How to Trill Better on Flute

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How to Trill Better on Flute

Do your fingers feel slow or stuck when you’re trying to trill? You’re not alone. Here are some simple tips to learning how to trill better on flute.

Trills are one of the exciting sounds a flutist can make on their instrument, and not being able to execute them as well as you want is frustrating. Following these hints will really help you find faster, more fluent fingers, right away.

First, let’s make sure you know that a trill is usually a “tr” written in cursive writing, and placed  above the note to be trilled. This is telling you to rapidly move back and forth from the note given, to the note directly above.  You do this as many times as possible within the note value

Faster, more fluent fingers

For example, if the note is a quarter note (1 beat), then you should rapidly move between the two notes for only one beat.   You’ll want to stop trilling in time to start the next note.

f to g trill how to trill better on flute

The note shown in the image below is a second octave “F”. In this case you’d be trilling from the F to the note above which is G.  You’ll be trilling from one letter to the letter above (example: A-G, or B-C), and you’ll be slurring the notes.

*Also remember to check the key signature so you know if you should be adding a sharp or a flat.

Next, in order to learn how to trill better on flute, you want to take a close look at your hand and finger technique.

There are certain ways to hold your fingers that will help you to trill better on flute.

Here are some specifics:

*  Keep your fingers as close to the keys as possible. This creates more efficient timing between when you press a key, release, and press again.

*  Relax your knuckles. Yep – relax.   Did I say relax? Tight, stiff fingers equal slow, rigid sounding trills.

*  Press the key and then relax to make the key pop up by itself. (million dollar tip$)

And lastly, remember that repetition is your friend. Repeating this skill over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over (with the good technique mentioned above), will create some really good muscle memory. You’ll be a pro!

Want a little more in-depth information on this subject?

Learning how to trill from one note to another is awesome, and most trills will begin on the note you see in the music……., BUT, once you start playing music that was written during certain time-periods, the rules change a little bit.

Say what?

Yes, some trills actually begin on the note you are trilling to instead of the note you see. We’ll learn more about that in the lessons here at Learn Flute Online. Not only will you know how to trill better on flute, but you’ll be a smarter, savvy flutist in no time!

Have any questions? Comment below and I will help you out.

Rebecca FullerRebecca Fuller
Get Flutie with us! Learn and enjoy every musical minute.

4 thoughts on “How to Trill Better on Flute”

    1. You’re welcome, Bo. It’s good to have you here learning and improving with us! Trilling is so fun on flute. 🙂 ~Rebecca

    1. You’re welcome, Bo. It’s good to have you here learning and improving with us! Trilling is so fun on flute. 🙂 ~Rebecca

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