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A Brief Introduction to the Chinese Transverse Crossblown Flute
The Chinese Dizi flute is famous for its brilliant clear sound, variety of tone colors and extensive
dynamic range. These flutes are usually pitched higher than their relatives the vertical or
endblown flutes, also known as xiao. A traditional sixhole dizi plays a major scale, usually in
the western key of C or D Major, with the fifth pitch (sol) as its lowest tone. So the scale of the
low octave on a flute in D is:
A flexible membrane covers the hole between the blowing hole and the sound holes. This
membrane gives the dizi its unique tone colors and dynamic range. The membrane must be
prepared before playing the flute. Make sure the flute is clean and dry. Cut or select a piece of
membrane big enough to cover the hole. Membranes are often provided in a long flattened tube
that can be cut to size and separated. Slice a fresh garlic clove in half and gently wipe the
exposed garlic surface on the body of the flute around the membrane hole, leaving a thin film of
sticky moisture. Carefully place the membrane squarely over the hole, smoothing it at the sides.
No ridges or wrinkles should be visible in the membrane where it covers the hole. If the
membrane is not firmly secured or does not have correct tension across the hole, the flute will
make an unpleasant buzzing sound.
To play the dizi, stand or sit upright. Hold the flute parallel to the floor, in a relaxed posture with
elbows out from the sides. Three fingers of each hand cover the six sound holes, index fingers
toward the mouth. The thumbs support the flute, which should feel comfortable to hold.
Touch the body of the flute near the blowing hole below the lower lip. Form a small circular
opening with your lips and inhale deeply. Relax. Blow gently, aiming a thin stream of air directly
at the far edge of the blowing hole. Make sure the lowest three sound holes are unobstructed. The
top three sound holes should be securely covered, but don't pinch or apply pressure.
To produce the first note, you may need to experiment with the direction of blowing. Try moving
the air stream down deeper into the flute, or out away from it. Move slowly, small changes make
a big difference. With a little experimentation, you'll find a spot where the flute makes a clear
pretty tone. Listen carefully to the sound you are making, and try to focus it. When the note
sounds pure, play louder by blowing slightly harder.
Opening and closing sound holes in sequence produces different pitches. Concentrate on
producing neighbor pitches with similar loudness and clarity. To get higher pitches, the air
stream must be more focused and aimed slightly higher toward the top of the blowing hole. Do
not try to get the higher notes by just blowing harder.
Dizi Fingering Chart
The fingering chart shows standard fingerings for the major scale tones over the flute's two lower
octaves. Please note the altissimo register should not be attempted until the lower and upper
octaves can be sounded with consistent volume and tone color.
Dizi Lesson 2
Basic Tones and Upper Tones
The traditional dizi flute has 6 finger holes. For the basic tones, only 7 arrangements of fingers
are of interest: All holes closed. Lowest hole open. Lowest two holes open. Lowest three holes
open. Lowest four. Lowest five ... The last one is all six holes open, but that pitch plays badly out
of tune, quite sharp. We'll fix it later. Remember, closed holes must be well closed, not just
partially covered. Open ones must be truly unobstructed by your fingers.
The key of the flute, its natural scale's root, is in the middle of these seven tones. For most dizi
flutes, that pitch is D or C. The note name is often painted or carved on the flute next to the hole
that must open for that pitch to sound. You can check the key note's accuracy against a piano or a
cheap electronic tuner. The note name doesn't matter if we think about the scale in solfege
. From
lowest to highest, the 7 basic tones on a dizi are So La Ti Do Re Mi Fa. We can write the same
thing using numbers: 5 6 7 1 2 3 4. It may seem funny that 1 and 2 are higher than 5 and 6, but
later we'll find out how to play 5, 6 and more that are higher still. For basic tones, those seven
pitches form a whole scale, with the lowest sounding tone not the root, but the fifth.
Let's fix the toosharp Fa. Sharpness is not its only problem. When you open all six finger holes,
how do you prevent the flute from falling out of your open hand? The answer is, open the highest
finger hole (nearest to the blowing and di mou holes), and cover the next two holes down. Now
the highest finger hole is open, the flute is held by your left thumb, middle and ring fingers, and
the Fa is pulled down to the correct pitch.
You might have noticed the fingering charts from Lesson One show the right middle finger hole
closed on all pitches, except Ti (7) where it must be open. This is not intended to alter the
intonation, but serves for convenience of holding the flute.
In China, some flute music is published in a form called jian pu Jian pu
notation. uses numbers
to represent the diatonic scale tones we already know from solfege. Do = 1, Re = 2, and so on up
Jian pu
to Ti = 7. uses a convention that a dot above the number means higher octave, and a dot
below means lower. The octave change happens at 1 (Do), not between Fa and So where the
octave break actually occurs on a flute. Sorry, I don't have a way to write the numbers with dots
above and below. For more octaves, add more dots! Jian pu time counting is marked by
underlines and dashes. So a nonunderlined note lasts one count (western "quarter note").
Underlined is a half count ("eighth note"), and double underlined is a quarter count ("sixteenth").
Again, I don't have a way to write the underlines. For half and whole notes, put dashes after the
note number. So for four counts, a whole bar, of Do in jian pu write:
| 1 |
Before you try to play the upper octave, make the basic notes strong and consistent. Practice Mi
Re Do, Mi Re Do. It's the first part of Three Blind Mice, but hold the Do for six long counts.
Make the note pure. You can use a little vibrato if you know how, so the tone sounds pretty, but
don't over do it. Then play Re Do Ti, Re Do Ti. The same thing a pitch down. Is the Ti just as
strong as Do? Go down again Do Ti La Do Ti La. Then Ti La So Ti La So. Here's the whole
jian pu
exercise in (without dots):
| 3 2 1 | 1 | 3 2 1 | 1 |
| 2 1 7 | 7 | 2 1 7 | 7 |
| 1 7 6 | 6 | 1 7 6 | 6 |
| 7 6 5 | 5 | 7 6 5 | 5 |
To Do: wuxian pu
I'll render this exercise in western staff notation (i.e., ) real soon and post it
alongside this. Promise!
When you can play all seven basic tones so they are strong and steady, you should find that you
can play the upper octave tones (except Fa, ever the problem child) with the same fingerings.
Start with the low So. Play it as loud and pure as you can. If you quickly lift just your left index
finger off its hole while playing, the upper So should pop out immediately. See if you can make
the same effect without moving your fingers, just by moving the direction of the airstream up
slightly. Practice controlling the switch from low to high and from high to low. Then try the
same thing for La. And you are on your way to dizi mastery!