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Laura, you're from SPAIN??? Wow, I never realized how multicultural this website was! If you don't mind me asking, how did you find the flute thread if you're a guitar and piano player?
I sympathesize with your rhythm afflictions. I can never keep the beat until I've done a piece about five times over... and even then, its rather iffy. Thank God for metronomes! It also helps a lot if you get someone to play/sing along with you, since they force you to keep up. Are you involved with any band or music society? I'm hoping to get involved with one when I go off to university... but in the interrim I'm planning on just trying to teach myself as well as possible.

I suppose I should restrict my odium towards rap to PROFESSIONAL rap. Amateur rap is too funny to get rid of. Some of my friends did a rap song in English class about two people who were polar opposites getting together. It was hilarious.

My brother also has a guitar, but likewise, hasn't learnt to play it yet. Unfortunately, I think he missed the music gene.

Thanks for letting me know about Armstrong- I'll have to look for his music!

Bear,

After hearing about that chord you're planning on playing... (expression turns pale)... I have concluded that it may be wise if you have a surgeon on hand at your performance. Just in case you break your hand and need to get a shot of morphine so that you can keep on playing after your injury

As far as piano goes, I am SOOOO jealous of those of you who have big hands! But, ah well... my friend from Vietnam has tinier hands than I have, and she manages to play the piano just fine. I don't suppose you could recommend any composers to me who have hands of a reasonable size?

Well, Bach's music usually requires up to octaves, but since it was written for harpsichord (which has smaller [thinner] keys) he might go more than an octave. Other than him, I would recommend Czery (I think. Can't remember the chord sizes) and Clementi and composers of that time. From Mozart/Beethoven up they usually took advantage of their big hands, or learned ways to make up for it. I think the technique is called "roll"ing. Not sure. You could ask Fabrizio. I'm sure he could recommend lots of music for you. What kind of songs do you like to play on the flute? modern? baroque? classical? beautiful? ugly? easy? hard? etc..

i agree, czerny and clementi are good, especially czerny because not ony do you not have to strech, you also get many excersises for improving tempo and tecnicques. Clementi is not too hard (i did it last year). good luck.!

Yes, I'm from Spain. There's other people from Europe. EADG+cetera (very active in this site), for example, is one of my closest friends , she also lives in Spain.

Yes, well, I write rap songs I admit, so I guess they're not professional.

I have somewhat learnt to play the guitar. Yesterday I took a beach towel and sunglasses and settled down in the street to play (quite amusing), unfortunately I didn't get any money (although it's not what I was aiming for, it's that my family doesn't like to hear me play that much )

Unfortunately I am not involved in any band or music society. If I could I would do so (get involved, I mean). I was invited last year to join a chamber music group as a pianist, but it never worked out. I would love to be in a band though.

As I probably said already, I highly recomend you to listen to Craig Armstrong's "PM's love theme".

Yep, I live like a hundred kms south of where Laura lives. But there's a lot of other Europeans here also. Whereabouts do you live in Ontario, Imp? I have family and friends all over there.

Twink, is the Armstrong stuff what Sophia has on her iPod? It's nice. Tell her to show you the stuff I sent her, Jim Chappell. And by the way, I am pleased to inform you that you actually are in a chamber ensemble. Ours.

Bear,

As far as what I like to play on the flute... I'll pretty much try to play anything. I'm very much a beginner right now, so I'm trying to stick to music that has fairly simple timing (I took a look at my mother's music for Messiah and turned white). I've mostly been playing whatever I can get my hands on (aside from Handel's Messiah)-which is, alas, mainly old hymns and choruses from Mom's choir. I play a lot by ear too.

Care to tell me what baroque means? (Don't throw spitrags at the newbie!)

I really need to take a look through the town library. While it doesn't exactly store sheet music, there's usually the odd book or two with something I can play with.

Estrelleta-

Sitting outside and playing guitar. Sounds cool. And yeah, I know what you mean about getting kicked out of the house while playing music. It hasn't happened to me for years, but the first time I ever picked up a flute, three years ago, my parents COULDN'T take it. Drove them up the wall. So I'd go outside. The boy next door, who I didn't know that well, had a bagpipe. I'd make a game of accompanying him as well as I could, and see how long it took to irritate him. Hmm. I believe I managed to convince him I was an annoying echo after a while, since he was frequently stopping in the middle of songs to check his instrument. Heheh.

EADG+ cetera,

I live in Chatham, in the Southwestern area.

Ours?! I wish!!! We see each other like... every two months? So that doesn't really count.

Baroque is a style from the 17th century. Mainly they liked to put in a lot of ornaments in the music and polyphony.


Next subject. I don't get kicked out of the house, but my sisters start complaining that they're trying to do homework (or watch a movie or something), then my father starts to get nervous and finally I just go to my room, where it's so hot I can't stand it and I leave. It was really pleasant outside and I believe I'm going to be doing that again.

Lol to the bagpipe thing.

Beggars can't be choosers. One of these days, what you and I have to do is go to the Barri Gòtic and play tinwhistle and guitar.

My dad has threatened to kick me out of the house if I start playing the gralla like I want to. He doesn't mean it, of course, but it shows how he feels about my great idea.

I have nobody in Chatham, but you live near my cousin (he's near to Ottawa, a few miles to the south. Anything nearer than seven hours in an aeroplane is "near" to me).