Erik the Flutemaker Andean Quena
The Andean Quena is the most famous flute from Latin America. It is blown by holding it vertically, pressing the notch (the V shaped opening) softly against your lips and blowing with a smile. It requires some patience and practice to get the hang of it.
The flute is fully made of bamboo, and is aproximately 38 centimeters tall. It has six fingerholes and a thumbhole. It is tuned to itself, which means that the instrument will play in tune when playing alone, but when playing with for example a piano player you could be a tad flat or sharp.
How to play this flute?
- Put your lips against the notch and blow across the V-shape
- This requires some practice and patience
- The flute is held vertically
- There are six fingerholes on top, and a thumbhole on the back
- Cover the holes with the pad of the fingers, not the fingertips
The musical possibilities
- This flute plays easily the Major scale and in the Minor scale.
- It is also possible to play in other keys and modes.
- This would require you to cover half holes more often.
- The flute has a reach of over 2 octaves.
