dspmusik wrote:i just saw this PDF on the world/folk wind page. looks similar (same?) as whistle. i'm interested in anyone who has experience with both.
....and of course that will probably lead to buying one... so where's a good place to start (1st Dizi, not whistle)
thanks!
http://www.ronkorb.com/pdfs/chinese.pdf
Since last autumn, the dizi has probably taken over all other flutes I have .. it is the flute I play the most now (I have over 10 dizi!)
Ron's fingering scales are an approximation: they will do, and you will get approximate tones at the higher 1/3 of the scale. He has left out the other 1/2 octave fingerings - maybe because he is trying to approximate a western fingering method onto the dizi. You won't have any trouble (except with the D'' quoted).
If you're interested - you can find out more on the
http://starvoid.proboards.com/ forum which I post under. It is not very active, but it is the better English based language resource on the net, for understanding and playing the dizi.
If you need help buying a dizi, don't whatever you do order one of those cheap no hopers from the auction site. There are some good products there - but you have to know the suppliers, and the manufacturers, just like for Irish whistles.
If you want a no hassle start, find a 'D key' dizi. A 'D' dizi, plays the note 'D' when three fingers are down. Its lowest note is 'A'. You can play it (out of key) and use Irish music - as long as you are doing solo playing, you don't have to be worry about playing in the wrong key. It will still run D E F# G A B C across the holes so you can play treble clef notation, or improvise or play by ear. The proper way, is to learn 'jian pu' which is simplified notation using numbers. It shouldn't take long to learn.
I used to play whistles: the dizi is much harder: you need to learn the embouchure skills, and di mo (membrane) management. The decorations are very different across the different schools - just like ITM. I don't get it, so I just make it up and hope I don't bump into an expert who will tell me I play sh** lol. The dizi is best for its own repertoire, but you can use it for ITM....it sounds really unusual lol.
I wouldn't recommend anything more than a 6 hole dizi flute to start off with. I use both 6 and 7 holers - the 7 holer is much slower. Keyed dizi flutes are a waste of space - avoid at all costs. There is a lot more bending of notes in dizi music, as well as fast trills, and the decorations really require an open hole flute.
As for xiao flutes - which type are you looking for?
The xiao flute fingering is quite intuitive if you can play any 6 hole instrument. A 6 hole xiao, might have 5 holes in front, and one in the rear. A 7 hole xiao, would have two semi-tone notes spread over two wholes, so effectively, enables you to play a minor as well as a major scale without half-holing.
The xiao technique of embouchure is very similar to other notched flutes.
If you're interested, Francois de Villiers has made some xiao flutes out of plastic. I've promised to (get my act together) and a review of it. I'm struggling a bit, because I have only picked up the xiao in the past 1/2 year and I am not a natural xiao player either.
If you're interested, start off with a dizi flute first. There are plenty of websites for free dizi music, but you will need to learn the simplified notation. If you need a quality dizi, the musician who does the flute music for Kung Fu Panda II, also runs his own shop in an artists' group in California. He sources some of the famous Wang dizi flutes. He is a musician too, and he tests each instrument and won't sell you a lemon.
The fingering o
