Exploring Flute

Parts & Assembly:

The flute has 3 parts

The lip plate, also called the embouchure plate, is found on the head joint. The head joint is the only part that has no keys. That is where the musician rests his/her lips (the lips should not be touching the embouchure plate although) You will also find the tuning cork.
The second part is the body. This has the most keys. This is the main part of the flute.
The last part is the foot joint, which is at the bottom. This one just has 4-5 keys. On the bottom of the flute, there isn’t a lot of keys.

How to assemble:

Put the head joint into the midsection (body) with the mouthpiece and the keys on the same side. The head joint should slide in (it only fits on one side) and push it almost all the way in.

The Cost of a Flute

The cost of a professional flute is normally $1000-$2000. A student flute is about $100-$200. A few are about $500-$600 from Amazon, nearly $1000 from Long & Mcquade. The most expensive one I saw in the online market is for about $21,000.00

What is the flute made of?

The flute is made of nickel and silver.

To hold a flute:

Hold the flute sideways towards the wall, make sure your chin is up, sit up straight and good breathing support. Left hand at the top, kind of like your hand is talking to you. For the right hand, it is the opposite.

You don’t want your hands to be completely flat, just make it a “c” shape.
You will learn a very important concept called “Home Keys”. This means every finger on both hands has a very specific spot, and exact key on the flute that each finger has to be in charge of. We never change keys by moving our fingers to another key
Left hand: Press the long, flat key at the bottom with your thumb and skip the first key on the top, and press the second key with your index finger. Again, skip the third key and press the fourth key with your middle finger. Your ring finger goes to the key next to the previous key. Your pinky goes to this side key that ¨squirts out¨ from all the other circular keys on the top.
Right hand: In the bottom, this time, your thumb doesn’t have a key to press . It just helps to support the flute. Skip 2 keys from the side key that your pinky rests on. Finally, your index, middle and ring finger get to rest and ¨huddle up¨ together.

How to care for your flute properly: