How do we keep our favorite exercises - our go-to, tried-and-true, most comfortable and comfort-offering routines - alive, useful, invigorating, sustaining (look, Ma - no thesaurus - yet!)? In other words, fresh and not dying on the vine. This question can apply to so many things...we like our creature comforts, our "things" and habits that help us feel more secure and safer, especially when we face the day's uncertainties. For musicians, this is an especially  interesting question to pose, as we like our confidence-inducing activities to remain skill-building, yet sometimes we wander into the desert of automatic pilot/self-driving cars/phoning things in/just basically not really being present. . . 

While a college undergrad, I remember walking up to the practice room building's top floor (since this is where my favorite rooms were located) for each day's first practice session, wondering what exactly kind of tone day it was going to be. Tone is everything to a flute player (and to all musicians, right?!) - it's the ears to the soul, the personal calling card of an individual. It's a big deal. So, sometimes my heart would pound as I unzipped my bag, unlatched the case to my flute...was it going to be a good tone day? A not so great one? A fabulous one? And what to do about it? Here's an average mental exchange from back then: "Yesterday was a pretty good tone day - I'd better start with EXACTLY the same long-tone exercise on EXACTLY the same pitch as I did yesterday."

Naturally, sometimes that approach would work, and of course, sometimes that would not. Now that I refuse to play Eight Ball with my sound or my playing (!) I celebrate the wisdom of balancing exercises and knowing what I need to do to keep things fresh: be creative, participate, experiment, and play. So I'm attacking the much-revered exercise, the long tone.

What exactly is this important component of a wind player's practicing? Long tones are generally exactly what their name implies:  sustained pitches, under which we play a smooth crescendo and decrescendo, to help us focus on the beginning, development, and release of the tone.  Here's a good explanation by a horn expert, Bruce Hembd, including the key of developing the right mindset to practice these particular exercises effectively, as well as the importance of changing things up (that's our fresh-picked ingredient!).

For examples from flutists, here's an overview from Jeff Khaner, exercises from Jennifer Cluff, and an explanation from David Cramer on Moyse's De La Sonority.  Overall, I adopt these "long tone generalizations" in my own playing:

• Whenever I practice "traditional long tones" with the hairpin dynamic for one sustained pitch, I'm striving to be  free and open in my body, face, and jaw while conscious of breath, intonation, and especially the attack and release of the note. These long tones are most typically without vibrato, and I use them for control while maintaining freedom and ease. 
• My "go-to" method of long tones is moving from one note to another, so I always have a goal in mind and ear. This is the Moyse approach, and I embrace the whole journey when I play these: start of the note, its development into the destination note, and the release of the second note. I most often use vibrato when I play these, including different increments of pulses and/or styles of vibrato, but more on this later.  At times, I combine the first method with the second (hairpin crescendo) to maximize my time. 
• The combination of both concepts: playing melodies - even very simple tunes - in different keys, and generally after playing a simpler long tone plan.  I've written about this before, but I find playing tunes to be the most satisfying way to connect my heart to my ears  while spinning the tone.

Here are some great resources for long tones, including different concepts and exercises, videos, and other creative projects, including Flute Pro Shop's project with Danny Dorff. Some other ideas to consider:

• Anything can be a tone exercise, and whatever helps you tune into your sound and how you connect to it, from the sensations as you play (space in the mouth, the small of your back) to your breath as you inhale, is a component of your exercise.
• Although being mindful of your goal in each exercise is important, sometimes it's useful to be released and meditative as you play long tones. To me this is a state we work toward, however - we have to have some investment and trust in the practicing bank established.
• If you use a metronome, try hearing it on the "backbeat," or the "and" of the beat, instead of on the beat (you'll have to start playing in-between clicks). Another fun trick is to use an app like Drumbeats+  to really zip up your routine (great for scales, too). There are tons of possibilities!
• Play over a reference tone, even when the dissonance gets crunchy! Better yet, play with a practice partner, and alternate who moves (one person sustains, one person descends to the next pitch).
• Change directions - ascend instead of descend, or vice-versa; add larger increments (whole tone steps vs. half-steps).
• Pick a different "starting" note each day.
• Break out that thesaurus and play each set of long tones in that style.
• Have a "tone study exchange" party - especially with other instrumentalists - to share favorite exercises and concepts.
• Change vibrato increments per beat (2 pulses per beat, switch to three, then to four, etc.). You'll find this to be very tricky to increase your rate as you diminuendo! Try whatever you come up with in descending order (start with a higher rate and dial it back to a slower one).
• Again, anything can be a tone exercise, including a simplified version of whatever piece you're studying, or a passage that is owning you right now . . . take a small bit of it and make a beautiful phrase to transpose into different keys.

What are some of your favorite long tone exercises and ideas to keep things fresh?

So perhaps your goal is to get back into playing shape. We’ve all been there – perhaps you enjoyed your summer break just a little too much away from your instrument (Hello! Beach calling!), or you suddenly have an adjustment in your work load or schedule that’s cramping your practicing style, or you experienced a period of “forced rest” due to overuse, illness, or instrument woes, or you needed to help a family or friend for a while…there are as many real reasons as there are circumstances in life, including joyful ones! But the issue remains – you just know you’re not getting around the instrument so that it feels like “home” when you play. What to do?
 
First off – a DISCLAIMER. Like all of my blogs, these are my ideas, and things that help me. I write these blogs in the hopes they may help someone else, too, or inspire a discussion and a sharing of ideas in the practice room hallway or over coffee with a friend. The important thing is to know you’re not alone! That being established:
 

1. See opening paragraph: we’ve all been there. You’re not alone. Everyone has experienced this. Notice if your shoulders release as you really let that fact sink in. Does it take the pressure off? Buying into that negative self-talk can really amplify exactly what is not positive, helpful, invigorating, energizing…it robs us of our strength. So let it go, it has no place in your practice room, next to you in the ensemble, in your lesson. Actively release and breathe through this action of letting go.
2. Along with No. 1, get your positive mojo in a groove! Move around, enjoy just being in your body dancing around, walking, responding to music…grateful for its ability to take you around, make music, and get in touch with one of humankind’s greatest achievements – expressing the soul through art! Reinvigorate your love for sound and your innate connection to music.
3. Also, make a choice to be positive. How can you frame your upcoming practice session positively? Be thankful for at least three things before you make a single sound. By noting positive aspects we may further release the great burden and weight of negativity.

 
PAUSE for commercial: why am I writing about emotional and mental connections? You’re interested in getting back into shape so you can sprint in the upper register with the best of ‘em! Well, I believe the above are crucial steps to opening up your heart, mind, and (then) body in order to release unnecessary tension. When we are not “in shape” this is especially important. So be strong and take one step at a time.
 

1. Right – be strong. Take one step at a time. By just picking up your instrument and spending time with it again, you are investing in yourself. Think basics – start with just breathing and feeling the air move in and out, just as you would do while playing. Try exercising before you play to help awaken your body.
2. Maintain the goal of making music. If you seek the shelter of the familiar, turn to your favorite go-to long tones exercise, play each set as musically as possible. Crack open a thesaurus and explore possible adverbs. Try these out – can you play two notes together…. Inquisitively? Skeptically? Lovingly? Courageously? Apologetically? Frantically? Beseechingly? Angrily? Stoically? You get the idea. By creating a context of meaning we can distract ourselves from the panic and distress of not sounding as great as we could have if we just hadn’t…breathe and let it go!
3. Try playing things you LOVE to play – beautiful tunes and melodies that bring you joy, remind you of happy experiences, or just take the pressure off in general. I love cycling through a melody and transposing it into different keys as a tone + phrasing exercise (again – create the context of the line, and the body may experience a sense of ease…and suddenly the tone is more resonant).
4. Sight-read music, especially easier, confidence-building pieces. There are tons of free melodies on www.flutetunes.net to read.
5. Remember there are tons of etudes out there! Like No. 7, just grab a collection of easier etudes to read down. When I’m working on getting back in shape I always turn to etudes and plow through a number a day, even if they’re fairly simple. The next day I’ll try to do more complicated etudes, or perhaps more etudes. Their sequential order of keys and predictable structure get my brain and fingers reigned back in to center and working together. The deep breathing and constant playing can be very challenging at first, so be sure to take a break after you reach your goal (which could be just three lines).
6. Of course, it’s also time to get back on the fundamentals (see last month’s blog). At first, select your go-to scale exercise and the order in which you play your scales. Try working on 5-note scales (just the first five notes, descending and ascending) for smoothness. Standing in front of a mirror can help you see any unevenness or wild and crazy fingers. After playing a few days, change things up (either the order of scales, or the pattern you choose to play).
7. Again, no matter what you’re playing, make a musical phrase. Giving your mind this assigned goal will displace any residual woes of how much better you used to ________ when you were in shape. Be mindful of what you’re saying with your instrument.

 
Try a mixture of the above ideas – 5 minutes of this, 5 minutes of something else, and then read through an etude, and take a break. Then for your next session later in the day, start again with some music-based tone exercise and build your way up to faster finger activity. Build on this tomorrow, and then again, step by step, you’ll be back to where you were in no time.
 
It’s very important to come up with a plan – small steps of just 30 minute sessions at different times of the day can then progressively build up to longer sessions of 45 minutes after a few days. Even if you feel great, take breaks in between your practice sessions spread out over each day. You may feel tightness and fatigue in your muscles after your “playcation,” so take care to stay connected to your body to monitor how you feel, what you see, and also what you hear.
 
Finally, and to look at this from another perspective, try welcoming your break. Many professional and serious flutists actively take planned breaks over the year, just as professional and serious athletes pursue “detraining.” The mind and body accrue tremendous fatigue – or worse – if the state of training is constant. Be open to the possibility your time off will help you emerge stronger and refreshed in the long run!