Starting on the Fife: Getting a Sound
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- Опубликовано: 13 июл 2019
- This is a quick guide for newer fifers trying to get a sound or even a better sound. Using your hand, you'll see a free and easy method to learning to direct airflow.
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There are barely any helpful videos on how to play the fife on RUclips. Thank you for taking some time to make this video!
of course you would watch this shit
@@generalcurve6480 What?
this rard is marechal of a roblox France corps which rallies over 100 people
Literally everyone else sucked when I tried to figure out how to get a sound on the fife, but you, sir, you'd explained how to do it within four minutes. You're amazing at this, I swear.
This is so great to hear!!! I do apologize for talking so much haha. I'm glad it helped!
Excellent stuff, Don. As a trumpet player, I was needing a solid explanation on fife embouchure. And this is the place for that.
You sir are an excellent teacher! I bought a beat up old fife from an antique store because I wanted something that I can easily throw in my hiking bag. For the life of me I could not get a consistent sound (I've played several beak mouthpiece woodwinds) within minutes of your explanation I had relatively clear sound! You are helping to bring music to the world and I thank you for that!
I am waiting for my first fife to arrive - thank you for this video 😀
Excellent! Best of luck and happy fifing!
Wow, what a difference. I don't have a fife. Believe it or not, Green Acres lead me here. I've been rewatching the series, and after hearing Lisa comment on hearing a fife during some of Oliver's speeches, I turned to the 'net for information on an instrument I knew nothing about. I've collected a variety of inexpensive instruments, and have learned how to get a sound out of most of them. In the woodwind family I can get part way up into the second register on the clarinet and sax. With a flute, on the other hand, I've rarely been able to get a sound out of it to save my life. Just over four minutes into your video and I'm suddenly able to get a fairly consistent and repeatable sound out of my flute's head joint. Something in your embouchure explanation must have clicked in my brain.
This tutorial really helped! I got my fife about an hour ago, and I can almost completely play Mary Had a Little Lamb. Once you get over that learning curve of making a sound, it all becomes 10x easier.
This is awesome, I'm really glad to hear! Feel free to reach out if you have any fife questions.
Thank you for posting such a helpful video, Don! I've shared it with the fifers in our new corps!
This defintely helps so much. I'm still figuring it out, but what a perfect exercise and explanation. Thank you!!!!!
I was in a corps decades ago and am teaching my Man to play. Your video so far, with the blowing at your hand technique really got through to him! Thank you.
Holy crap! It worked! I could make a sound, but this heled make it better and easier 😊 thanks
Awesome, I'm glad to hear!
I’ve been temporarily transferred to a very rural area and since I had to leave my clarinet at home, I brought a fife. Finally I could figure out the correct articulation thanks to your tutorial. Thanks, I guess I’ll be able to play quite alright in a couple of hours, now!
Thank you! I just got mine, and just got a small (and probably wrong) scale for the first time thanks to your video. This got notes i didnt even know were possible. Incredible.
I’m gonna do re-enactments when I’m older… This helps! 😂
Thank you, a very good explanation and demonstration.
Was at a reenactment at Fort Dobbs yesterday. Heard a fife, it brought joy to my heart, bought a fife...thank you, you give me hope that I will eventually create joy.
That's fantastic! Best of luck and keep plugging away, it'll come together soon enough and it'll definitely be fun and a joy!
Great pointers on air alignment, however one important thing that you should have mentioned is that one doesn’t blow notes, but “tongues” them by placing the tip of the tongue behind the front lip and saying the word “too” without vocalizing it.
Very true, yes, tonguing or articulating the notes is an important factor. I had actually intended to make another video on that very subject, but I ended up not getting to it... You might also try placing the tongue a little higher up to behind the upper teeth, about there the teeth and gum line meet.
Extremely helpful. I wasn't able to make a good sound in days and watching this video helped me even before the video ended.
Fantastic news, that's great to hear!!
Going from here, do you have any other recommend videos/ resources for a beginner?
@@anaisha849 Check out beafifer.com/ and look up a copy of Ed Boyle's "A Tutorial on the Fife". It's a fantastic starter book for the fife and even comes with a CD to hear stuff being played (and play along with it). Sadly, I was going to make a few additional videos after this one, but I never got around to it. Some day for sure!
@@dheminitz thanks!
this is great lesson. the hand excersie was great seconds after doing it once i was hear the sound i needed. Thank you
Fantastic! I wish I had seen this when I first started. I would have found your explanations easy to understand. Thank you for producing this, Don.
This is version 1.0, and I hope it will develop into a series of videos about the mechanics of fife playing, timings, and other points of interest.
You asked for observations. When you were demonstrating the airflow/hand technique (eg about the 12.00 mark) I could see your jaw moving in and out.
When blowing at the hand, I found that the small aperture was more noticeable than pouting the lips and blowing. I don't know if that is relevant, though.
If you produce a second version of this intro, I would respectfully suggest saying less, because some learners may be abroad, and might not speak much English.
When watching the part about the mouth position, I would have held a mobile phone or small mirror alongside your picture so that I could see myself and compare my attempt with yours.
Congratulations on making your first video, of almost 15 minutes, in one take. I look forward to the next one.
Fantastic video thank you. It works. You are a treasure.
Just start learning fife, thanks a lot
ty, was about to give this up since I didn’t want to spend that much effort on something I’d most likely not play or learn long-term but now able to make a sound, I have a lot more motivation!!
That's great, happy fifing! Getting a consistent sound is I think one of the harder parts. From there it's just learning a few fingerings and then learning some tunes. Fifer's Delight by Ralph Sweet is a good tune book with about 10 or so pages of easy to learn tunes in the beginning, and A Tutorial for the Fife by Ed Boyle (beafifer.com) is an excellent method book to learn from. Best of luck and, as I said above, happy fifing!! Happy New Year too!
Excellent video. Helped out a lot
I feel like having a conversation with this guy is his peer's main source of dopamine
I always wanted to learn the flute when I was younger, and I was given a fife for Christmas one year but could never make a sound. Just remembered it was still in a drawer and decided to see if there were any tips on RUclips, 20 years later got my first clear note thanks to you. 🙏🎶❤️
Reading this just made my night! I'm so glad to hear, and I hope you keep playing!!
@@dheminitz got my first tune to a folk song nearly done! No stopping me now, not quite RUclips video ready yet, but if I do I’ll tag you! Still getting a bit dizzy, used to singing breath control but not fife 🤣
@@augustalees5035 That's fantastic, keep up the great work! If you are interested, I highly recommend a copy of Ed Boyle's A Tutorial on the Fife found on beafifer.com. Good primer with an accompanying CD. Mel Bay's "Fun With the Fife" is another good one.
I appreciate this . I been wanting to learn how to play
Thank you for this! I received my first fife on Sunday from my mother. I thought blowing into the fife used the Sam's mouth shape as tin whistles use (tin whistle player of 4 years here) boy was I wrong! I looked up this video and last night I was able to get the first 2 octaves sounding great! Third is very rough, but getting there. Started working on some scales and the first bit of Yankee Doodle!
Great to hear! For the third octave, try ever-so-slightly tightening the corners of your mouth to make a slightly smaller opening (aperture) for the air, use a little more support from your diaphragm, and also vocalize "tea" instead of "ta" when tonguing the notes. Reverse all of that when going back down to the lower octaves. Hopefully that helps some! Don
Thank you nothing els worked and this finally helped me understand
After visiting Mt. Vernon and listening to the fife and drums, the patriot in my woke up and I had to learn how to play it.
I found a “Maple Fife” on the store and bought it, I tried on the hotel room and couldn’t play it.
Finally at home, I found your video and now I can play a few notes.
Thanks!
And please make more videos!
This is awesome, thanks for sharing! I definitely want to make more videos.
@@dheminitz I would love to start some kind of reenactment group but with the Hispaniards and the “Conquistadores” down here in Puerto Rico.
Wish me luck
@@sebastianaquino7454 Oh cool! Also, look up Regimiento Fijo de Puerto Rico, based in San Juan. They host a big event at Castillo del Morro in April. I went in 2011 and had a blast!
Thanks for helping me
Yep!
As you promised, I got a sound, not a pleasant sound but a sound nonetheless.
Thank you!
But a sound is a sound, I'm glad to hear this helped you!
Thank You very much!
I play the trumpet but this video helped me to get into wood winds
Thank you so much, this is super helpful! Except now I feel like I'm gonna pass out lol.
Thank you!
I cannot thank you enough sir
Thank you I could kind of make a sound
Thank you for the very informative video. P.S. Please straighten your lamp shade. Regards, OCD Society of America
hey thanks, im a weird learner so im most likely gonna need something live and in-person, but this video did help quite a bit
No worries, everyone learns a little differently - no such thing as weird. I'm glad the video helped - let me know if you have more questions. Sorry I don't have any more videos at the moment.
@@dheminitz thanks, i'm practicing daily now, and i'm learning the british grenadiers, im considering going to the civil war field music school
and one more thing, if you make more videos, id recommend song tutorials. us fife players are overshadowed by flute players and those are the only tutorials i can find
@@everettjohnson5709 Excellent! I help out with the field music school. You can always reach me or the school via the contact page here: fieldmusicschool.org/contact.html. We won't be hosting our Civil War event again until 2022, but do check out our other event HarmoniCon this fall 11/5-7 in Yorktown, VA. It'll be free and open to all fifers and drummers. Come on by! Registration and updated 2021 info will be updated on the website in the coming weeks. Stay tuned.
@@everettjohnson5709 Great suggestion, will do. Look up A Tutorial on the Fife by Ed Boyle - it's a tune and method book for beginning fifers. Also, Fifer's Delight by Ralph Sweet as a tune book. You can also find all sorts of fife tunes here: fifedrum.org/resources/music/gif/ although, it may be a little overwhelming in terms of where to start. But Ed Boyle's book is my first suggestion.
This was super helpful! I’m able to get pretty decent sound but I can’t seem to get into different octaves. I’m stuck in the lowest octave I believe. Any tips?
Awesome, glad it helped! For the higher notes, try a couple things. First, aim your air stream a little higher, perhaps closer to your knuckles (if using the hand trick from the video). You can also tighten the corners of your mouth/lips/embouchure ever so slightly more than what you'd play for the lower notes. And push a little bit from your diaphragm to support the higher notes. Hope this helps!
Hey, so I have a vertical labret piercing - the top of it sits on the top of my bottom lip - am I going to have better luck with this taking that out?
Thanks in advance :)
Hi Jess, that's a great question. Although you may be able to play with it in, it would probably be easier and more comfortable at first to play without it, at least while you're in the early stages of learning and developing your embouchure. The top of it could impact tone and air flow as the air passes across your lips into the fife, while the bottom of it could affect how your fife is positioned on your lower lip. Once you can cleanly play a scale and a few tunes, maybe then try leaving it in to see what happens. That's my suggestion anyway. Best of luck!
I tried to follow this as best I could be had to resort to reading the subtitles as I couldn't turn your voice up beyond a whisper. I had both the RUclips volume and my computer speaker volume cranked up to max.
Has anybody else had this problem? If so then maybe repost it with the volume turned up a bit?
I think I get what's being said but a bit more volume would help!
Many thanks.
So sorry about that. It all seemed perfectly fine when it was edited and uploaded, but there ended up actually being a technical issue I couldn't fix. If I had more time in my day, I'd try to redo the video, but that just isn't possible right now. Let me know if you have any questions and I'd be happy to try to answer them for you.
I noticed with the hand technique, it helps to slightly bring your bottom lip in and push your top lip slightly out. Is this correct?
Yes, the slight movement of the lower lip and jaw helps with redirecting the airflow, which is what actually gives you that centered tone. Good observation!
I got it when I learned to blow downwards at that angle
What's a good quality yet inexpensive fife that you would recommend? I've been thinking of playing fife for fife and drums pieces but I dont know what fife to buy.
For just starting out, I often suggest a plastic fife to see if it's really something you want to commit to before spending any real money. Alternatively, for a wooden fife, I usually recommend the Model F fife from beafifer.com, and that's what I'm playing in this video. But I've heard recently he's backordered, but that may just be a rumor. Alternatively, a very similar fife is the Nach Ferrary model by Musique Morneaux at musiquemorneaux.com/traditional-fifes/ or the Peeler Ferrary Fife www.peelerfifes.com/product/peeler-ferrary-fife/
I own a Metal American fife, will that make a difference in performance?
The specific sound (or color) itself will be a shade different than a wooden fife, but it should work just fine. Best of luck!
Hello, sir. Let me try to explain; do you use your tongue when blowing the fife or simply your lips?
Best regards
Use your tongue to articulate the note. So when you make a sound, make a "ta" sound to start the note. Maybe I'll do another video as soon as I get the chance that will demonstrate this. But tonguing the note makes a cleaner, crisper sound. Hope this helps a little.
Thank you for the video. I am a trumpet player that likes the sound of the flute. The shape of my teeth make me blow downwards. When I do the palm blow I can feel some air on my fingers but also I can feel air going down at the same time . Do I keep doing what you are suggesting .
Also will this change my embouchure for when I play the trumpet ?
Thank you in advance for your kindness 😊
Hi there! That's a good question that I don't know the full answer to, but I'll try. In short, yes, the embouchure between brass and flute/fife is slightly different from one another, and for one thing, you won't be buzzing lips to play flute! As far as air direction goes, if you naturally blow downwards, that should actually work in your favor. But the lower palm will still want to be the focal point for good tone. Just make sure you're not tilting your head (keep you head straight!) or moving your hand. Best of luck!
thanks, i will need this when i join napoleon's army
What fife do you play? Is Bb the most common key?
In this video I'm playing a Bb "Model F" fife, which can be found on Ed Boyle's website at beafifer.com. Bb is the most common key for fife, but other keyed fifes do exist.
thank you for the explanation! i can make sound in the first octave really easily but the second octave is ear-piercing. is it supposed to be that way or am i just doing it wrong? practicing fife with hopes of buying a flute sometime in the future
Great to hear about the first octave. But yup, the higher octaves are shrill and meant to be so - over the course of a few centuries it was once used for communication on a battlefield, so meant to be heard over shouting and muskets and such. Many fifers like to practice with a little cotton or an ear plug in their right (or both) ear(s). It's a fun instrument though, especially when paired with a drummer. The flute is a little lower in pitch and will be easier on the ears. Both instruments require a similar embouchure.
@@dheminitz Ah yes I read up on that. Quite interesting!
I'm having trouble identifying my instrument. can anybody help me?
No matter what I do, I end up whistling as Im trying to play, andncant get a single sound out of the fife Ive got. (Borrowed one from cadets, trying to learn so I can then teach the cadets, currently not going so well).
It sounds like you may be pushing your lips too far forward, which can give a whistling sound. Keep them slightly pulled back, slightly stretched outward side to side, and slightly firm. Here's a good video on lips/embouchure by a fantastic flutist Kathy Blocki m.ruclips.net/video/HL7ZbBSvkUc/видео.html The fife will need lips that are just a tad firmer than what's needed for flute, but the shape is very similar and I hope this link helps. Also note, you won't likely get as pure a sound right off the bat as she demonstrates, simply as she's mastered her tone after years of studying and playing haha. But again I hope this helps.
where can i get those fifes like a link pls?
Hi, what I'm playing here is a 6-hole "Model F" fife, sold by Ed Boyle beafifer.com/. If you're just starting out, for economic reasons I would recommend you begin with a plastic fife first (you can get that on the same website), but the Model F is certainly a great instrument once you get into it some more.
i would just like to ask where did you get the fife and what is the fife name because i have trying to find a good fife for ages
I am playing a Bb "Model F" fife, which can be found on Ed Boyle's website at beafifer.com.
@@dheminitz thank you for that
where did you buy the fife
It's a Model F fife sold by Ed Boyle via beafifer.com/
where can i find a fife to buy? its really hard to find here where i live, because its a diferent fife
In this video I'm playing a Bb "Model F" fife, which can be found on Ed Boyle's website at beafifer.com. It's a fairly commonly played fife here in New England.
@@dheminitz ty!
I have the same fife type but of a different colour. Which would be the fingering?
No worries on color, do you know who the maker is of your fife?
@@dheminitz I don't know either the brand or the country of origin, it was some sort of a present.. I've discovered that it is in Si bemolle (B°). And what about the cromaric scale? 🤭 Thank you 😊
@@Krisha991 No worries. Does it have 6 holes? Or a different number, say 7 or 8, or 10, or something entirely different haha? The 6 hole fife is most traditional for western-style fifes. Here's a basic fingering chart for such a fife: fifedrum.org/fifes/fingering.shtml. Note, the music (including the above fingering chart) is traditionally written an octave lower than how it sounds. If your fife has more (or less) than 6 holes, I can try to find a different chart for you.
@@dheminitz 6 holes. Absolutely like youre 😊
Where did you bought that fife?
Hi, the fife I'm playing is a Model F fife sold by Ed Boyle on beafifer.com. Alternatively, a very similar fife is the Nach Ferrary model by Musique Morneaux at musiquemorneaux.com/traditional-fifes/ or the Peeler Ferrary Fife www.peelerfifes.com/product/peeler-ferrary-fife/
mine doesnt make sound i might have to buy a new one
where did you get your fife from? how do i get one?
I am playing a Bb "Model F" fife, which can be found on Ed Boyle's website at beafifer.com.
@@dheminitz thank you man
@@icecold4614 Good luck and have fun!
Comprei um pífano Yamaha YRF 21 e fiz um pífano de PVC estou querendo aprender as notas musicais para poder tocar nos pífanos.
This is helpful. Thanks for sharing
Whats the exact name , brand of your fife ??
I am playing a Bb "Model F" fife, which can be found on Ed Boyle's website at beafifer.com.
Ciao in quale tonalità è il fifre?
“”Bb model f fife”
I have some questions, one, where is the fife, two, gimme the fife. (good video.)
👍
Thank you so much you have helped me play the fife pls pin meeee
I can't help but wonder, but how many people owned and played instruments historically? These days when we think of "instruments" we think of something made professionally, but in history most people would have been familiar at least somewhat with whittling or other relevant skills that could be used to make a simple instrument. These days, the vast majority of people don't seem to own even one instrument, even fewer have tried beyond the few recorder lessons their school forced them to do.
Today, most people don't think it's worth it to learn an instrument unless it's some complex thing like guitar or sax, but most can't afford those things. So the reality ends up being that nobody learns any instruments. I'm oversimplifying the issue probably, many factors and all that.
I just wonder, given that there was no internet or video games in the middle ages, or the fact that while most people could understand letters they weren't "literate" and so couldn't access books, simple instruments seem like one of the few things that *would* have been accessible to ordinary people for entertainment, and I wonder how many took advantage of that.
I like the idea that perhaps the middle ages were filled with musical peasants who weren't very good but played simple hearty tunes on simple flutes and drums made by their uncles or friends or themselves.
I would say most people today (but not all obviously) have been groomed towards instant gratification: the idea that you can pick things up with little to no effort and get almost immediate results, such as ordering something over a mobile phone, or social media even. But that alludes to a larger issue lol... But musically speaking, I think most folks today have less patience when it comes to spending hours and hours, days, even years to learn something. For those people, the mentality is this: if they can't pick it up after a few tries, then there must be something else to be doing with that precious time. However, historically, I think people were generally far more patient with their time than today, and without the distraction of electronics, computers, televisions, etc, there was more time to spend learning an instrument, or reading a book (if they were literate), or developing the skills of some hands-on hobby. I have no doubt some folks learned to make their own instruments, but instruments and music books were becoming more and more available as time went on, and by the 19th century when it comes to folk instruments such as penny whistles, harmonicas, fifes, fiddles, even banjos, etc, there were affordable options. Like any instrument though, there are often better and more professional options than what we/they may first pick up, but that also means more $$. As hobbyists developed their skills and interest in their instrument, I'm sure many of them saved up the necessary money over time to be able to buy better quality instruments. No different than today in that regard. You're right about literacy, but I would say by the 19th century more and more people were learning to read. And there were also some different attempts here and there of a method of music notation to help those who couldn't read it (such as numbers, shape note singing, even guitar tab later on, etc). Either way, for those who couldn't read or read music, they nevertheless had plenty of time to "noodle" around, experiment, and pick up the instrument "by ear". Historically, people generally showed more perseverance and patience to muscle through the hard stuff and not give up so easily. I have no doubt that many untrained musicians developed "bad habits" when playing their instrument, but down the road further, some of these musicians may (or may not) have encountered other fifers, or fiddle players, or penny whistle players, etc, and they would undoubtedly have traded ideas or techniques with each other, as we musicians continue to do to this day. It's in our DNA I think haha that we learn from fellow musicians. Interesting perspective, thank you for your post. Don
@@dheminitz Thank you for penning this response, really interesting points I hadn't thought of! :D Very educational!
You look like Stan's father from South Park
Never mind
all im getting is this very airy noise
Try rolling the fife, that is the embouchure hole, towards you just a tiny bit and see if that helps at all. Too much of an airy sound means the fife is likely either rolled away a little too far (usually the case) or sometimes actually rolled in too far.
I try to get a sound and I just end up whistling
Make sure your lips aren't pushing too far forward but rather stretched thin and outward (cheek to cheek), and you want firm corners on either side of your mouth. If you push too forward as if playing a recorder or tin whistle, or even "fish lips" for a camera pose, you could end up making a buzz sound or a slight whistle, which won't give you a good tone for the fife. I briefly talk about the lips around the 3:55 marker in the video. Hope this helps!
@@dheminitz I guessed I'm so used to whistling that It's difficult to get them to anything else
@@sp00k48 Keep trying, you'll get it! Try using a mirror so you can see better as to what's happening.
@@dheminitz I think a teacher would be best but I'm not sure where to find one
@@sp00k48 If I had a freer schedule, I'd offer to teach myself. You can also try seeking out a flute teacher from a local music store and asking for help with sound production. The embouchure (shape of the lips/mouth for a wind instrument) for flute and fife are very similar. Also, check out Kathy Blocki's Pneumo Pro - a pretty neat visualizer for flutists to help teach air direction and more, but it can also be utilized to some degree by fifers: ruclips.net/video/KyANb-wEbXM/видео.html
Is anyone else having issues with the volume? I had everything set at 100% volume and could barely hear what he was saying.
Sorry, I had a mic issue when I put this together and didn't notice until long after it was already posted. I just haven't found the time to remake it. Let me know if you have any questions and I'll be happy to type an answer the best I can.
Still impossible
Bummer, sorry to hear. Make sure you're not moving your hand or head as you change angles of your air stream.
I can't hear you
Me need help fife make no sound ooga booga
I dont know why, this isnt helping me at all, been using your method for 3 days now and still nothing, i can get the occasional loud whistle if i blow really really hard but other than that its dead silent.
Dang, sorry to hear! Couple things, make sure you're not moving your head or hand as you aim for different spots on your hand (and later fife). It sounds like you may also be pushing your lips a little too far forward, which can give a whistling sound. Keep them slightly pulled back, slightly stretched outward side to side, and slightly firm. Here's a good video on lips/embouchure by a fantastic flutist Kathy Blocki m.ruclips.net/video/HL7ZbBSvkUc/видео.html The fife will need lips that are just a tad firmer than what's needed for flute, but the shape is very similar and I hope this link helps.
I cant hear u
love the vid tho
@@notjp753 Yeah, sorry, I had a mic issue when I recorded it, which didn't seem to be noticeable until it was already up on RUclips. I have thought about redoing this video with slightly less talking too haha.
@@dheminitz loved the vid and u helped a lot!
@@notjp753 Awesome, glad to hear!
It doesn’t work🤬😭
just keep trying, it's difficult i know.
You are all lying I watch this video and it sounds like wind outside no where close to getting this thing to work
Sorry to hear it didn't work for you. Make sure you're not moving your head (keep you head still the entire time) and also make sure you're not holding your hand too high. Watch how I use my lower jaw and lip to move ever-so-slightly in or out to obtain the desired air direction.
If this still doesn't work, you can also try purchasing the Pneumo Pro by Kathy Blocki www.blockiflute.com/Pneumo-Pro-_p_1.html which does a similar effect as the hand idea - here's her youtube video ruclips.net/video/KyANb-wEbXM/видео.html Best of luck!
You helped me so much, now it’s time to go to the catacombs 🫡
But that's where all the fun begins to unfold :-) Happy fifing!