Okay, I know flute is a hobby for pretty much all of you! But what else do you like to do? And is there an element of improvisation in it too? When I was a child at the circus I saw fire poi and was entranced by the the beauty & danger of the performance! In high school I had a few friends who spun glow sticks like fire at dimly lit dance parties! I wasn't much of a "raver" but there were a few dancers who were really smooth with the lights and I loved watching them. I started spinning the "figure 8" pattern with my drum major whistle whenever I had it in 10th grade! We also learned to spin our mace as drum majors, and now I have a staff (an old broomstick I think!) that is good for spinning. Later I shoved some tennis balls into tube socks and started practicing poi with them - poi is a performance art that involves swinging weighted objects attached to tethers in rhythmic, geometric patterns. Frequently lights or fire. There is definitely an element of improvisation to poi. It is very rhythmic, so getting the timing right feels very similar to tapping your foot to music or playing a run perfectly rhythmically. But there is also the element of the unknown, unexpected, and making mistakes. Like when I bumped against the stairwell, how could I recover my timing? I find that having a variety of potential "answers" in my mental movement library helps me find the groove again, just like have a variety of potential musical answers in my mental musical library helps me navigate a route back to being in the groove. A friend gave me these purple flags for my recent birthday. They have weights sewn into the corner edges, so it feels like poi. I love them! I like to observe the sound they make while trying to solve the tiny problems of how to make them move with the music without getting tangled. Purple has not always been my favorite color, but after someone told me it's the highest vibration color and that I should consider adopting it for Flutarians, I've really embraced it. After I saw @Jodie Mesler's beautiful new purple lighting in her little flute studio I set an intention to get some purple on the walls in my studio... and then my friend Sone gave me these flags!

https://youtu.be/DKC-lRhvdNY?si=otQ8CzoCv6-3TKan Is anyone attached to their flute? This is such a fun video! I was super attached to my flute (Yamaha 581, gold plated) that I got before going to college in 1986. It was stolen about 15 years ago and I don't think I ever got over it. I found the same make and model Yamaha and am trying it out and plan on purchasing it. I love it! I never quite got attached to the flute that replaced it though, although it is a good flute (Muramatsu exiii). What about you? How do you feel about your flute?

I uploaded the backing I-V backing track to YouTube so you can change keys with the Transpose extension: https://youtu.be/UXJUv9UPIus

This is Manose Singh playing bansuri flute. I love his vibrato and the "effortlessness" of his playing. Notice: - See him look at the guitar strings when they start? I wonder if he was double checking the key signature. See him look directly at the guitar strings again? I bet he's honing in on the rhythm here by watching the guitarist's hands. - Watch how they move their bodies. Not only is the flutist moving expressively, but so are the guitarists and drummer. Watch his facial expressions. If your eyebrows are not moving, you're probably not playing expressively enough. Watch your videos! - Do you hear him create variations on a simpler theme he played earlier? - Do you hear how he starts low, then adds complexity & moves up into the higher register? - Notice how quiet his quietest quiets sound compared to his loudest louds? - If you watch closely you can notice him indicate with his foot to the band an impending temporary key change! They must have agreed upon this before. - You can expect cheering like this from the crowd when you've reached this level of mastery and are performing with talented musicians! What do you like about it and most want to emulate in your own playing?

This is definitely not my best playing, but I am so thankful I was able to play at my Grandmas graveside service. I hope I am not oversharing, but I played while they were lowering her into the ground. I was having a hard time not crying while I played so that made it hard to get a good sound and stay in tune, but it was a blessing to be able to play her favorite song. I am thankful for Vic’s teaching which allowed me to play without music. After the video, the first photo is my mom, me and my 80s hair, my grandma and grandpa. The last photo is me with my siblings and grandma, a few days before she passed. She lived a wonderful 96 years and I am so grateful for her.