Mujitsu and Tairaku's Shakuhachi BBQ

Hi Chuck,

Well, one thing I just started practising is changing the pitch by altering the position of the tongue(back n forth - roughly). Having the jaw down and relaxed and the tongue raised. I have been able to alter the pitch by about 0.75 of a tone. I kinda like it because I have more accuracy in my tongue than in my neck.

Cheers,

Marek

Last edited by marek (2007-10-01 10:19:36)

As Marek said, experiment with the position of the tongue. You can change the position of the tongue by thinking different vowel sounds. Try singing aaa-eee-uuu-eee-ooo. You will notice that the eee sound is the brightest. I know there are different eee sounds based on language. Try eee as in 'bee'.

It is not only the shape of the tongue that changes. You can keep this shape by just thinking eee. It takes many years of practice and tuition to use vowel sounds effectively in your tone. It is a technique used by many wind players to develop tone and resonance.

I'm not sure of it will change the pitch by 20-30 cents. The tuning of some of the high notes on your shakuhachi may need adjustment. Hope this helps.

chuck091956 wrote:

Hello All,

I've been trying to get my pitch more accurate. I use a tuner and in the otsu register I can nail it pretty good. When I hit ro in kan, still not too bad.

I use the Shakuhachi Auto Tuner and a hand held when I'm out, both show kan tsu through chi about %20 to %30 low.

I've been able to raise the pitch a little by blowing harder but tension in the upper lip, angle of the flute.... etc.. have not yet resulted in accurate pitch.


Any training advise on raising the pitch in kan register?

Chuck Peck

Hi Chuck,  Have you learned how to Kari yet? Kari is usually described as lifting the chin or blowing at a harder angle across the utaguchi. This raises the pitch. I personally like to blow to one of the top corners of the utaguchi to raise the pitch. It doesn't take a lot of air, just tighter, focused embouchure.

Let us know what happens.

Best, Perry

If you've never taken any individual lessons, it's possible that you're unconsciously doing something that makes it more difficult to get the tones in tune. Sometimes even a few minutes with a teacher can get you on the right track.

hi Chuck,
when you get in the high register try to bend the note (s)
Go Up an down. So, meri-kari in one breath.Put the tuner in front of you. In this way you can hear & see the difference.

G