s_k

Well what it could be; When you blow too soft, no sound comes out of it. When you blow too hard, some screeching comes out of it. So it is quite important to blow 'hard enough', within a certain margin. But that isn't too hard to find

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Odyshape

Oh god no wonder why the teacher thought I had problems my lord it must have sounded like a dying creature

Burning Down

I once had a recorder (a school recorder) that I used on a test that had a small crack in it on the underside. Whenever I blew air into it, it would make an awful squeaking noise. I failed the test cause the teacher said I wasn't playing it right! Ten years later I went back to the school and played flute for her

EvilChuck

It shocks me thinking back that learning the recorder allowed me to read sheet music, and play pretty well (if I do say so myself). Now I have no musical instruments that I play, and no inclination to learn either.

One thing I didnt understand as a 9/10 year old was what was the tiny pot of vaseline for in the leather recorder case?

simplephysics

What songs did everyone have to play? We had to learn hot cross buns, ode to joy, and another song I can't remember the name of.. it was bitch to play though, I do remember that.

In the 5th grade my school also let us take their ukuele's home for a weekend, but my cat was afraid of it so I never played it much.

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Burning Down

Vaseline is used to grease the area where the different sections of the instrument connect, essentially making it easier to put together and so it doesn't get stuck. It's okay to use on recorders since there is no cork around the joints, unlike on a clarinet or saxophone. In that case instrument cork grease should be used and not Vaseline.

Yeah, I think we played all those songs too

EvilChuck

What would happen if you used vaseline where there is cork?

Burning Down

Nothing bad would happen. Vaseline is thinner than cork grease is, and doesn't moisturize the cork properly because it's petroleum based. Cork grease is lanolin based, and is more like a lip balm - when it's applied, it doesn't move anywhere. Vaseline, on the other hand, can be used, but only very sparingly. Because it's less viscous than cork grease, it gets displaced when you put the instrument together, therefore defeating the purpose of greasing the joints.

Scarlett O'Hara

I think playing the recorder got me into the flute. I played the flute for a year and only quit because my music teacher was an *******. My friends couldn't believe it as they said I was really good.

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Burning Down

That's too bad! Teachers really do make all the difference. Patience is a key thing and some teachers just don't have it.