A trill is an ornament in music that results from the rapid alternation of two adjacent musical tones. Flutists often perform trills to add decoration, enhance a melody, or create harmonic interest. Too often, however, students use poor hand position and learn trill fingerings incorrectly, resulting in poor tone, faulty pitch, and sluggish motion. In addition, students may not routinely practice half- and whole-step trills, which in turn leaves them unprepared for the challenges in musical scores. The last exercise in Taffanel et Gaubert 17 Daily Exercises focuses on trills. Expand the range at both ends of this exercise to practice the awkward trills on the lowest and highest notes of the flute.
Any discussion of trilling properly begins with hand position and the relationship of the flute to the body. The left hand cradles the flute at the third knuckle of the index finger between the keys closest to the head joint and supports the flute from underneath. The right hand pushes the flute away from the body and maintains its natural curve with the thumb on its side and the wrist in a neutral position. The flute is balanced at the three balance points: chin, left index finger, and right thumb, which are the only parts where the flute and player’s body remain in contact at all times. Proper balance ensures that the elbows are not up and out, the shoulders are relaxed, the wrists are not overextended, and fingers do not grip the keys. More discussion and excellent drawings of natural hand and body position can be found in Illustrated Fluteplaying by Robin Soldan and Jeanie Mellersh.
When students look for shortcuts to facility, sloppy finger technique often results. Grabbing the flute too tightly means the fingers are not free to move quickly through trills. Fingers raised too high over the keys and then slammed down with great force produce heavy, uneven, and lethargic trills, as do fingers that attempt to slide across the keys instead of an up and down motion. Retaining the natural curve of the fingers over the keys and using a lighter touch typically increase trill speeds and evenness and help eliminate fatigue and pain in the arms, wrists, hands, and shoulders. Some specific trills will need extra attention, such as the ones involving the closed Ab and Eb keys that require a bit more pressure to play. Others that involve many fingers in motion might require a subtle shift in the balance between right and left hands. Increased kinesthetic awareness, a large mirror, and a focused teacher can work wonders in making all trills agile, flexible, and uniform.
C to D
Incorrect trill fingerings negatively affect pitch and tone, just as incorrect basic fingerings do. Some of the worst offenders are those trill fingerings that use the trill keys common to every standard flute (the C# trill key is not considered in the scenarios below). Use the first trill key (the one closest to the headjoint) when trilling from C5 to D5. Use the second trill key with trilling from C6 to D6. If you incorrectly do the opposite, the C5 to D5 trill is wider than a whole step and the trill from C6 to D6 is too flat. Using the incorrect trill key is often heard in pieces like the Aria movement from Taktakishvili’s Sonata.
Common Mistakes
The trill from D6 to Eb6 should be made with the second trill key. Using both trill keys makes the Eb very sharp and using the Ab key makes the Eb flat and fuzzy. This trill is found in the second section of the Enesco Cantabile et Presto. A similar fingering problem occurs with G6 to Ab6. Use the first trill key to be in tune in the second movement of Poulenc’s Sonata.
The half-step trill from C#5 to D5 and C#6 to D6 is always played with the first trill key, but C#5 to D#5 uses the second trill key while the octave higher uses both trill keys. Several of these trills appear in the first movement of the Poulenc Sonata.
Other trills suffer from poor intonation through simple laziness. For example, the trill from Eb6 to F6 is commonly made by trilling the second finger of the left hand, but trilling both the second and third fingers together makes a true whole step, a desirable trait at the end of the Daphnis et Chloé solo.
Similarly, both the second and third fingers should be used to trill from Ab4 to Bb4 and Ab5 to Bb5 while using the thumb Bb. The F6 to G6 trill, found often in band music, is typically made by fingering the F and trilling the thumb, but this makes the whole step too flat. A better option is to finger the high F, adding the D finger, and trilling both the thumb (at the first joint and not the tip) and the right index finger. The best fingering for the G6 to A6 trill is to finger the G and trill the Ab key and both trill keys simultaneously, although many opt for easier trills that are out of tune as they near the recapitulation in the first movement of the Taktakishvili Sonata. Ab6 to Bb6 is often played by fingering Ab and trilling both trill keys, but the one best in tune is the Ab fingering plus Bb thumb and RH 2 3 with LH 23 the trilled keys. A6 to Bb6 is best with the A6 fingering and both trill keys trilled simultaneously.
Natural hand and body position and the use of authentic trill fingerings encourage fluid technique, tonal consistency, and true pitch relationships. Often a technique not of primary concern, trills are common to many styles of music and should be addressed comprehensively, far beyond the scope of this article. Walfrid Kujala’s The Flutist’s Vade Mecum devotes a section to trill drills and additional information on facilitating fingerings, and Nestor Herzbaum’s Alternative Fingerings for the Flute provides an extensive list of trill fingerings. Properly executed, trills can add a great deal of excitement to a performance. Add them to your practice routine now, and those pesky ornaments in Bach Sonatas and Mozart Concerti will soon be a distant memory.
