Another series name change: this was supposed to be "Audrey & Sam Jam #2", but as we have started calling it "Flute Fun" after my choice of WhatsApp chat group name, "Flute Fun" it is.
I joined in for a second flute jam session with Audrey and Samantha at Audrey's place yesterday. There was a bit of miscommunication in that I had a wedding to attend in the late morning, and they got the impression that I was going to be really late and so decided to start at 5 p.m. instead of 2 p.m. However, the wedding did not end that late, so I proposed a compromise of 3 p.m., but by that time Samantha was having tea somewhere and ended up coming at Audrey's proposed re-scheduled time.
The first thing I did after reaching Audrey's place was to ohh and ahh over her Native American-style flute. She received it just two days earlier. Made of cedar, tuned to the key of A, with an eagle totem, it is extremely lightweight. As expected, she was able to get started on it much faster than with the shakuhachi since the embouchure and blowing angle needed is far less complex.
As a side note, Audrey conjectured that those leather ties sold as fashion accessories were originally meant for the purpose of tying totems and such as with her flute.
Anyway, we started by practicing our own individual pieces. At one point, I played a phrase from Kutsu ga naru that Audrey liked. With the help of a fingering chart, we transcribed the score into Western letter notation, and were able to play the phrase together once I transposed to play it in the kan register because her flute (with her current skill, at least) could not play some notes in the lower register.
When Sam arrived, she brought a Japanese music CD, including a shakuhachi piece, that had laid dormant in her room for some time, so we had some background music while chatting. All in all, a good session. Our next flute fun day will be on 27 April, two days before my next shakuhachi lesson.
