Northern California Flute Circle

NAF Frequently Asked Question (FAQ): Why does the flute squeak sometimes?

The most common cause for squeaks is air leaking out through an improperly covered hole. When the flute squeaks, immediately freeze your fingers on the holes and see if you can repeat it. Then try adjusting your fingers and blow again. 90% of the time you will discover that one of your fingers slipped off a hole slightly or you had misplaced a finger on a hole. Another source of squeaking can be an improperly positioned bird. This typically presents itself when more than one note squeaks, and it seems like nothing is working (with your fingers) to improve the situation
Finally, you may be pushing too much air through the flute. In this case you are "overblowing" the note. For beginners, try to think "whisper" rather than "shout" as you blow into the flute. As you advance in your playing, overblowing becomes an ornamentation technique...