My conductor asked us today if the band (consisting of 130 students) thought that flute rocks or sucks. Nearly 60% raised their hands for
sucks
I simply could not believe it! And the sad part was that the 40% was mostly clarinets (who are best friends with the flutes) and the flutes (there is only 15 of us).
Tell me what youthink of this matter. Thanks
PS FLUTE PLAYERS ROCKS THE WORLD!
I know exactly how you feel, our Band Director is a Professional Brass player and he hates the Woodwinds, in particular the Flutes. Thankfully he doesn't explicitly say it but it's quite obvious... (Favouritism)..
I cannot even imagine your band teacher's intentions by purposely putting down more than 10% of the band....
Shouldn't he/she be rehearsing rather than asking blunt questions such as that?
The flute alone is an inanimate object. It's incapable of sucking.
Most flutes used by flutists in school bands also are generally metallic and so aren't comprised of "rock" so much as metallic compounds such as combinations of nickel silver and/or precious metals.
As a long time flutist and teacher of aspiring flutists I can say that dwelling on
the issue of whether flutes rock or suck is a waste of time as long as the student of the flute
is doing their best to play well.
Apparently some band directors' thought processes are a different story altogether.
My question is to ask why would this issue be brought up by any professional music instructor?
Is there nothing better that you and your flute colleagues could be doing rather than going to that band. If you do then I suggest that you go and do it. If that happened then your band leader would quickly find that flutes are a good thing to have in his band. If he doesn't then he won't miss you any way, and you will be better off somewhere else. Anyway, just in case you really need the question answering, balance your flute on one finger (so the flute is horizontal). With your other finger, gently give the end a nudge. I think that you will find that your flute rocks.
My conductor asked us today if the band (consisting of 130 students) thought that flute rocks or sucks. Nearly 60% raised their hands for
sucks
I simply could not believe it! And the sad part was that the 40% was mostly clarinets (who are best friends with the flutes) and the flutes (there is only 15 of us)
Don't be surprised. 130 students, few of them play flute. So they don't know the nature of flute.
I'd write him a formal letter, or write to your principal about that. Your band conductor shouldn't be trying to instill a competitive attitude about instrument preferences in a band. In a band, it's important to respect and appreciate each instrument because without them all together in good balance, music cannot be made.
Is there any chance that you misunderstood? Perhaps he meant that on whatever piece, the flute section sucked. If there are 15 of you, that's a LOT of flutes for one band, so that is quite unbalanced. It might help the band out if some of the flutes who aren't so enthusiastic about playing flute, could switch to another instrument (like oboe or bassoon, English horn, etc..).
Bands should be balanced like a pyramid, a large bass and middle section and a small high section. While no section is more important than another, it's very important for bands to have a very strong bass section. The higher instruments stand out so they should be like icing on the cake, not the cake itself.
But, if your band conductor is just being a buttface, I'd keep a tally in my head and if he keeps doing that, try to switch schools. If you can't do that? Just don't take it personally. Keep practicing on your own, get really good, and when you move on to college or something you can feel proud that you stuck with your instrument in spite of having a stupid conductor for so many years!
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