Flute Accessories for Aspiring Flute Players

There are two major types of music stands - the folding up wire kind and the solid metal kind. Each has its advantages and disadvantages, of course! We've had both.

The wire kind is much lighter, portable, easy to bring with you anywhere. But it's not so stable or adjustable. Those black metal ones are definitely heavier! But they are really stable, and usually adjust much better to the height and angle you need. And they often come with a bag to carry them in, so they're portable too (if you're going by car not walking at least!).

Whether you're just playing on your own or in a group, a band, or a marching band, you need to be able to play in time. That's where the metronome comes in. Every piece was written to be played at a certain tempo, and without a metronome it's almost impossible to keep that speed consistent while practicing.

And it's also important to play in tune. If you get used to hearing yourself play a piece sharp or flat it's hard to adjust your playing to the group later. So you need a tuner to tell you the correct pitch.

You can buy separate metronomes and tuners, and some people prefer that. Often a metronome will be louder when it's a stand alone.

In our case, we have an electric keyboard which has a metronome so that was OK for quite a while. So a separate tuner was the accessory we needed.

No, not people to cheer you on (although that's good too), the Cobra flute support will keep your flute stable while you play.

You may find that it is difficult to hold your flute and play all the notes, especially if you joined that marching band! Maybe you just have a hard time holding the flute at the right angle to reach the keys. Or perhaps you're having trouble playing trills, or playing the third high octave, because you can't use the key with your thumb and keep the flute stable at the same time. To avoid such problems you need a Cobra Flute Support.

You know how important your lips are in playing the flute. Dry cracked lips do not good embouchure make. Maybe you've tried various Chapstick type products, but they make the lips too slippery - not good. And that layer of waxy stuff just takes away all the sensitivity. What you really need are soft moisturized lips. The Mary Kay Satin Lips set achieves exactly that!

Yes, cleaning the flute is important! There are several aspects to this.

There's just cleaning the body of the flute to keep it shiny, remember silver tarnishes, even silver plate! And there's cleaning the inside - all that spit needs a bit of drying out on occasion! So you need a cleaning rod and cleaning swabs for that. Then there's things like grease and oil for the keys. Yamaha also has special cleaning paper for removing moisture, oil, and stuff from the pads - not only extends the life of the pads, keeping them dry and clean makes for clearer sound.

Best is to buy a kit, it has everything you need. Show your flute some love!

Lovely flute jewelry, not essential to good flute playing but very attractive and fun to wear.