INTRODUCTION
There can be little doubt that music must rate as one of the most significant human pursuits and that it has enjoyed this status from the early stages of human existence. A very small percentage of the general population in the modern world are able to competently play a musical instrument and of these only a handful become professional musicians. This means that the huge major of human beings rely on others to play and produce the music that they love to listen to. While a number of reasons can be cited peopl
The Clarytone is the most exciting invention in the music world in decades, and there have been many. This one is a cut above the rest. It has an incredible note range of almost 4 octaves (4th to 8th octave). With this instrument it is possible to play any tune or melody in any key.
What makes the Clarytone so unique is that it is totally INTUITIVE. People who have never been able to sing, whistle, hum a tune or play a musical instrument, can begin playing recognizable tunes and even accompany their favourite songs, in the correct key, within minutes.
It sounds like a flute or ocarina (round flute) and has a single funneled hole. You can sing or hum, and play a tune at the same time, creating very interesting harmonics, overtones, triple tonguing and even bird whistles. This means you can accompany yourself on the Clarytone.
The notes are created by subtle shape and pressure changes in the mouth as happens with singing and whistling. It is a magical experience to have such an incredibly intimate and intuitive relationship with all the notes across this octave range. The notes are not created by consciously going through the action of playing a note like on a piano or saxophone, but is literally pulled out of a MUSICAL BLUEPRINT in your head !!
Playing the Clarytone is similar to whistling or singing but much easier, louder(heard from hundreds of meters when played loudly) and more versatile. Experiments with both musicians and non-musicians is providing increasing evidence that it may well constitute a hitherto undiscovered and unrecognised quantum musical leap for both musicians and non-musicians. This remarkable instrument greatly improves intonation, significantly accelerates the learning of conventional tunes and the creation of new ones, promotes the development of perfect pitch and magically triggers the memory of long forgotten songs and melodies.
The amazing Clarytone flute has been designed by Chris Schuermans, a skilled South African ocarina craftsman.
Professional musicians and particularly those who play fixed pitch instruments such as the piano, have been consistently amazed at the subtleties of playing the Clarytone and the musical lessons it teaches in the process. This instrument is destined to introduce and connect people to music in ways never before thought possible
If music plays an important part in your life and you fancy being able to blow life into the tunes in your head or heart, the Claytone is likely to blow your mind. Seeing, hearing and playing is believing!
For further information and an experience of the music in you contact Dr Bruce Copley on Tel 083 459 9894 or 028 273 8261 e-mail: bruce@aahalearning.com www.aahalearning.com
TIPS ON PLAYING THE CLARITONE
Getting started
- Hold the instrument in your palm with the narrow part at the top of your hand and the concave surface of the flute facing you.
- Place the flute firmly but gently over your mouth and position the curved inner ridge of the flute firmly against the septum or bottom part of your nose.
- Open your mouth, pout your lips on the surface of the flute and move your mouth/face muscles until you get the most comfortable position with the flute.
- Take a deep breath and blow a steady stream of air using both nostrils into the small chamber at the top of the flute that has a narrow slit While it is even possible to play the Claritone with a blocked nose, the best results are achieved when the nose is clear.
- Keeping the flute in position simply breathe in through your nose. Each inhalation should be fast and deep going down below your rib cage. It is also possible to breathe through you mouth or alternatively through both the nose and mouth simultaneously. The breathing is very similar to that used when singing or whistling.
- If you are not getting a sound try subtle position changes of the flute, movements of your face muscles, shape and tension of your mouth and/or changes in the position of your lips especially your bottom lip. Make sure you are directing a flow of air down into the flute. It is important that the fipple or opening on both sides of the flute are keep clear at all times.
- Changes in pitch (high to low) are made by altering the tension and shape of the mouth. Tensioning and flattening the circular shape of the mouth raises the pitch while relaxing and rounding the circular shape of the mouth lowers the pitch. During these changes in mouth tension and shape, it is important that the position of the lips firmly positioned on the inside surface of the flute, are kept unchanged.
- The lowest notes produced on the Claritone are softer while the highest notes are louder since they require an increased air flow.
Going further
Once you are able to create sounds on the Claritone, you may like to try the following :
- Begin playing WELL KNOWN TUNES, MELODIES and SONGS that are in your head starting with simple ones like Happy birthday, Jolly good fellow, Row your boat, etc. Do not be critical of how you sound at first and embarrassed when you are unable to hit the proper note. You will start making progress very soon and all that is required is to spend some time practicing.
- Go UP and DOWN the scale (range of notes) and try to hold each note clearly without changing the pitch. The higher and lower notes are more difficult to control so focus initially on learning to play the mid range notes (1,5 to 2 octave range) accurately and consistently before turning your attention to the lowest and highest notes in the Claritone range.
- Learn to SLIDE in and out of notes which requires a smooth and gradual change in mouth tension and shape.
- Creating a VIBRATO effect which involves a slight oscillation of the pitch to enhance the expressive quality of the note is achieved by subtly moving the back part of the mouth up and down. Note that when doing the tongue should be in a fixed position at the bottom of the mouth.
- Create a TRILL effect which involves a rapid alternating of 2 different notes. This is achieved by rapidly tapping the front part of your palate (top of your mouth) with the tip of your tongue.
- SINGING and HUMMING through both your nose and mouth while playing the flute can with some practice and note matching provide some very pleasing and unusual effects and sounds
- Put on some of your favourite music and try to play along by finding the correct KEY in which the music is being played. Also experiment with playing in higher or lower octaves. With a little practice you will sound progressively better and in a very short space of time compared to mastering other musical instruments you will find that you can become a skilled and active co-creator of the music that you love.
- Begin to create your own original tunes and songs and experiment with volume(high notes can be heard 800 meters away), walking and running while playing and playing along with music that is unfamiliar to you.
THE CLARITONE AND THE 2010 WORLD SOCCER CUP
The Claritone could make a significant contribution to our hosting of the World Soccer Cup in 2010 for the following reasons :
- Something never seen, heard or experienced before in a stadium
- While there are other types of flutes the Claritone is a truly unique musical gift to the world that has originated from our beautiful rainbow nation. Something to really be proud of especially if Bafana do not win the cup
- Within minutes of picking up the Claritone for the first time, anyone is able to identifiably produce any tune, song or melody they may know or have in their heads. It is also possible to pleasingly accompany or play along with any music, song or musical instrument never heard before.
- Requires no amplification since a single flute when played loudly can be clearly heard from a distance of around 1km
- An opportunity for all South African soccer fans in our stadiums to collectively co-create the beautiful melodies of our national anthem and other home grown tunes and songs.
- Can be incorporated into a mask that could be worn and played as part of the opening ceremony that would allow the players to dance while they were making music
- Can greatly enhance and extent the sounds produced by drums and even the raucous Vuvuzela by creating melodies and tunes to accompany these well known instruments.
- Claritones are currently being made by hand using clay that has to fired at high temperatures. It is possible to produce Claritones using modern materials and machines that would be much cheaper than the clay versions making them accessible to all members of our population.
- Would be possible to customise the Claritone and create a unique 2010 icon that would continue to astound and inspire people long after the 2010 World Soccer Cup Closing Ceremony
Nose flute history
An internet search has revealed that creating music using the nose has been happening for hundreds of years possibly even thousands. Some websites I visited claim that it originated in Africa but one thing is consistently confirmed and that is that it has been around for a long time. There are many different nose flute versions such as recorders, flutes and penny whistles that are modified so they can be played with the nose.
A noseflute called the Humanitone is available from a company in the USA and I actually purchase some….. by comparison they sound horrible given their pitch and very limited note range. They are made of plastic and used by a few people on You Tube. What I find amazing is that the people playing them have not twigged the potential of the nose flute and with few exceptions they are used as a kind of a party trick aimed at making people laugh.
My observation has been that because of it being a nose flute peoples minds tend to be closed regarding its potential and even it designer and maker Chris Schuermans failed to recognised initially just what an amazing instrument this really is. Chris has now seen its potential very clearly and every batch that he makes get better and he is close to creating a prototype of a real MAGIC FLUTE. The one that I am currently playing has a range of almost 4 octaves from E in the 3rd octave to D in the 8th octave…..the lower and in particular the higher notes are more difficult to master and require quite a lot of practice…..the mid 2 octave range is of course where its magic lies since most of these notes can be accessed in a matter of minutes by anyone willing to give it a blow…….the nose knows best it appears !!
INTRODUCING THE CLARITONE TO PEOPLE FOR THE FIRST TIME
If you want to introduce the Claritone to people for the first time, I have found that doing it the following way really works well and highlights the magic of the Claritone :
- Turn your back on your listeners(alternatively they can just close their eyes) and play something familiar that you can do well for about 20 – 30 seconds……ask them to tell you what it sounds like….most people think it is a flute, recorder or penny whistle…..be sure not to tell them it is a wind instrument and especially that you are using your nose to generate the sound.
- Now show them the instrument and get there response
- Play it a again for a few second while they are watching you and then ask them how they think the sounds are being created…..virtually everyone will think you are blowing into using your mouth.
- Now reveal to them that you are using your nose and that doing this has the following advantages…….air from your nose is much cleaner than the air from your lungs because it is being flltered and because there is much less bacteria in the mouth than in the nose…..a natural breathing cycle is being created combining inhalation and exhalation through the nose(also mouth inhalation)…..with conventional wind instruments this does not happen and is restricted to nose inhalation and mouth exhalation(bagpipes involve mouth inhalation and exhalation)…..establishing a whole new neural pathway and learning to accurately and delicately control and trust this beautiful and pure flow of air that creates pristine notes.
SOME QUESTIONS I WOULD LIKE YOU TO ANSWER REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE
It is important for me to obtain feedback from people who have played or own a Claritone and I would really appreciate your responses to the 5 questions below :
- How long did it take you to get a sound out of the Claritone ?
- How long it took you to be able to play a tune on it ?
- How much have time have you spent playing it since you first received it and how are you using it ?
- How would you describe this instrument to someone who has never seen or heard it before.
- How would you compare this to any other musical instrument especially ones you may have played yourself ?
Anything else you might want to say about the instrument
Besides the intense delight in being able to recognisably reproduce any tune, song or melody you may have in your head in a matter of minutes (intuitive access to the innate musical blueprint in our head and heart), playing the Clarytone also offers many other significant gifts or benefits such as :
- Laying to rest once and for all the commonly held notion or belief that we are unmusical, tone deaf and/or musically challenged
- Promoting healthy breathing techniques through the integration of both nose and the mouth inhalation and exhalation. This counters the unhealthy tendency associated with aging of shallow breathing using only the mouth.
- Relief from Asthma, sinusitis and other respiratory ailments.
- Acquiring a skill that would normally take years of practice, training and dedication……..this is much more than a ” quick fix ” and constitutes what can only be described as a lightning fix without any of the associated problems or shortcomings
- Significant increases in self confidence and self esteem when our innate musicality can be expressed.
- Playing with others to co-create beautiful music as in an orchestra and experiencing first hand the harmony and synergy of commusication or communal music making
- Providing focus and meaning in our lives and the opportunity to become progressively more skilled at playing the Clarytone to a point of real mastery. .
- Stimulating our memory, mental capacities, creativity and learning capabilities
- Serving as a catalyst for playing other musical instruments and engaging in other activities, arts and crafts.
- As therapyfor those suffering from physical, mental and/or psychological disorders such as depression, addiction, abuse, etc