FLUTE:
The following people played flute:
 Leonardo da Vinci, George Washington, John Quincy Adams, James Madison, Henry the 8th,
Frederick the Great, King of Prussia, Nicholas II, Czar of Russia, Peter Tchaikovsky, Hector Berlioz, Noah Webster, Henry David Thoreau, Alyssa Milano, Gwen Stefani.

How to get a good sound:

• Sit up straight.  In fact, it's easiest to play with a good tone while standing. Make sure your back is straight up and down when you are sitting and don't slouch!
• Hold your flute up. You've probably been told this at least a thousand times, but it can affect your tone if you hold the flute too low. You should hold it about 20 degrees below parallel. When you hold it any lower you collapse your stomach area and cannot take a proper breath or support the tone. If you hold it any higher you will create tension in your right arm.
• Balance the flute. This is related, but not the same thing as correct posture. There are four points of balance when holding up a flute: the chin, left thumb, right thumb, and right pinky. The lip plate should rest in the hollow between your lip and chin, and you should feel a gentle pressure on the gums of your lower teeth. Your flute should rest just above the lowest knuckle of your left pointer finger, above where the finger meets the hand. The flute should rest on the tip of the right thumb, underneath or slightly behind the flute, between the F and E keys. Your right pinky finger should then land naturally on the E flat key. Once in this position it should feel very natural, and the flute should "float", allowing you to produce a good sound.
•  Breathe correctly. Take a deep breath with your belly, not your upper torso, before playing. You should see your belly physically expand. Imagine that you are vibrating the whole length of your flute.
• Remember to support the air stream. In-tune notes always sound better, mainly in ensemble settings.
• Shape your lips. Making the hole in your lips smaller can produce a better tone. The air stream is more direct and you do not use as much air. On the other hand, make sure not to make the hole too small, or you can cut off the airflow and get an airy or forced sound.

Want to listen to some sweet, famous flute pieces? Search any of these:

Links:
Flute.com  (all the information you would ever need!)
 fluteworld.com (music, and cool info.)
 flutesonsale.com (look at wicked expensive instruments)
 makingmusicisfun.net (getting a good sound, and free music)
 fluteinfo.com (duh, flute info.)
 childrensmusicworkshop.com (sound examples and free music)
www.free-scores.com (free music!)

Crazy Flute Fun and jokes:
A tutor who tooted the flute,
Tried to teach two young tooters to toot;
Said the two to the tutor,
'Is it harder to toot or
To tutor two tooters to toot?

Q: What's the definition of a minor second?
A: Two flutes playing a unison.

Flute players spend half their time tuning their instrument and the other half playing out of tune.

Q: Why do loud, obnoxious whistles exist at some factories?
A: To give us some sort of appreciation for flutes.

Q: What is perfect pitch on a flute?
A: When it misses the rim of the toilet as you throw it in.

CLARINET:

The following people played clarinet:
Julia Roberts, Woody Allen, Steven Speilberg.
Amazing talents include: Eddie Daniels, Benny Goodman

Check it out here…how to get a great sound!

Embouchure = position of your mouth, lips, jaw muscles, and teeth.

The embouchure's job is to apply pressure to the reed in such a way that the control and freedom are perfect in the reed's vibrations, and this makes you have awesome sound. How do you do it?

• The jaw does this by dropping open and moving slightly forward into a fixed position and remaining there in "neutral." Don’t move it!!!!
• The lip muscles remain firm to resist and cushion the upward, inward movement of the mouthpiece/reed wedge.
• The lower lip should not "give in" to the force of the mouthpiece and allow itself to be pushed into the mouth and over the lower teeth.
• The upper lip should also be firm and in contact with the surface of the mouthpiece. Most players who play the clarinet with the teeth on the mouthpiece (single lip) find a textured mouthpiece patch. (Runyon black patches)
• Your chin should pull down and flat against the jaw bone. (This muscular action of the chin happens virtually automatically when the tongue goes into its high/back position.)
• The upper teeth should not "bite" down on the mouthpiece surface.
• The clarinet requires the tongue position to be quite high and back in the roof of the mouth. To demonstrate, try saying "wheeee," or create a hissing sound by bringing the tongue to the roof of the mouth. Notice that the sides of the tongue are touching the inside of the upper-back teeth on either side of the mouth.

Many students who are playing flat in are playing with a tongue position that is low and forward in the mouth--as if they were saying goooo. THIS IS WRONG!

Go to google.com and search “clarinet fingering chart.” It’s cool!

Tonguing = you need to know how to do this (credit to Julie DeRoche)
When the reed is vibrating, it will create sound.

When it is not, there will be silence.

There are two ways to create this silence. One is to stop the air. The other is to stop the reed.

Starting a note merely requires letting go of the reed. Many clarinet players are under the mistaken impression that we must start a note with the force of the tongue. Rather, we must start a note with the air while simply removing the tongue from the reed, allowing it to vibrate. We then gently return the tongue to the reed in order to make it stop again.

To learn how to accomplish this, first practice articulation motion without the clarinet.

Close your mouth and think about the position of your tongue while it is at rest. It is most likely lying along the roof of your mouth, and the “tip of the top” of the tongue is resting gently behind your front teeth. This is the tongue’s natural and relaxed position.

Now open your mouth slightly, keeping your tongue relaxed and high, without altering the forward or backward position of the tongue. Inhale, and then replace the tip of your tongue on the roof of your mouth (or gum line) just behind the front teeth.

Think the syllable “tee.” Let go of the air, or blow, while “saying” this syllable; do not actually use the vocal chords. Merely blow the tongue off of the roof of your mouth, lightly and without any tension or force of the tongue. Let the air do the majority of the work.

Repeat this action until you are sure that you are moving only the tip of your tongue. Most of your tongue remains stationary, and the tip of the tongue moves in a small downward motion. Be sure to articulate this syllable from the gum line behind your top teeth. Do not allow your tongue to touch the back of your top or bottom teeth or your bottom lip.

Now try to repeat this motion while playing your clarinet.

When you place the mouthpiece in your mouth, the tip of the reed will be just behind your top teeth, in almost exactly the same place as described above, near your gum line. However, instead of moving your tongue off the roof of your mouth, you will now move it off the reed.

Inhale. Touch the reed with the “tip of the top” of your tongue, very slightly below the tip or top edge of the reed. Think the syllable “tee.” Using the exact same motion that you used while practicing without the clarinet, remove your tongue from the tip of the reed. When you release the reed, release your air. If you have taken a good breath, your reed will vibrate the very instant it is released.


When you want it to stop again, return the tongue to the exact position from which you just removed it. You do not have to push the reed in order to stop it. Since you are now articulating at the thinnest point of your reed, you may merely touch it and it will stop.

Practice this very slowly, on one note, repeating the “tee, tee, tee” syllable until you are sure that you are achieving the correct articulation motion. You will hear that your tone quality and pitch are consistent, you will feel that your tongue is relaxed, and you will find there is no noise associated with your articulation.

Be sure that you do not stop the air between notes. Use your air as if you were playing a long tone. Your tongue is now creating the silence between notes. Very little of your tongue is moving, so it will be easy to gain speed.

When you are comfortable with your articulation motion, it is time to address the coordination of your tongue with your fingers. Every clarinetist has had moments when this seems to get jumbled. This is because if you move your fingers while your tongue is off the reed, you will get more than one note—a slur.

The secret to good tongue-and-finger coordination in an articulated passage is that they must work opposite each other. You move your tongue off the reed and back on while your fingers remain unmoving on the clarinet. Then you move your fingers while your tongue rests on the reed, during the silence.

To practice this, play a scale, such as C-major, in slow motion. Begin with your fingers on low C. Take a good breath. Using the articulation motion that you practiced as described above, move your tongue off the reed to play the note, and then replace it. You have played low C.

While the tongue rests on the reed, and while keeping the air support behind the reed, move your finger to low D. Your tongue has stopped the reed’s vibration and you are able to move your finger during the resultant silence. Once you remove your tongue again, the D will sound. Replace your tongue and you will again have silence.

Continue practicing this for the remaining notes of your scale. Do not wait to move your fingers until just before you play the next note in your scale. Instead, move them immediately after you finish the note you have just played.

To change the length of notes, you merely change the amount of time that your tongue is off the reed. Using the articulation motion that you have just learned, move the tongue off and on the reed quickly to create staccato notes. To create legato, you do this more slowly.

The word “staccato” does not mean to tongue in a harder way. It means to play the note shorter—or to create more space between notes. “Legato” means to play the notes longer, with very little space between the notes.
Accents are achieved by using the air with a burst of speed, not with a harder tongue.

Famous pieces to check out that have clarinet:
Mendelssohn: Overture Midsummer Night's Dream
George Gershwin: Rhapsody in Blue
Aerosmith: Ragdoll
The Beatles: When I’m 64
www.the-clarinets.net/english/clarinet-music.html  (link to this and you can listen to tons!!)

Links:
http://musiced.about.com/od/beginnersguide/a/clarinetlessons.htm (lessons and facts)
www.clarinetinstitute.com/pdf archive.htm  (free music…warning..this is hard stuff!)
www.8notes.com/clarinet_sheet_music.asp (free music!)
www.free-scores.com/free-sheet-music.php?CATEGORIE=100 (free music!)

Clarinet Jokes:

Q: Why do clarinetists leave their cases on the dashboard?
A: So they can park in the handicap zones.

Q: What do you call a bass-clarinetist with half a brain?
A: Gifted.

Q: What is the difference between a clarinet and an onion?
A: Nobody cries when you chop a clarinet into little pieces.

Q: How do know a clarinet player is playing loud?
A: You can almost hear them.

Q: How do you get a clarinet player to play louder?
A: You can't!

Q: What do you call 20 clarinetists at the bottom of the ocean?
 A: A good start.

Q: How do you make a saxophone sound like a clarinet?
A: Miss a lot of notes...

Q: What do call a line setup by clarinets?
A: A circle

SAXOPHONE:
Famous people who played the sax: Bill Clinton, Alan Greenspan, David Letterman, Pamela Anderson, Jennifer Garner, Teddy Bruschi, Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails, and Bob Hope. Amazing talents include John Coltrane, Charlie Parker, Sonny Rollins, and Eric Dolphy (Dolphy was known to play two saxes at the same time!!)
Getting a good sound:

• The reed should be centered squarely on the mouthpiece
• The tip of the reed should be level with the tip of the mouthpiece
• You may find adjusting the ligature slightly up or down improves the air movement through the reed.

Mouth Position

• Draw the lower lip back over the teeth
• Rest the reed lightly on the lower lip
• Make sure the jaw muscles are relaxed
• The upper teeth rest gently on the mouthpiece - without biting!

The face should be thought of as a syllable of Poh, P O H, with a cushioned lower lip, corners firm but not taut, and a bunched chin.

Famous Pieces that have sax parts!!
Pink Panther - Original Tenor Sax by Plas Johnson
Yakety Sax - Tenor Sax by Boots Randolph
Tequila – The Champs
Waiting on a Friend (Rolling Stones, Sonny Rollins, sax solo)
Still Crazy (Paul Simon, Michael Brecker sax solo)
Following its origins in military band music, big band and jazz, the sax found a bit of a niche in rhythm and blues, early rock and roll, Motown, soul and funk styles from the '50s throughout the '70s. The instrument's popularity rose considerably in mainstream pop/rock during the later part of that period, as Clarence Clemons of the E Street Band made major progress toward turning the sax into a showcase piece. In 1978, the sax reached a pinnacle of sorts in terms of prominence, as Gerry Rafferty's classic single "Baker Street" would not have half the impact it does without its central, haunting sax line.

Links:
www.philbrodieband.com/muso_solos_saxophonists.htm
www.ehow.com/video_6976794_humming-blowing-beginner-saxophone-techniques.html
(the second link as awesome to watch as you set your mouth to get a good sound!)
www.free-scores.com (free music!)
www.8notes.com (free music!)
www.last.fm/tag/saxophone (saxophone radio on Last FM…cool)
www.music-scores.com/altosax/composer.php (free music!)
Sax jokes:

What is the difference between Kenny G and a machine gun?
   The machine gun repeats only 10 times per second.

Why did the lead alto player play so many wrong notes?
   Because he kept ignoring the key signature-- he thought it was a suggestion.

What's the difference between a lawnmower and a tenor sax?
  1. Lawnmowers sound better in small ensembles.
  2. You can tune a lawnmower.
  3. The neighbors are upset if you borrow a lawnmower and don't return it.
  4. The grip.

What are trumpets made out of?
  Leftover saxophone parts.

What is the difference between a saxophone and a trampoline?
  You take your shoes off to jump on a trampoline.

TRUMPET:
Famous people who played the trumpet: Drew Carey, Steven Tyler, Justin Bieber, Richard Gere.  Amazing talents include: Maurice André, Louis Armstrong, Herb Alpert, Dizzy Gillepsie, Miles Davis, and Wynton Marsalis.

Also: Neil Armstrong (first guy to walk on the moon) played Baritone!

How to sound amazing on trumpet:

• Pretend there is a really sour lemon candy in your mouth. Notice how your lips scrunch together?  Without using the trumpet yet, pucker your lips as if you've just tasted something really sour.
• Keeping your lips in the same puckered position, try blowing air through your mouth piece ONLY.  Be sure not to puff your cheeks out. You should hear a buzzing sound come out. That's good. Try to keep the sound constant until you run out of breath. After you can hold the pitch steady, try to make the note go higher or lower.
• Using only the mouthpiece, play Happy Birthday, America, or Twinkle.

• Attach the trumpet to the mouthpiece and aim your air through the entire horn. Focus your air like you are using the trumpet as a hose and you need to blow out a small fire across the room. Hold your note (pitch) steady!

• Avoid puffing your cheeks and try this in a mirror so you can see yourself.

• To make a higher note, make your lips a little tighter and keep your air stream constant. Try not to jam the trumpet into your face to reach those higher notes.

• To make a lower note, make your lips a little looser, still keeping the buzzing feeling on your lips in place. If you make your lips too loose, your lips will not vibrate and only air will come out of your horn. If you're having trouble with the lower notes, try an even deeper breath and more air.
  

Famous pieces for trumpet:
Haydn’s Trumpet Concerto
Hummel's Trumpet Concerto
Bugler’s Holiday
Trumpeter’s lullaby
Trumpeter’s Prayer
Throne Room (Fanfare from Star Wars IV A New Hope)
Chicago (anything they wrote before 1982)
Tower of Power
Johann Sebastian Bach’s Brandenberg Concerto No.  2

Links:
http://jazztrumpetlicks.com/tag/sound-sample/   (amazing site with licks and riffs to listen to!)
http://www.8notes.com/trumpet/ (free music that you can print)
http://www.beginband.com/trumpet.shtml  (cool brain food)

Trumpet jokes:

What's the difference between a trumpet player and the rear end of a horse?
  I don't know either.

What's the difference between trumpet players and government bonds?
  Government bonds eventually mature and earn money.

What's the difference between a trumpet and a chain saw?
  Vibrato, though you can minimize this difference by holding the chain saw very still.

What is a gentleman?
  Somebody who knows how to play the trumpet, but doesn't.

How many trumpets does it take to change a light bulb?
  Just one, but he'll do it too loudly.

Why can't gorillas play trumpet?
  Gorillas are too sensitive.

How to trumpet players traditionally greet each other?
  "Hi, nice to meet you. I'm better than you."

Why did the chicken cross the road?
  To get away from the trumpet players.

4 trumpet players are in a minivan. The minivan goes off a cliff. What's the tragedy in this?
  You can fit 8 trumpet players in a minivan.

Three famous trumpet players are up in an airplane. One of them says, "I'll throw out a 100 dollar bill and make someone very happy." The one next to him says, "I'll throw out two 50 dollar bills, and make two people very happy." The other one said, "I'll throw five 20's out the door, and make five people happy." The pilot, who was their conductor, said, "Why don't all three of you jump, and make the whole band very happy?"

TROMBONE:
Famous people who played trombone: Paul Newman, Nelly Furtado, NASCAR's Tony Stewart, and Bill Engvall (Larry the Cable Guy). www.jacobgarchik.com/famous.html

How to get a good sound on trombone:

• Check out the mouthpiece buzzing information on the trumpet page.
• Develop an ideal trombone sound in your mind. Listen to as many great trombonists as you can, whether they're jazz or classical players. Even if you don't have access to recordings, you can surf the Web and likely be able to hear samples of great classical players like Christian Lindberg, Alain Trudel, Joe Alessi, and more, or great jazz artists like Urbie Green, Tommy Dorsey, (the list could be in the hundreds!).

• Play long tones. Try playing something as simple as a B flat scale, holding each note as long as you can while emulating the sound of your favorite player. Try to think of filling your practice room with sound (not loud, just full). You can also try playing your favorite songs at incredibly slow tempos. Some people even practice long tones while watching sports on TV (with the sound off, of course.)

• Use proper air support. Low range requires large volumes of air delivered at relatively low pressure. High range requires a small volume of air delivered at high pressure. Be sure to use the diaphragm to support the air flow. This is particularly important in the high range.

Trombone Links:

www.ita-web.org/index.cfm (International Trombone Association)
www.freesheetmusic.net/Brass1.html (free music!)
www.8notes.com/trombone_sheet_music.asp (free music!)
http://tbonegib.podbean.com/2010/05/31/episode-152-free-trombone-sheetmusic-read-below/ (online trombone lessons!)

Trombone jokes:
How do you make a trombone sound better?
a)Run it over with a lawnmower.

What's the first position a trombonist learns?
a)Head tilted, arm above it, finger scratching scalp.

What's the difference between a trombone section and a saxophone section?
a)The Trombone's weren't meant to sound like 2 cats in a fight, but they do.

How many trombone players does it take to pave a driveway?
a)One if you spread him really thin.

How do you make a trombone player drive faster?
a)Take the pizza sign off the top of his car.

Why did the trombone player cross the expressway during rush hour?
a)Good question.

What do the letters pp mean to a trombone player?
a)1. An opportunity for an improvised solo.
a)2. A polite reminder that he has been playing too loud for the past 5 minutes.

How do you get a trombone player to play slower?
a)Put a page of music in front of him.

How do you get him to stop completely?
a)Put notes on the page.

PERCUSSION:
Famous Percussion and drum peeps: Johnny Carson, Mike Piazza (baseball player), John Stamos, Bill Cosby, Dana Carvey, Chevy Chase, Randy Johnson, Carmen Electra.
How to get a great snare drum sound:  (since there are many percussion instruments, I picked snare, and gave you some links for other percussion instruments)

• Play in the middle with your hands even. Check your grip. Your hands should form an upside down V in proper position.
• Use wrist and fingers, not full arm.
• Keep shoulders down and relaxed.
• Your drum should be a little higher than your waist when you are standing behind it.
• If the top head shows wrinkles, or can be pushed in easily, you should use your drum key and tighten each lug ¼ to ½ a turn. Use the cross tuning method.
• Make sure your snares are not loose and rattling. They are the metal wires across the bottom drum head. Use a small screwdriver to adjust the screws on the throw-off (on the side), pull the snares tight, and tighten the screws.

Percussion jokes:
I asked my drummer to spell "Mississippi"...
  a) He said, "The river or the state?"

How do you know if a drummer's platform is level?
  a) The drool comes out of both sides of his mouth.

How do trumpet players park in the handicap spots?
  a) They put drumsticks on the dash.

Did you hear about the drummer who got into college?
  a) No...Neither did I.

Why do bands have bass players?
  a) To translate for the drummer.

How do you call a drummer?
  a) You can't. They don't pay their phone bill.

What should you call a drummer?
  a) It doesn't matter. They won't listen anyway.

How do you confuse a drummer?
  a) Give him a piece of sheet music.

A new customer walks into the new store on the block that sells brains. There are three glass cases, each containing a nice wet quivering grey brain. The first one says "Astrophysicist", and it costs $10. The second says "Avon Salesman" and costs $1000. The third says "Drummer" and costs $10,000. The customer is confused, and questions the salesperson. "I don't get it...why would I want a drummer's brain for $10,000 when I can get an astrophysicists' for $10?"
  a) The salesman replies, "Because it's never been used."

Percussion links:
www.drummerworld.com/forums/index.php (online questions, and information)
www.vidfirth.com (see videos of the rudiments, and online lessons plus solos you can print)
www.drumbum.com (millions of links to online lessons)
www.drumlinks.com/ (lots of good stuff here)

BELLS:
Famous piano people who could also have jammed on xylo or bells: www.playpiano.com/Articles/37-famouspeoplepiano.htm

To get a good sound on the bells I cannot say it any better than this Vic Firth link…go here and read it..
www.vicfirth.com/education/articles/Wessels.html

This link gives you online lessons and tips to read better, so you don’t have to memorize all of your music!!
www.vicfirth.com/education/keyboard/wessels.html

In high school, and in marching or drum coprs (www.dci.org), mallet players are in what is known as “the pit.” This is not a bad term, and most likely comes from orchestra pit, where the musicians are down in front. “The pit” is down in front of the marching band too, and is usually on the sideline, but sometimes, pit members are put on the field.
Also called the Front Ensemble. And also the section that adds great music while having to push around enormous instruments and often get really strong wrists and fingers from all the practicing. The section that takes the most work, concentration, and definitely puts in the most practice hours.