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The Flute and Flute-Playing in Acoustical, Technical, and Artistic Aspects Paperback – March 17, 2011

by Theobald Boehm (Author), Dayton C. Miller (Translator)

4.5 20 ratings

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The Flute and Flute Playing (Dover Books On Music: Instruments)

The flute (or closely related instrument) has been known since prehistoric times, but up until the middle of the nineteenth century it was still far from being a satisfactory instrument, despite the quantity of important music that had been written for it. Its tone was poor and thin, its volume was low, its keying system was inefficient, and it was very difficult to play.

The man who changed all this and invented the modern flute was Theobald Boehm (1794–1881), a Bavarian flute virtuoso, who played at the royal court in Munich. Boehm worked upon the flute for many years; indeed, he even went to the length of studying acoustics at the University of Munich, in order to apply the exact data and principles of the sciences to instrument design. After many years of experimentation and preliminary steps, he created the modern flute in 1847. It was silver and cylindrical, furnished with a parabolic head-joint, accurately placed finger holes, and efficient key mechanism. With only small modifications, this is the flute that is used today.
In 1871 Boehm published an account of his research and accomplishments, a book that has come to be recognized as one of the classics of musicology. In it he covered the acoustics of the instrument; the technique for establishing its proportions and keying; his new system of fingering; the key mechanism; the bass flute in G; and similar topics. In the second half of the volume he provided insights on performance, as they emerged from his remarkable virtuosity. This is not a treatise on how to play the flute, but comments upon the development of tone, finger exercises, practicing method, and interpretation, including coloratura. This book is very clearly written and requires no technical knowledge of its reader. It has long been a favorite not only of flutists but also of musicologists, acousticians, and lay persons interested in music.
This edition of Boehm's work, translated by Dayton C. Miller of the Case School of Applied Science, also contains biographical notes about Boehm, a list of Boehm's musical compositions, a short bibliography, and a critical introduction. More than 50 musical excerpts and illustrations accompany the text, while the renowned contemporary flutist Samuel Baron has written a new Introduction for the Dover edition.

Print length

240 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Dover Publications
Publication date

March 17, 2011
Dimensions

5.5 x 0.5 x 8 inches
ISBN-10

0486212599
ISBN-13

978-0486212593
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

German inventor Theobald Boehm (1794–1881) was a composer as well as a virtuoso flautist and perfected the modern Western concert flute. He established new finger patterns that remain in common use, invented both the key mechanism and the concept of the conical rather than cylindrical flute, and was the first to make flutes from metal.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Dover Publications; 2nd edition (March 17, 2011)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 240 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0486212599
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0486212593
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 8.2 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.5 x 8 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #2,312,294 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #758 in Flutes (Books)
- #2,496 in Music Techniques (Books)
- #4,273 in Classical Music (Books)

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4.5 20 ratings

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Amanda E.

A piece of history on the modern flute

Reviewed in the United States on June 1, 2022

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A great read and glimpse into the inventor of the modern flute and its history. Every modern flute player and maker today is greatly indebted to this excellent man.

The book is quite technical in the first section, very appealing to flute makers and technicians. The second section focuses on flute playing and is helpful to all flutists.

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AgogoLIVE

1964 Edition - a surprisingly fascinating (I concur!) read with insights into the accoustical evolution of the Boehm flute

Reviewed in the United States on June 4, 2012

Verified Purchase

The tale of why your flute does what it does when you do what with it.

A true classic that is deserving a spot on your bookshelf in honour of the man who dared challenge convention to deliver us the silver boehm flute today a far superior instrument to that of its predecessor over 180 years ago. And saved us from a till then largely unchanged primitive flute which is near impossible to play.

Upshot: Purchased the book as an afterthought, nearly dismissing it as relic work, I stand corrected and found intriguing insights on accoustical aspects in here which helps a little in the artistic aspects of flute playing. A knowledgebase of historical development of the boehm flute and its anatomy with precise measurements. I concur with my fellow reviewer that Boehm's openness and technical journey does make fascinating reading.

1964 (Second English) Edition - What are the changes between this and the 2011 2nd Edition?

I've just procured a 2nd hand copy of this book via amazon.com and just realised it's an old 1964 Edition.
There does not appear to be any change in the contents of this publication compared with later publications.

THIS ONE IS A Dover Publication NY: A dull blue cover paperback (8x6") with darkened silhouette images of (the mid joints of) two flutes (not per inset pic which is purplish)
It is a good quality 1964 reproduction of Dayton C Miller's 2nd revised 1922 English edition. Though paperback it's print and paper quality is excellent and the book opens up easily, stays flat.

Preface XXIX
Contents
List of Illustrations #I-VI
Figures #1-50

Pages
Part I : On The Flute 3-134
Part II : On Flute-Playing 135-161
Appendix 165-190
Index 191-197
Images are as clear as you can hope for B&W reproductions of old images.

2 people found this helpful

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CuriousMarc

The genius inventor of the modern flute describes how he invented it in his own words.

Reviewed in the United States on August 1, 2014

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Usually instruments evolve and improve gradually over centuries, every maker contributing a little refinement. Not so with the flute. Theobald Boehm, genious flutist and silversmith, figured it out all by himself in a lifetime. There is the forgotten flute before him and the flute as we know it after him. If figured out every aspect of the modern flute. The material, the dimensions, the oh-so-clever mechanism. And it has hardly changed since. In this book he explains how he did it, with a clear intent to teach other flute makers. He says he was inspired by flute physics, but there is really little of that - his approach is almost entirely and very cleverly experimental, and very practical. Mr. Boehm was definitely a genius craftsman and flutist, but not so genius a writer. His approach is as straightforward as the text is dry. If you are curious into understanding the inner workings of a seemingly absurd mechanism and of an inventive mind (I am for both), here you can have the unadulterated thinking from the master. Up to you to understand it from the terse explanations, and imagine the story behind the mind that did this. And finally I understood why the C# is so sharp - the one note he had to find a compromise for. Will it help you be a better flute player? I sincerely doubt it. Is it an intriguing book for the technically inclined and an insight into an inventive mind of the practical kind - you bet.

One person found this helpful

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Windy Dankoff

The fundamental book for all flute players, by the inventor himself.

Reviewed in the United States on February 22, 2016

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This is a historical and a practical document by one of the greatest artist-inventors of all time – a hero to flute players. Boehm single-handedly invented the "modern" flute, way back in 1847 and it took over the market. His story is fascinating, and so is the presentation, which he wrote around 1870 as a part of his legacy. If you are a flute player with 1/2 inch of space on your favorite bookshelf, then get this book!

Reviewed in the United States on March 18, 2019

Verified Purchase

This is a revision. My item finally arrived 3 or more weeks late. The book was as described. For builders with low-tech and wood, this book is great source in designing keyed boehm style instruments.

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Musical Engineering

Reviewed in the United States on August 4, 2012

This book is a scholarly work that explains the evolution and technical aspects of the flute and its current design. As a bonus, you get to read translations of Boehm's notes in re the rationale for the design of the flute today. Boehm was a gifted artist and musician who redesigned the old wooden flutes into the transverse modern flute that is far more technically advanced than its predecessors ever were. I like the sidebar notes that offer additional information.

If you play and love the flute, then you want this book. It gives an in-depth look as to why certain notes are harder to play and how to be a better flutist. Boehm was certainly a very brilliant inventor and musician and his legacy will live on forever. His story is one that every flutist should know as his craftmanship will build a better appreciation for and love for the flute.

One person found this helpful

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Glen Cunningham

Interesting history of the design of the modern flute

Reviewed in the United States on February 27, 2006

As an engineer and a long time saxophone player who recently started learning the flute, I had many questions about why the flute was designed the way it was. This book is a translation of Boehm's notes on his life's work of transforming the old simple wooden flutes into the much more advanced modern flute. The translator did an excellent job, and includes many side notes of his own to explain more about what Boehm was talking about and to add interesting historical and technical points. Now I understand why certain notes are harder to play than others, why certain trade-offs were made, and how to play the instrument better. The result is a much simpler and more elegant design than the saxophone, and a professional instrument that you can fit in your glove box! And learning about the flute design has also helped me understand the design of the related saxophone and clarinet better. Boehm was a brilliant and dedicated inventor, craftsman and musician, so his story is both interesting and inspirational.

12 people found this helpful

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