Why Does my Flute Sound Fuzzy?
One common issue with flute tone is the “fuzzy” sound. Generally, this refers to a sound which lacks focus and clarity. This article is intended to be a troubleshooting guide to help you identify why your tone sounds fuzzy and how you can fix it.
The most common causes of a fuzzy flute sound are:
- Not using enough air/using a slow airstream
- Lip plate is too high or low on your mouth
- The hole in your mouth is too large
- Smiling/frowning as you play
- Rolling too far in/out
- Leaks/gunk buildup
Some flutists who complain of a fuzzy sound also report a sudden drop in tone quality. Some of the above causes (namely #2 and #6) are more likely than the others to occur in experienced musicians, and as such are also more likely to be the culprits of a sudden loss of tone quality.
Keep in mind that if you are a beginner, it may not be the case that your tone has gotten worse. Your ears may have gotten better, making you more aware of your own sound. You will hopefully still benefit from this article if this is true for you, but just keep in mind that you shouldn’t treat the issue as a “sudden loss” of tone. Rather, treat the issue as a consistently low quality of tone, which this article is also aimed to help you with.
| Cause | Solution | How common it is in beginners/experienced flutists |
| Not using enough air/using a slow airstream | The “paper trick” | More common for beginners |
| Lip plate is too high or low on your mouth | Experiment with a mirror and notice changes | Happens to both; may cause sudden tone loss in experienced flutists |
| The hole in your mouth is too large | Draw the middle of the lips closer together | Mostly beginners |
| Smiling/frowning as you play | Relax corners of the mouth | Mostly beginners |
| Rolling too far in/out | Try rolling out first, if possible | May happen to both, but less common with experience |
| Leaks/gunk buildup | Find a repair person | Can happen to anyone |
Cause #1: Not using enough air or using a slow airstream
This is a basic issue which generally affects beginners. The flute requires a lot of air, and it requires a fast airstream in order to produce a substantial sound. Make sure that you are inhaling full breaths and using a fast airstream for all registers of the flute (not just the upper register).
There is a simple trick that you can use to make sure that you are using enough air, sometimes called the “paper trick.” Take a sheet of notebook paper and place it flat on a wall about five inches in front of you. Inhale fully, and then try to keep the paper on the wall using just your air. You will need to use a lot of air in order to keep it on the wall, and that is the same amount of air that you should be using to play the flute.
Though a shallow airstream is a common problem for flutists to have, experienced musicians who have been taught to breathe properly will likely not have much of an issue with it. If you are a flutist who normally has a good sound and you have only recently begun sounding fuzzy, then this is most likely not the issue.
Cause #2: Lip plate is too high/too low
This issue is fairly common for both beginners and experienced flutists. If you are an experienced flutist who has suddenly experienced a drop in tone quality, you may want to experiment with the position of your lip plate. It is not at all uncommon for flutists to shift the position of their flute without noticing, and this results in a worse sound.
It is easiest to fix this with experimentation and a mirror. Look at the position of your flute on your face as you play, and make small adjustments. If you tend to alternate between having a good sound and having a fuzzy sound, then try looking in the mirror during the times that you sound good as well. The idea is to learn what it feels like and where the flute is positioned when you sound good, so that you can easily make the necessary adjustments when your sound is bad.
In general, the blow-hole of the flute should be placed at the lower line of your bottom lip. If you have larger lips, then you can place it slightly above that point. Again, it requires some experimentation and a mirror to determine the exact spot that is right for you.
Cause #3: The hole in your mouth is too large
This is typically another beginner issue. Generally, the size of the hole in our mouth is used to adjust volume and pitch, but in general it should remain fairly small. Using too large of a hole makes it difficult to properly direct the airstream, resulting in a sound which is unfocused.
Fortunately, this issue is easy to fix by simply using a smaller aperture in your mouth. Using a smaller aperture increases the speed of your airstream without any of the reducing tone quality the way that simply blowing harder typically does.
I find that the easiest way to accomplish this is to place your attention on the middle of the lips. Don’t worry about the corners; these tend to seal themselves. Just try to draw the middle portion of your lips closer together, and the issue should mostly fix itself.
Cause #4: Smiling/frowning as you play
You want your face to be relaxed as you play the flute. The problem with smiling as you play is that it causes you to tighten your mouth and lips, resulting in a lower quality of sound. You also shouldn’t be frowning as you play; this causes the same problem. In general, pulling the corners of your lips outward is not a good thing to do on the flute (you also do not want to pull them inward, however; this results in “kissing” lips which is also bad for your sound).
Again, the best way to fix this issue is with a mirror. Look at your face and try to determine whether you are smiling or frowning, or if you are pulling the corners of your lips outward at all. Generally, I do not consciously try to control the corners of my mouth when playing the flute. Try to make adjustments and develop muscle memory for having your mouth in the correct position.
Cause #5: Rolling too far in or out
Rolling your flute in or out alters the angle at which your airstream hits the back of the blow-hole. Flutists sometimes use this as a means of adjusting their pitch if it is too sharp or too flat. However, this is not the ideal way to adjust pitch because it can also have a negative impact on tone quality. One common mistake is for flutists to play with their flute too far in or out by default, and this produces a fuzzy sound.
The natural tendency of most flutists is to roll in, making the pitch go flat and overall harming their tone. My recommendation is to try rolling out first, and seeing if that makes a difference. If you are already rolled out, try rolling in. This is another process which is best done through experimentation.
Cause #6: Leaks or gunk buildup
In some cases the issue has nothing to do with you and is only because of your flute. One possibility is the buildup of gunk in the embouchure hole, which will almost certainly cause a worse quality of sound. Make sure that you are swabbing the flute after each time that you play, and gently clean out the inside of the embouchure hole with a Q-tip and alcohol about once per year. This issue is generally easily avoidable with some effort.
Leaks are unfortunately more difficult to prevent, and may not always be easy to catch. The biggest tell that you might have a leak is if the notes that use more length of the flute are particularly resistant. If the problem is a leak, then your open C# (and probably your C and B) should all sound fine unless the leak is in one of the first few keys. However, the notes that require many keys (such as D) will likely sound bad.
The way to diagnose this is to start on a note which should sound fine even if there is a leak. Start on your open C#, for instance. Gradually descend from your starting note, adding one key each time. Pay careful attention to the point at which you start to sound bad. If you can identify a specific point, then the culprit is probably a leak. Keep in mind that in order for it to be a leak, you need to be sounding bad in multiple registers. If both your low D and middle D sound bad (assuming that your C# and B both sound fine) then you may have a leak.
The only real solution to a leak is to take your flute to a skilled repair person. There are temporary fixes, such as pressing the problematic keys down with more pressure, but this is ultimately bad for the flute and bad for your playing. You will likely want to get this fixed as soon as possible if you are playing on a regular basis.
Conclusion
Regardless of whether you are a beginner or advanced flutist, it is worthwhile to experiment with the various solutions above if you find yourself having a fuzzy sound. Sometimes it can take a while to diagnose the cause of a bad sound, so in some cases trial and error is the best approach.
Try not to become discouraged – having a bad sound at times is part of playing nearly every instrument. It is not unheard of even for professional musicians to experience a loss in tone quality at times. I hope that the above tips provide any amount of help in avoiding this issue and becoming a better flutist.
