Tone Colors on Flute

Tone color is a tricky thing to describe. Some people only use a color. Some use a color and a texture. Some add an event to the mix (a king entering a royal palace). It depends on how you visualize sound.

Natural Tone Color

Everyone has a natural tone color that they gravitate towards. In the United States, it’s usually a blue or purple velvet. There are always exceptions. I have met two American flutists whose tone sounded like a deep, clear, glassy lake.

I met a flutist from Japan once. Her natural tone color was a light brown silk, rippling in the wind.

How to Achieve Different Tone Colors

Different tone color is achieved by changing the shape of your mouth while you play. This is very personal, and it depends entirely upon your ear. You should be established in good tone before you attempt other tone colors.

1. Pick a color and texture that’s different from your natural tone color. If it helps, think of an event or look on Pinterest for pictures of the color and texture that you want.
2. Now, with that image in your mind, close your eyes and play a note, changing the shape of your lips, mouth, and throat until you achieve that sound.
3. Play a little ditty to see if you can extend that sound to other notes. It can be an ex corde melody or a hymn/folk song that speaks to the tone color you’re trying to achieve.
4. Extend the range of the tone color. Try playing it in different octaves, different keys, etc.

Examples

I want to describe to you the mechanics of how I change my tone color for two colors of yellow. This is different for everyone because everyone has a different shaped mouth. My natural tone color is a silvery blue velvet.

If I want to do sunshine yellow, I pull my cheeks in ever so slightly, drop my jaw a tiny bit, and push my aperture (the hole in my lips) into a rounder shape. It brightens the sound and I think adds a little sparkle to it, too.

If I want to sound like a golden wheat field, I flatten my aperture a little bit and bring my jaw up a tad. It mellows the sound and adds a little fuzz to the edges.

See how different two yellows can be?

Emotions

Some instruments equate tone color with an emotion. Emotion can enter into tone color, but they’re generally considered two different things in flute land. You can have the exact same emotion but more than one color that goes with it.

Changes Over Time

As you get older, your natural tone color might change. There might be a physical reason for this, e.g. weight gain, thyroid swelling, a dental issue. It also might be a difference in how you perceive music in general. A different sound might feel like it fits better than it did when you were at a different stage in life.

I sincerely hope this article helps clarify any confusion involving tone color.