboe embouchure. A piccolo embouchure is mainly an extension of a flute embouchure (you roughly apply the middle octave of the flute to the bottom octave of the piccolo and the top octave of the flute to the middle one of the picc, and then extend the principles in to the top octave of the picc). I find that the piccolo actually helps the top octave of the flute. Your description suggests that either there are existing problems with the person's flute embouchure (e.g. someone who has been incorrectly taught to tighten their lips and smile for the top octave of the flute would have problems with piccolo) or that they want an excuse for not playing picc - or that the borrowed picc really doesn't suit the person (in which case the problem is specific to that particular player-piccolo combination and not to the piccolo in general). As with the flute, jaw position and air speed need to be adjusted precisely for each note and this precision matters even more on piccolo. Vibrato also needs to be adjusted on picc as what suits the flute would be too wide on piccolo.

[utmostacidic]

The cor anglais embouchure is more forgiving than the oboe one but going back to flute/piccolo, there may be problems with my friend's embouchure, although I would be surprised as her teacher is a flute specialist and has had students go on to become professionals. I also don't think it is an excuse to give up the piccolo as she was initialy enthousiastic about playing it.



I do think, however, that not all flautists like the piccolo. I teach English to post A level advanced music students (training to be professionals) and one of the flautists there said that she loathes the piccolo and that when she is offered a job which involves playing the piccolo she always asks herself how much she needs the money before she accepts. This surprised me as she is a really bubbly person who always seems to be enthousiastic about everything. My friend's teacher (whom I know because I taught her daughter English) also said to me that when she was at music college the flautists could be divided into two very clear groups: those who liked the piccolo and those who hated it. She said she was in the group that liked it but that her best friend at the time was in the group that hated it.

[JENKINSASCV]

I also know quite a few flute players who aren't keen on the piccolo - personally I love it. I think people can get frustrated with it when they only play it occasionally/ when required or expect it to be just a 'small flute'. It does take time (and regular practise, like anything else) to get used to the whole new level of precision, the different peculiarities of tuning etc. There are definitely similarities with the top registers of the flute - good air support and a relaxed embouchure lead to a better sound. One tip I was given recently, which a friend picked up on a flute course, was to think of the diaphragm support feeling 'higher up' when playing picc and I've found that does make a difference. Fingering - obviously your fingers are closer together and your arms closer to your body, and there is a risk of becoming hunched or tense in this position (often the automatic reaction is to tighten everything when trying to play so high), so you may need to watch out for keeping your posture and hands relaxed.



I'm also not convinced that you could 'ruin' your flute embouchure, unless you're doing excessive amounts of picc - perhaps trying to do too much at first rather than the good old 'little and often'. Although you are using flute technique, I think it can be useful to think of it almost like a whole new instrument, and apply the same patience and small steps to learning it.



Generally - I agree with Flossie's advice. I also like Danielle Eden's book Piccolo! Piccolo! which has warm-up exercises and studies. I also started on a Yamaha YPC32 but now play a Pearl 105 which I think has a far nicer/ more mellow tone. The grenaditte material does seem to give a good compromise - nicer tone without the difficulties of playing a wooden instrument (another friend has a gorgeous wooden picc - the tone is amazing but the tuning is so tricky!). I find it easier to get that precision on the Pearl headjoint rather than the 'flute style' lip plates. But definitely try out a few and see what suits you best.

[POWELLDFB]

Thank you Flossie for your very detailed post- I've lots to investigate. I'm not terribly concerned about a negative impact on my flute embouchure as that is very secure and I have a good consistent tone in the upper register, but I'll be aware of the differences. Great to hear someone who loves it also allegretto as I have encountered many flautists who despise it. I will source those book suggestions and give it a go!