that time I dropped my flute (answering your music questions!) 🎶🎄 vlogmas part 6

[@treytillotson6806]

I was practicing clarinet for my juries this past spring. When I am tired, I can tend to twitch, perhaps like me falling asleep for a split second and waking up. As I was practicing (and standing up while practicing) one night, I twitched, dropped my clarinet, grabbed it before it hit the floor, and then just took a chair and sat there for a little bit

[@tulipp3666]

I want to thank you so much for including captions in all your videos! It's very helpful for deaf and hearing people alike!

[@renavacha]

I love your advice about the university application process and coping with rejection. (This is something I have personal experience with.) As you said, we tend to end up precisely where we’re meant to be. It can be so difficult/painful to understand at the time, but it’s really about focusing on making the most of every musical opportunity, isn’t it? I have so enjoyed your vlogs. Thank you for taking us along for the ride!

[@jdeyah242]

as a flute player *i started 3 years ago in my high school band* i found this video abundantly inspiring and also relatable in a few ways lol

[@cherylrajewski3390]

I really like that you added footage of your dinner at the end of the video, that was very nice and well done.

[@BeritMaue]

I have done auditions in germany with classical singing and it was really hard. It's not nice, to get rejected. So, I got a place later, but the time with every rejected place in a music highschool was really hard. But, I can say, "Don't give up!"

[@agustintecalero3588]

In a concert band rehearsal the band director was talking and then Someone’s flute foot joint fell off out of nowhere. All the flute section gasped and we all just stared the girl who owned the flute 😂

[@suzanneparker1799]

Here is my horror story. I was playing in the pit for our community theater production of Cinderella. It had snowed during the performance and the outside temp dropped to 10 degrees from 32 degrees from the day time high. There was ice under a thin layer of dusted snow. I had my piccolo, c flute, and an alto flute in various bags and cases and I fell in the ice and broke my left wrist. All my flutes went flying in the air and fell hard on the ground. OUCH!! I couldn’t finish the run, but there was another flutist who I shared the part. Needless to say I didn’t play for several months. I have all ROM back and am back to playing. My flutes were un damaged.

[@dalairem]

Not my flute, but the worst flute incident of late was when the middle school band director I volunteer with tried to twist off a student’s stuck headjoint and literally squeezed it to death, leaving heavy indents of his fingers in the tube. 😮 Seriously, I’d never seen anything like that before. Off to repair with that one! As for myself, my worst incident happened after practice one day, when my CTS-afflicted hand decided to twitch open (no clue what compelled me to hold my flute in that hand, for indeed we know better 🤷🏼‍♀️), and I dropped my brand new Powell straight on its foot, crushing the end. Before I could catch it, it proceeded to tip over and land on the trusty G# key, taking everything north of it along for the ride. (I can still see the whole horror in slow-mo when I think about it.) My technician got a trip to Tahiti off of that one. 😉 The middle schoolers really don’t understand the visceral pain we feel when we hear an instrument drop, why our heads snap around and we die a little inside as we gasp, “What happened???” 😵‍💫 ETA: Forgot to say, thank you for yet another fun and interesting vlog! It's always a pleasure to hear your perspectives and insight. Even at 52, having played unprofessionally since, likewise, 4th grade, I always seem to learn something new!

[@rexpysher4255]

Omg the phone case, fellow 90s kid that pink razr was so iconic 😂

[@srrfounder1]

Happy New Year, Katie! ☺️

[@isleofdogs89]

That's so funny! My husband is Argentinian was well (and a fellow flutist), and he's the only one in his entire family to not care for soccer 😂Loved the vlog and appreciated all the great tips! Hope you guys enjoyed your holidays💖

[@620Ramsey]

My flute seems to be leading a charmed life; most of its trauma has come from when it’s been sitting on its stand. Once a bass guitar fell on it, which put a dent in the head joint - but it seems ok? Then the other week at the winter solstice I was at a music jam / party and the flute got knocked over - I watched it smack face first on its lip plate like a big fat kiss on wooden floorboards. I picked it up - consoled the knocker-overer - then checked out the instrument. Seems to have taken no damage at all? ‘A Christmas miracle’, I said. But now when my tone’s not there I look at the head joint and wonder. It’s a nice scapegoat. Back in the day my student Yamaha somehow fell out of its case on a street and clattered into a right mess. Memorable moments x But I can’t remember why it opened like that … only the chaos that ensued

[@samandtheplants]

sorry dude x

[@yagoetxebarria3013]

I started plating the flute 5 years ago, im intermediate flutist, when should i change my flute??

[@katieflute]

What's the worst thing that ever happened to your instrument? 😵‍💫

[@magoonn]

I dropped my flute a lot in middle school, it had to be fixed at least 10 times. I still use the same flute to this day. You’re a huge inspiration for me❤

[@maxjohnson6952]

I was at band camp and we were on a concrete parking lot and I dropped my trombone while my instructor was talking it was my first year too 😶

[@Belle_6789]

My mum let my siblings "borrow" my flute but when I came back home they were smashing the headjoint on the ground and broke one of the rods and now it plays really badly🥲

[@jacobhartzell7891]

I dropped my flute in front of my teacher the other day. I’m an adult student, so there was so much guilt. I should have known better, but for some reason I was careless.

[@gabby_p07]

This happened to a different flute player in my school, we were practicing at marching band, and they let intrusive thoughts win and they kicked their flute as a soccer ball… you can guess what happens next

[@jacobhartzell7891]

I am totally jealous of your knowledge, tone, and technique... I however am never jealous of how much time you spend in front of the mirror. Ladies have it much harder than us gents.

[@oxoelfoxo]

or just to heck with standards and go out without makeup and hair done, like most of the male sex

[@eaterdrinker000]

​@@oxoelfoxo : I hear ya, but Katie la Flute is such a good self-aesthetician (if that's even a word). You didn't ask, but I think she looks like a more balanced, smooth, and palatable version of Brie Larson.

[@ineedsleep3436]

I don’t know when you’ll do another Q&A, but do you have any advice on how to get better at/how to tongue quicker. I just realized I can’t tongue multiple notes at fast tempos and my tongue just feels so heavy

[@terryberry12]

Thank you for making this video!

[@janepeterson1038]

I was on a concert on stage and I was sitting right next to a piano and in order to get the stage ready for the next group I had to run set my flute down on the piano bench and help push the piano player push the piano off stage however once I set my flute down it rolled off the piano bench and it was right during a concert it was really awkward

[@calebhealy8017]

i was waiting on a side road of washington, DC to perform in the national memorial day parade with my marching band. it was 90 degrees so we were all pulled out crazy far due to being sharp(i play clarinet). and i was just standing there holding my clarinet when suddenly i feel something fall and hear a loud bang. half my clarinet fell on the ground, mouthpiece first and my mouthpiece shattered, rendering my instrument useless. i had to fake play on national television

[@katwil9676]

When I was just beginning I got very frustrated and put my flute over my knee and bent it into a right angle! It bent right on the a flat key.

[@eaterdrinker000]

Yeah, a called strike three can be very frustrating.

[@sofichan1171]

You re so good at The fluye I lo e you

[@megan6041]

and to answer ur question lol, my flutes body literally bent in half when my brother sat on it. 💀

[@katieflute]

OMG NOOOO lol that is tragic

[@ericbingham-kumpfcomposer5293]

A co-worker threw my Gemeinhardt flute and piccolo out of a 5th story window when I was out to lunch. When I complained to my employer, I was the one to get fired and not my co-worker after I filed criminal charges against my co-worker.

[@leilamanteghi326]

Oh no! I feel so angry and heartbroken for you! Did you ever get any kind of compensation?

[@jodimerusi3250]

Oh my gosh, I would have been put in jail for murder. What possessed your co-worker to do that? I also can't believe you're the one who got fired! Do you have any recourse? I would have gone to a lawyer to see if anything could be done!

[@ericbingham-kumpfcomposer5293]

@@jodimerusi3250 I am a retired attorney and she was charged with a felony. It was not worth assaulting her.

[@ericbingham-kumpfcomposer5293]

@@leilamanteghi326 The criminal charges were bad for her to receive. My employer filed for bankruptcy and it put my employer was under bankruptcy protection.

[@jodimerusi3250]

OK -- it sounds like the ones responsible got what they deserved in the end! Karma can be tough!

[@emilybergevin651]

a flute horror story! There was a student in my studio test-driving a flute with intent to buy. The studio policy was that you tried it for a bit, but then the professor made sure that everyone got to at least play it for an hour or so. ANYWAY! There was this one girl who wore a lot of rings. She was putting the flute together, and her rings scraped all the way around the headjoint!!! Luckily there was actually a jeweler nearby who was able to buff out the scratches since they weren't deep. The repair technician for the school did not have the equipment capable of doing it (he was responsible for the school-owned instruments used in the instrument-tech music ed classes).

[@gabby_p07]

Hi! I commented on a different post, I’m not sure if I missed you answering the question but… what open hole flute do you think is good for intermediate player that has been playing on closed hole? I’ve been playing for 5 years and have finally saved up for one and would like to get a good but reasonable price open hole flute

[@AmandaE329]

I just got an Azumi by Altus, for about $1700 via Flute Center of New York, and I really love it. I think Katie reviewed this one too in a previous video. Still have plugs in the keys for now, that probably won't change any time soon, as I have been working with my closed hole student flute for a very long time!

[@is_a_plant]

One that I would recommend as an intermediate player is the Trevor James Chanson which is $1,745 via FCNY. (Flute Center of New York) Another flute I could suggest if you have a higher price point would be the Trevor James Virtuoso (which is the level up from the Chanson) which is $2,825 with FCNY. My current flute is the Samperi Pinnacle, which is ~$3,500 but cannot be found in the FCNY website. Hope this helps!

[@dominicktravis6119]

I threw my laptop on my bed and it dented my flute pretty bad. Luckily it was just a student flute at the time.

[@normalizedaudio2481]

Wow, Algo throws me Kennedy Center for next video. Leonard Bernstein honors. Univ. of Idaho has a killer flute teacher.

[@VeggiesbyEos]

I dropped my sax on the first day of classes last semester 🙃🙃 I've been playing for 18 years so I guess that's not horrible if it's the first time I ever dropped it

[@potapotapotapotapotapota]

I dropped a whetstone on my flute the other day. It bent the briccialdi key and now my B key is stuck. I hope it won't cost too much :(

[@MusicallyAris]

My flute horror story is that one time I sat on my flute.

[@Carlos-wp5lx]

Para cuando el vídeo en español? 👀

[@Chloe-bd2dv]

Gave my friend (the drummajor) my flute and she dropped it on the concrete. The lip plate is still dented😢

[@emilybergevin651]

my own horror story was luckily with my $600 "spare" flute that I'd used through high school. I've always played in churches, and there is almost NEVER a decent place to put your flute when you do things like hold hands for prayers. So I had mine on top of the piano. I didn't think about WHERE on the piano it was, and this wooden placard that held all the hymn numbers for the service fell off the pillar and landed smack-dab in the middle of the instrument - bent G# key to absurd levels. My pro instrument was in with the maker at that point, and he doesn't do intermediate-flute repairs... so I took it to the local music shop in my hometown (after the local repairman had JUST died), and they spoke to me condescendingly about how "that might cost over $100, are you SURE you want to pay that?" Needless to say I turned into a condescending diva at that point. I looked at the lady and said, "I'm sorry to bother you, but I'm accustomed to paying over $500 for work on my professional flute, which is in the shop right now. Now, I'm on winter break from music school, so do you think you might have the bend fixed by mid-January?" (it was late December and the shop was very rinky-dink). That place isn't in business anymore, for more reasons than that.

[@gloriouslyimperfect]

Dropped my flute in a marching band practice and got it trampled by the drum line! How I convinced my parents to finally buy me the open holed geminhardt! LOL

[@megan6041]

FIRST