386: M U S 
To become a good performer on this inftrument, the 
ftudent muft begin by acquiring a proper emboucheure, fo 
as to procure a clear, full, and fweet, tone; a talk far more 
difficult than is generally imagined. Every one can pro¬ 
duce a tone on a common flute, but few are able, without 
teaching, to make the German flute fpeak. Theinftru- 
inent, being blown at the fide, mull be held parallel to the 
fhape of the mouth, that the ftream of air ifl’uing from the 
breath of the performer may enter in part at the Angle 
orifice in the tipper piece. Whether fitting or Handing, 
the performer muft be ereft in his carriage, the head ra¬ 
ther above than below its ufual pofition, and a little in¬ 
clining to the left flioulder; the hands high, without 
railing the elbows or the ffioulders ; the left hand bent 
out, and the fame arm near the body. If the player is 
Handing, the attitude ffiould be firm, the left foot ad¬ 
vanced, the body refting on the right hip, and the whole 
perfon free from co nit mint. The greateft care ffiould be 
taken not to move the head or body, as many do, in or¬ 
der to mark the time. The attitude ffiould have no An¬ 
gularities, nothing aukward or affected to attraft the at¬ 
tention, or prejudice the audience againlt the performer. 
With regard to the pofition of the hands, the left is to be 
at the top of the flute, which is held between the thumb 
of that hand, and the fore-finger, which ought to flop the 
upper hole ; the fecond hole with the middle finger, and 
the third by the ring finger. The right hand is to hold 
the lower part of the inftrument; the thumb of this hand, 
which muft be a little bent inwards, fupports the flute be¬ 
low, and the three fingers of this hand, the fore finger, 
the middle finger, and ring finger, flop the holes : the 
little finger ferves to prefs down the key at the tail-piece, 
or loweft joint, which key opens a hole out of the reach 
of the fingers, The flute muft be held horizontally. No 
inftruftions for the lips in blowing the flute can l'uit the 
form of all mouths; but, when the ftudent can make the 
inftrument fpeak eafilyand freely, he muft turn it in and 
out, by fmall degrees, till he gets the belt tone poffible; 
and then, beginning with the cheft well filled with wind, 
as foft as poffible to fwell by minute degrees any note to 
its utmoft power, and then to diminifti it by the fame de¬ 
grees to a thread. 
The principal and raoft ufual key of the common Ger¬ 
man flute is D major with two ffiarps; and other keys 
are proportionably unfit for it, as they are farther re¬ 
moved from this key. The additional keys and joints of 
which we are prefently to fpeak, are intended to facilitate 
the playing in different keys, as well as to extend the 
fcale. The moft proper paffages for the flute, are fweet 
and foft melodies. In full parts, high and lengthened 
notes are given to it in modern mufic ; and indeed the 
general ufe of wind-inftruments in the full parts of mo¬ 
dern mufic is to fuftain the principal or eifential notes of 
the harmony, and to fupply the want of voices or of the 
organ. 
The original compafs of this inftrument was from 
the loweft D in the treble to A in alt. This at leaft 
was the extent of the fcale in 1752, when Quantz pub- 
liffied his M'tthode de la Flute, who was the great king of 
Pruffia’s mafter on that inftrument, and the firft who added 
keys to corredt and clear the bad notes. In the folio 
Encyclopedic, torne vi. there is a fcale of all the tones, 
femitones, and ffiakes, poffible on the inftrument, with 
an additional half-note, C* or Db, below the ufual loweft 
note of its compafs, and three notes above A in alt, the 
higheft note of Quantz’s fcale. Quantz tells us, that in 
the year 1620 the German-flute had no key to make D* or 
Eh ; and that it was then called the Swifs flute. It was 
the French who added the firft key; but it was not known 
by whom or when. Quantz himfelf added a fecond key 
in the year 1726, and, about 1732, a third. Tacet was the 
firft to adopt thefe additional keys, and he added two 
others, but more for parade than ufe, for he feldom ufed 
them all; and indeed, the management of five keys in 
rapid performance, (fays Dr. Burney,) “ would be as 
I c. 
difficult as running divifions on an organ, with all the 
five ffiort keys fplit into quarter-tones.” Potter’s patent- 
flute, however, has Jeven keys; and fome have fince been 
made with nine. Flute-players are alfo indebted to Quantz 
for the invention (in 1752) of the new joint for the upper 
piece of the flute, by which, without drawing out the mid¬ 
dle piece, and without hurting the tone, the inftrument 
may be raifed or loweredhalfa note. 
On Plate XXI. fig. 1. reprefents a German flute with 
all the additional keys; and at fig. 2. is Whetftone’s pa¬ 
tent mouth-piece, for obviating the difficulty of obtain¬ 
ing a good method of blowing. This little machine 
Aides over the mouth-hole, and reduces the embouchure 
to the fame certainty and eafe as that of the flute a bee. 
But this is nothing to what we have read (for indeed we 
have not feen or heard it) of the invention of the late 
Mr. Hogben, the furgeon, who, “ being of a delicate form, 
and fubjedt to cough, found that playing the flute.af- 
fedled his breathing, and gave him fome alarm by an af¬ 
fection on the cheft ; fo that he found it neceffary, in or- 
der to continue the gratification which he derived from 
this inftrument, to contrive an artificial breath for it. 
This he accompliffied fo perfectly and fo conveniently, 
that he could Jing and play at the fame time. This notable 
piece of mechanifm, is now in the pofl'effion of his fur- 
viving brother.” Gent. Mag. Sept. 1815. 
Many other improvements, or, at leaft, innovations, 
have been applied to this inftrument fince the time of 
Quantz; and, for fome of them, patents have been obtained. 
Potter’s patent-flute is fumilhed with metallic Hoppers, 
for the holes under the keys, inftead of leather.. 
Mr. Malcolm M c Gregor, of Bell-yard, Temple-bar, 
received the filver-medal and twenty guineas from the 
Society of Arts in the year 1813, for an improved Ger¬ 
man flute, which he prefented to the fociety, accompa¬ 
nied with certificates from various eminent performers-. 
The objeCt of Mr. M‘Gregor’s improvement is, to give 
the means of tuning the inftrument perfectly, when re¬ 
quired to alter its pitch, which can be done to the extent 
of a note above, or half a note below, the concert-pitch, 
making an extent of a note and a half in the whole ; by 
which means a piece of mufic may be performed in a dif¬ 
ferent or eafier key from that in which it is compofed ; 
while the fame alteration of the pitch, being attempted 
upon other German flutes, would put them confiderably 
out of tune, fo as not to be endured. This is accom¬ 
pliffied by making the inftrument draw out proportionate¬ 
ly at all the feveral joints which unite its parts ; by this 
means, when the cork or ftopple is drawn out to lengthen 
the tube, and thus to lower the pitch of the inftrument, 
the feveral joints alio admit of the tube being, lengthened 
in its different parts, fo that the feveral fpaces between 
the holes will bear the fame relative proportion to the 
whole tube, in its lengthened Hate, as they did before the 
alteration; by this means the found, produced by all the 
different parts of the tube, will accord, or be in tune 
with each other. Mr. M'Gregor deferibes his contrivance 
as follows : “ The flute is made, as ufual, in four lengths-, 
which are united by joints, made to draw out, in order to 
lengthen it at pleal'ure, each joint being fitted with cy¬ 
lindrical metal tubes, Aiding like thofe of telefcopes, for 
that purpofe ; the upper length has the mouth-hole in it, 
and the extreme end is ffiut up by a cork ; as this is re¬ 
quired to Aide, to alter the length of the tube, it is. ren¬ 
dered adjuftible by means of a ferew, made of ivory, and 
is part of a piece which goes completely through the cork, 
and is glued fall to it; the ferew is received into an ivory 
cap, loofely fitted into the end of the tube, and refting 
with a flat ffioulder upon the end of it; therefore, by 
turning this nut or cap round, the cork is drawn out, 
or may be puffied farther into the tube. A fmall pin, or 
tail, projects from the end of the ferew, and goes through 
a hole in the end of the cap ; it has lines or marks made 
upon it, which direft how far the cork is to be moved, 
for the purpofe of tuning the inftrument to any required 
pitch,. 
