How to Learn Recorder Music
Recorders are deceptively simple instruments. At first they appear to be simple to play--just blow in one end and put your fingers over the holes to produce different notes. But learning anything more than how to play the basic "open" scale becomes progressively more difficult. Learning the recorder on this level requires more musical resources. For the student looking to dedicate themselves to the recorder, there are a number of different ways to learn recorder music.
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Instructions
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Learn the basic fingerings. The placement of the fingers over the holes in the neck of the recorder produce different notes. The descant (soprano) recorder is the most common type and is tuned to the key of C. If you can learn the fingerings from low C to high C (C, D, E, F, G, A, B, C) and all the sharps/flats in-between (C#/Db, D#/Eb, F#/Gb, G#/Ab, A#/Bb) you can learn virtually any song from musical notation. The correct fingerings for these notes are available in a variety of online recorder websites and books with these fingerings can be found at your local library.
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Learn recorder tablature. Tablature is a type of musical notation which depicts the fingerings for the notes on the instrument, rather than music notes on the staff. Recorder tablature usually consists of a row of numbers each representing which holes will be blocked by the fingers, or circles which are empty to indicate the open holes and filled to indicate the blocked holes. A wealth of recorder tablature is available, so it is not explicitly necessary to learn to read sheet music or memorize the fingerings for each note.
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Learn to read sheet music. The treble clef, or upper clef represented by a symbol that looks like an ampersand, is where recorder music is written. The spaces in the lines of the staff represent from bottom-to-top the notes F, A, C and E. The lines in the staff represent from bottom-to-top the notes E, G, B, D and F. The main advantage of reading sheet music is that you can read music written for virtually any instrument, rather than requiring tablature specific to the recorder.
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Find music to learn. The central branch of most cities' library system will have a music library. This may be sheet music or recorder tablature. If you can read sheet music, it may also be music not specifically written for the recorder. Many recorder web sites are available online with free music to view and download in both musical notation and recorder tablature.
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Listen to the music. Many recorder websites include audio clips of the song being played alongside the music. If the song is available on MP3 or streaming online, listen to it until you are familiar with the melody.
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Read the music before attempting to play it. It may be helpful to write down the names of the notes beneath the tablature or staff for later reference.
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Perform the fingerings for each note without blowing into the instrument. Play your way through the piece without making any sound, concentrating on proper finger placement. This will allow you to focus on fingering before introducing the element of breathing.
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Play through the music with the correct fingerings and blowing through the instrument. Play each note, one-at-a-time through the entire piece. Play each note as slowly as you need in order to play it correctly. Once you are able to play each note correctly, slowly build speed each time through until you are able to play at the desired speed.
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Practice. Reading and understanding the music is only the first step in learning recorder music. Your body requires patient, correct repetition in order to learn music. Repeat the learning techniques including listening to the piece, reading the sheet music or tablature, practicing the fingerings alone etc. The more your body becomes accustomed to the feeling and sound of playing the piece correctly, the more you will be able to allow your muscle memory to take over and play without excessive conscious thinking. This state of "sub-conscious" playing is an optimal state of playing for virtually any instrument.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit Recorder image by Ellanorah from Fotolia.com
