All a Flutter

Ever heard a really bad imitation Scottish accent? With lots of RRR rolling? Ever done one? Then you can flutter tongue.
Flutter tonguing isn't used that often but it turns up more and more as time goes on. It can be found in Jazz, Classical and even Folk music. The rolling of the tongue creates a buzzy, surreal sound that mixes with the clear flute sound in interesting ways. The sound can't be imitated very well by any other technique. And its fun.
(A personal plea; Keep the jokes about this topic clean please! Trust me, we've all heard the dirty jokes before and they get old fast.)

There are two ways to flutter tongue and both relate to rolling Rs. Really, both are extremely fast and repeated tongue strikes that don't stop the note or air stream. This is not a muscle controlled action; the tongue is close enough to the roof of the mouth that the air stream causes it to vibrate like a reed on a clarinet and this creates the buzzing or rolled R sound.
The preferred technique (for flute) uses the tip of the tongue. Put the tongue behind your front teeth and let it "bounce" off the roof of your mouth as you exhale, like a rolled R without vocalizing. (This is the same spot you place your tongue for a regular single tongued note-the "ta" or "da" tongue.) It is sort of like turning your tongue into a mini jack-hammer. The trick is learning to maintain your embouchure while doing this.
The other method uses the back of the tongue or the uvula R roll, the way Rs are rolled in French. Its not that different from the other one, just further back in the mouth. This is the spot you use for the "ka" or "ga" sound when double tonguing. Just faster. For the record, flutter tonguing is "easiest" for flute and brass instruments but the reed instruments can flutter too (yes, even oboes though that may count as cruel and unusual punishment.) It is however much easier for reed players to use the second method of flutter tonguing!
If you can't do one, try the other. The first method tends to be more obvious sounding and the second one has a softer buzz but either one works. If you can do both, you end up with a choice of sounds for flutter tonguing. Always a plus.
Once you get the hang of it, its actually kind of entertaining to do although having to switch it on and off at just the right moment can take some practice. Often, flutter tonguing is used on one or two notes though they may be long held notes that make your mouth feel odd after awhile. Sometimes the flutter is meant to last over several notes or used with faster passages. With luck, it will be clearly marked when to start and stop.

So how is this marked in music? Unfortunately, its not very consistent. Part of the reason is that, just like all terms in music, different languages use different words. Flatterzunge, frullato, coupe de lange roule, tremolo dental, vibrata linguale are just some of the different names used for flutter tonguing.
Most flute players agree that it SHOULD be marked with a fl, flt, flz or fltz and sometimes frull. or flutter above the note followed by a squiggly line (a trill mark) to show how long to flutter.

This is clear, noticeable and informative so of course many composers don't use it.
The next most recognized marking is to write fl or flutter above the note with diagonal lines slashing the stem of the note (a string tremolo mark.) This works but it can be confused with subdivision markings especially since composers often leave out the the fl and only use the slashes or write flutter once and never again even when the fluttered notes are mixed with regular notes. I recently played a piece that used this mark for flutter tonguing right after using subdivision marks for actual subdivisions and then proceeded to switch back and forth from subdivisions to flutter tonguing for two lines. It took me 4 times through the piece to figure out what was happening where.
Some composers simply write FL or flutter above the note with no other marking and leave you to guess how long you have to keep your tongue buzzing. Quite frustrating.
And some composers switch between all these marks just to make sure the flute section is paying attention. These are the composers I want to track down and send to remedial composition classes!
Finally, other composers make up their own marking I guess because they couldn't be bothered to look it up. As long as they explain their invented mark clearly and they use the same mark for the whole piece, I don't mind this. Consistency makes up for a lot!

Muses, Modes and the Music of the Spheres

This will be a rather odd (and long-ish) post about a picture called "Music of the Spheres" that was published in 1496 in Francinus Gafurius's Practica musice. This picture gives us some interesting insights into how the people of the Renaissance super-imposed Greek myth onto music theory. My views on the musical elements, mythological ideas and metaphysical ideas that can be seen in this picture are influenced by (but not the same as) Joseph Campbell's essay "The Muses Nine" (can be found in The Mythic Dimension: Selected Essays 1959-1987) which I encourage you to read. (Even though he got the names of the two modes that are the same wrong-he was a mythology expert, not a musician.)

"Music of the Spheres" from Francinus Gafurius's Practica musice published in 1496-public domain.
(This picture uses a pre-Copernican order for the planets and is geocentric.) 

What is shown in this picure

-The Latin scroll at the top reads "The Apollonian mind moves the Muses everywhere." 
-Apollo is seated at the top playing a large lute. The little flying monkeys in the corners (I know they are supposed to be angels or cupids but they look like flying monkeys to me) are playing a smaller lute and a viola da gamba. Both lutes and viola da gambas were often used instead of lyres in the Renaissance pictures of mythological characters.

-Three Graces dance next to Apollo.
    1 Euphrosyne "Mirth, Good Cheer"
    2 Aglaia "Splendor, Beauty"
    3 Thalia "Blooming, Abundance"

-Nine Muses are matched up with the nine planetary spheres and the modes/scales. In between each planet is the word tonus (whole-step) or semitonium (half-step) to show the distance between each note. To hear the different modes/scales, you can follow the whole and half steps starting on any note. Or, on a piano, play only the white key between the notes in the parenthesis below.
    1 Urania “Heavenly one”---Stars---Hypermixolydian (A to A; Aeolian or minor) 
    2 Polyhymnia “Many hymns”---Saturn---Mixolydian (G to G)
    3 Euterpe “Giver of joy”---Jupiter---Lydian (F to F)
    4 Erato “Awakener of desire”---Mars---Phrygian (E to E)
    5 Melpomene “The singer”---Sun---Dorian (D to D)
    6 Terpsicore “Enjoys dance”---Venus---Hypolydian (C to C; Ionian or major) 
    7 Caliope “Beautiful voice”---Mercury---Hypophrygian (B to B; Locrian) 
    8 Clio “Giver of fame”---Moon---Hypodorian (A to A; Aeolian or minor) 
    9 Thalia “Festive, blooming”---Earth---no note or mode
    (Note: These are not the current standard spellings for the names of the Muses.)

-The Greek words next to each Muse (Mese, Lychanosme, Meson etc.) are names for notes that mostly indicate the order of notes in a scale. They basically mean 1st, 2nd, 3rd and so on.
-A Three Headed Serpent in the center connects the Grace Thalia (top) to the Muse Thalia (bottom.) There really was both a Grace and a Muse named Thalia in some of the less well known Greek myths. A number of names get reused in Greek myths.
-The Elements-Fire (ignis) Air (aer), and Water (aqua) surround the Earth (terra) and the Muse Thalia.

I have yet to find any explanation of the vase of plants next to Apollo. I say it represents the blossoming of the earth creating spirit. 

Musical Ideas I See in this Picture

As a group, the Graces create the movement and speed of the sound waves; pitch.

The Grace Thalia shapes the type of sound being heard; timbre. I would tentatively give volume and rhythm to the other two Graces.

The Muses are the organization of the different vibrations/pitches; the notes and scales.

Since Muse Thalia (within the Earth) is not given a note or scale, she becomes not only the substance used to create music (air, wood, reed, string, metal) but also the sounding board or the part of the instrument/voice that reverberates and amplifies the sounds just as she amplifies our connection to spirit.

The whole-steps (tonus) and half-steps (semitonium) between each planet form an ascending minor scale from bottom to top though different scales are formed by starting on different notes/planets. The name of a Greek scale or mode is assigned to each Muse and planet. Hypermixolydian and Hypodorian are functionally the same scale pattern according to the picture. (Not, as Campbell says, Hypermixolydian and Dorian.)

A bit of trivia; the picture itself does not actually use Ancient Greek scales. Renaissance authors didn’t know how the Greek scales really worked and assigned the Greek names to their own scales somewhat randomly. (The Greek scales started on different notes, used different intervals between scale steps and often placed the tonic in the middle of the scale.) However, these ARE the scale patterns and mode names as they are paired off today. They just have nothing to do with the older Greek scales, aside from their names.

More Detail and Mythological Ideas

Apollo as the God of harmony helps people live in harmony with the world and spirit. Harmony can be created between different tones, different beings and different realities. In Greek myth, he was sometimes considered the leader of the Muses (after ousting Artemis.) 
The Graces are the first divisions, reflections or reverberations of spirit. They expand the possible ways of perceiving the divine mask, making it easier to approach. In myth, the Graces lived and traveled with the Muses. The Graces were sometimes considered a triad version of Aphrodite, who had ties to the Muses as well. There are several different sets of names for the Graces so don't worry too much if you haven't heard of this set before. Euphrosyne "Mirth, Festivity, Good Cheer" faces away from Apollo representing spirit moving out into the world. Aglaia "Splendor, Beauty, Triumph, Adornment" faces Apollo representing how the world feeds and seeks spirit. Thalia "Blooming, Abundance" faces the viewer creating a full circle.

The serpent descends through the planetary spheres and four elements (Campbell compares it to the Kundalini spirit descending the spinal column) and its three heads are in the earth with the Muse Thalia, connecting spirit with the physical world by linking the two Thalias. Three headed beings turn up in myth a great deal and often represent balancing our right and left energies (creative and analytical, spirit and body). This serpent helps us connect with or wake the Muse spirit within the earth and ourselves. 

The elements, earth, water, air and fire not only make up the world but are different forms of spirit within the world. The more aware we become of the various forms of spirit in the world around us, the more we experience the inspiration of the Muses. 

The Muses and the planets are the expansion of consciousness through the planetary spheres and different harmonies. Getting to know the Muses and their planetary spheres can be seen as the growing awareness that spirit exists in everything. And since all art, music and learning has its Muse, any art, learning or inspiration is a possible path to spirit.

Chakras and the Tree of Life

Campbell links the Muses to the chakras in his essay although he assigns three Muses to the heart chakra to make the numbers work. He describes encountering the different Muses as moving awareness up through the chakras in the body continuing the Kundalini idea.
Crown chakra----Urania/Stars
Brow chakra------Polyhymnia/Saturn
Throat chakra----Euterpe/Jupiter

                             Erato/Mars---Upper Heart, closer to spirit

Heart chakra-----Melpomene/Sun---Center Heart, balances earth and spirit
                             Terpsicore/Venus---Lower Heart, closer to earth
3^rd chakra---------Caliope/Mercury

2^nd chakra---------Clio/Moon

Root chakra------Thalia/Earth

Here is an alternative method of linking the Muses to the chakras that I came up with and think is less confusing. It uses two external chakras that are only present in some chakra systems (there are many.) Again, this is to make the numbers work.

External chakra above our heads----Urania/Stars

Crown chakra----------------------------------Polyhymnia/Saturn

Brow chakra------------------------------------Euterpe/Jupiter

Throat chakra----------------------------------EratoMars

Heart chakra------------------------------------Melpomene/Sun

3^rd chakra----------------------------------------Terpsicore/Venus

2^nd chakra---------------------------------------Caliope/Mercury

Root chakra-------------------------------------Clio/Moon

External chakra below the ground---Thalia/Earth 

This picture can also be used to place the Muses in the Tree of Life pattern. I don't know why Campbell didn't discuss this since the numbers match up better than with the chakras.

1 Kefer Crown/Source------------Apollo 
2 Chokmah Wisdom---------------Urania/Ourania

3 Binah Understanding-----------Polyhymnia

4 Chesed Love------------------------Euterpe

5 Gebunrah Strength--------------Erato

6 Tiphareth Beauty-----------------Melpomene

7 Netzach Victory-------------------Terpsicore/Terpshicore

8 Hod Glory----------------------------Caliope/Kalliope

9 Yesod Foundation----------------Clio/Klieo

10 Malkuth World/Universe-----Thalia

I think Mnemosyne “memory” would works just as well for the first station as Apollo since she is the mother of the Muses.

With that in mind, Lethe “forgetfulness” is a good choice for the 11^th station, Daath, that is both there and not. 
If you would rather stick with images from the original picture, the serpent would be my next pick for the 11th station. It would also be possible to put the Graces here as a group. (For a short, clear and sane intro to the Tree of Life, I suggest Math for Mystic by Renna Shesso-she discusses it in one chapter.)

Qabalah Tree of Life and Muses

Keep in mind that this order of the Muses was created in the Renaissance and has no relation to anything in Greek mythology. You are in fact free to move them around anyway you want.

Summing Up

Connection to spirit comes from perceiving that the spirit is a part of the physical world and understanding that the physical itself creates the spirit. To deny the physical, the body, as holy in hopes of increasing spirit or connecting with divine is similar to looking at a water glass without drinking it when we are thirsty. Drinking the water is much simpler and far more effective. Not to mention more comfortable.
The Muses bring inspiration of all kinds into our lives and harmony to spirit and matter throughout the universe.

For More Muse Stories Click Here

Flute Shopping in the Deepest Darkest Midwest

The standard advice for trying out flutes is “go to as many stores as you can and play as many flutes as you can so you find the perfect flute for you.” Great advice. Unless the nearest store with anything other than junker flutes is a day and a half away. Of course, taking a “flute vacation” in which the trip is planned partly around good flute stores is an option. If you have time to travel and don’t mind planning your trip that way. You can also see if there are any flute conventions or gatherings in your area. My favorite repair person Judi of Judi's Woodwind Shop sells some very good flutes (student and high end) and hosts a flute party once a year. If something like this happens in your area, it may be the best way to go. But you will be limited to the flute dealers who show up. And the smaller the gathering, the fewer the choices. So for all the musicians living in extremely rural areas, I’m sharing my advice for long distance flute shopping.

First, do your research. This will be in two parts. One half of this research is to read up on the top flute brands, see what other people are saying about them, compare prices and features of different models within brands and from brand to brand. Don’t rule out a brand or model because of one person’s negative comment but do look at what they criticized about it; if they didn’t like the tone, that doesn’t tell you much since everyone sounds different on different flutes. But if they said the keywork clacked or was awkward, that is something to keep in mind. Although again, what is uncomfortable for a person with small hands and long fingers may not be the same for a person with wide hands and short fingers. Always remember that different models of the same brand may be quite different (or not) and that sometimes newer versions are constructed differently than older ones. Important: You won’t be making your final decision based on this information! You will be using it to pick which instruments you want to test out. What you are attempting to do is select several different kinds of flutes that are all likely to be very good and have those sent to you to try out. Then, you will be in a position of having nothing but good flute options.
Now the second part of your research; picking a company to send you flutes. Each store and manufacturer has a different trial policy (and some don’t allow trials) so you want to figure out which ones will work best for you. Look at cost (shipping to and from, insurance, trial fees etc.), available flutes, how long you get to test flutes, how returning the flutes works (return shipping is sometimes more expensive) and of course if they are a reputable company. If you haven’t heard of them, look them up and find out what people have to say about them. I personally recommend the Flute Center of New York for several reasons. They have a very good selection of new and used instruments, their trial policy is the most affordable of any company I’ve researched and if you speak to them, they are very willing to work with you and be flexible about the details of the trial. Example; their website states that you must be a member of the National Flute Association to try out flutes (possibly worth joining just to do this) but they were very cheerful about loaning me flutes in spite of my membership lapsing several years back. They simply make it easy to play-test their flutes even by mail which is a big plus. If you find a company with a trial policy that seems ok but you wonder if they would modify it some, get in touch and ask. Many companies are willing to be a little flexible as long as you talk with them but be understanding if they say no. It's also a good idea to compare the prices of different companies. Flute World is another good company to compare prices and descriptions of flutes, new and used, although their trial policy is pricier and more complicated than the Flute Center of NY.
A note here about shopping for used flutes; for experienced players this can be a pretty good option. If you are patient about it, you may have a chance to play or buy a better flute used than you could afford new. However, there are a couple of possible issues with shopping used. One is that you are at the mercy of what instruments are available. Two different used flutes I looked at on-line were out on trial when I first asked about them. One was returned and I got to try it, the other was purchased and I didn’t. That is just how it goes. The second issue is that used flutes may not be in top playing condition. Most places try to get even their consignment flutes into decent shape. But since they don’t actually own those flutes, they can’t force the current owners to spend money on repairs or adjustments. More experienced players can tell when a flute isn’t playing well because it needs work but it is well worth asking a repair person to check out a used flute before purchasing it. If the repairs aren't that pricey, it may still be a good idea to get the flute. One final thing to keep in mind when looking at used flutes is that the tuning (also called scale) of flutes has changed over the years. I’ll let you look up the details of the Cooper, Deveau and other "modern" scales/tunings but basically, you want to make sure a used flute will play at A=440 without pulling the headjoint out insane amounts. Most flutes made today are set at A=442 which usually works fine. A short session with a tuner will tell you if a flute is too high or low.

So which brands are good? The trouble with this question is that new flute makers pop up, brand names are bought and changed and flute making techniques change so any list you find will be limited to the time it was made as well as the knowledge of the person making the list. Of course when a brand turns up on a “best” list year after year, there is a good chance they are worth considering. Again, I suggest looking up what people are saying about different kinds of flutes on-line. But remember that there will be a wide range of opinions on every flute out there. Example; some hate the “bright” Sankyo sound while others say it has the most beautiful soaring sound out there. Both groups are making subjective personal statements about how THEY sound on these instruments and your sound on that brand may not match either statement.
Here are a few brands that have good reputations. This list is mostly geared to high end flutes. If you're shopping for student flutes, you may want to look at this site too. Buying Flutes (Parents Guide)
-Altus
-Brannen (these flutes retain much of their value used so don't expect much of a price drop)
-Burkart (older ones are called Burkart & Phelan-there are differences but both labels are the basically the same maker)
-Haynes (has changed hands some but the handmade ones are still considered good)
-Miyazawa
-Muramatsu
-Powell
-Sankyo (known for being repairable as well as good sounding).

Don’t limit yourself to just this list! I don’t pretend to have researched all the different brands out there. And there are smaller flute makers (such as Lehner in Australia) that are considered good but aren't easy to find in some places. And some brands have student or intermediate models (such as Sonare Powell or Resona from Burkart) that are not the same as the higher end instruments. Which doesn't mean you should dismiss them, just be aware of which models you are looking at. And take notes. This is not a small project, you shouldn’t expect to memorize all this information in one go.

How much a flute costs matters far less than how well it fits you. A story about this. When I was in college, a fellow flute player and friend played the same kind of flute as me (Sankyo Prima) but we did not sound the same at all. Because of this and since we both liked the other's sound, we often tested out instruments together to see what would happen. When she got a Muramatsu, she sounded wonderful on it; beautiful tone, great dynamics, just all you could want. I however sounded rather wispy and shy on that flute, nothing too special. Another time, she played an all wood flute that made her sound like, in her words, "a 3rd grader on a recorder." But when I played it, in a crowded room full of people tweeting on flutes, nearly everyone within hearing range turned around and asked about the flute because they liked the sound so much. Both flutes were good and we both played well. It was just the difference in how we interacted with the flutes that created such a change of sounds on the same instruments.
A story about my search for a new flute. At one point I had three wonderful flutes on trial; a used handmade Haynes, a used Sankyo 601 and a Powell Conservatory. All three had beautiful sounds, a wide dynamic range and a good key layout. The Haynes had the most covered (darkest) sound that was oddly reminiscent of an oboe. This flute had the smoothest transition to the top register of any flute I have every played. But the top three notes above the high C were rather difficult to get out. The Sankyo was very bright and open sounding which surprised me since it had a "heavywall" design that is supposed to create a dark sound. It almost had a brassy sound or an edge to the tone. The layout of the keys on the footjoint was simply perfect (Sankyo does that well) and extremely comfortable under my fingers. The top three high notes spoke the easiest of all the flutes. It was also very heavy and made my hands tired after awhile. The Powell spoke easily, had an open sound but no edge. The quiet tone in the low register was fantastic. The sound was quite consistent from the low to the high range. All of these flutes were a delight to play and would have been good choices but you can see that there was still quite a bit of difference between them.

Some links to get you started in your research.
Head Joints-Minor Music and Flutemonkey-Headjoint
Some info on head joints. Just buying a new headjoint instead of a whole flute is sometimes a good choice.
Parts of the Flute-on the Larry Krantz site
Many flute players pick up these terms but if you haven't (since we don't need to know all these words to play after all) this chart may help when reading descriptions of flutes. The Larry Krantz site has a great deal of useful flute information and is well worth exploring for its own sake.
Articles About Flute Construction and more-Miyazawa site
There are many different articles about the terms used by flute sellers, different key options and so on here. Keep in mind this IS the Miyazawa site so they talk up their own flutes in these articles.
Modern Flute Scales-short intro
This is a post in the Powell blog so again, they talk up their own flutes.
"Best" Flutes
This is a very short (5) list of well liked flute brands. Even these brands have their detractors so don't let this limit you.
Gold or Silver-Jennifer Cluff
The debate over gold or silver flutes is long and heated. This post has links to several articles on this issue AND a sensible summary. The Cluff site can be difficult to navigate but has lots of good information.


Links from earlier in this post:
Buying Flutes for Students
This is written for parents of younger players, but there is plenty of good info about shopping for flutes.
Judi's Woodwind Shop
Repairs and good flutes in the Kansas/Missouri area.
Flute Center of New York
Good flute selection and long distance trial policy.
NFA-The National Flute Association
Not directly related to buying flutes but of possible interest.
Flute World
For pricing of new and used flutes, descriptions of flutes, flute music, basically all things flute.
There are other good companies that sell flutes. Here are a couple that are highly spoken of although I have no personal experience with them.
Carolyn Nussbaum Music Company and J L Smith Wind Specialists

The goal is to learn enough that you can have only good flutes sent to you and increase the odds that you will find a flute that you love, that makes you sound your best and that you can't wait to play. Good luck!

With the Music

Moving while playing is a bit of a thorny issue. Many musicians have a tendency to move while we play. Part of the brain that processes music also controls physical movement so this is not at all surprising. The trouble occurs when the movement becomes distracting to the audience.

Now in Classical training, teachers are more likely to be strict about not turning your body into a metronome or standing on your toes when you’re playing high notes (though it is fun to hit those high notes on your toes, let me tell you!). But in folk music, tapping the foot is almost part of the music. There’s a big difference of opinion about whether or not keeping the beat with your body is acceptable. Folk music tends to have a strong steady beat that people can clap along with. Classical music may have a regular beat but it also may use complex rhythms that show off the performers ability to play against the beat. With this in mind, the different opinions about moving while playing makes a fair amount of sense. When musicians are playing against the beat, it is more impressive if they don’t show where the beat is with their foot or by swaying. When the audience is supposed to feel the beat as part of the music, showing that beat adds to the music.
I was never happy with the idea of holding rock still while playing. My teachers, thankfully, didn’t want to turn me into a statue but they did want me not to keep time in an obvious way. So I learned to be aware of when I was moving to the music and to make conscious decisions about how I was moving.

The more I play for live audiences, the more I’ve learned that “dancing” to the music adds to the show. And knowing when I’m moving is vital and lets me make sure it works with the music. I do tap my foot for some songs to make a point about how the piece is speeding up or slowing down or to add to the piece in some way (bells tied to an ankle are a standard trick to create your own percussion line). For other songs, I walk and move all over the stage to show some of how I am feeling the music, not to keep tempo. And for some songs, I hold still and let the music speak for itself. But I try to be aware of each and every choice I make.

A Night at the Theater

Dionysus the God of wine, nature, trance, theater and music.

Apollo of course is the most famous God of music in ancient Greece, but his music was always Greek and had to follow the rules of harmony or be used to improve the listener’s character. All the passionate music, all the drunken festival music and all the music from other countries fell to Dionysus. Even the instruments associated with lands outside Greece were given to Dionysus, as if they were so dangerous they had to be handled by an animal tamer.
The aulos, a double reed instrument closer to an oboe or bagpipe than a flute, was a favorite of the mad God’s followers. Its high wailing nasal sound went well with the frenzied trances that seemed to consume everyone at Dionysus’s festivals. Those who didn’t want to run up and down mountains while playing a wind instrument played cymbals, tambourines and drums; anything that rattled and clattered was allowed. Dancing cymbals, rattles and small drums that can be carried while running were used so often they became background noise.
It is fairly well known that Hermes invented the lyre using a tortoise shell and gave it to Apollo. But that was just one kind of lyre. The kithara was the lyre that became associated with professional musicians and Apollo. But the kithara was also called the lyre of drinking parties and intoxication, Dionysus's specialties. Meanwhile a larger deeper lyre, the barbiton, was linked to women and Dionysus but then mixed up with so many different instruments it is difficult to be certain what anyone meant by the term. The various lyres have connections to harps, guitars and even violins (some by round about routes). This creates an interesting spin on the many stories of meeting a guitar or violin playing spirit or "devil" at the crossroads!

Music in general was used in Dionysus’s worship to induce trance states similar to drunkenness. Dionysus could drive men mad with the sound of his aulos or soothe sorrow with song. Tityroi and Satyrs, half animal nature spirits, surrounded Dionysus as he wandered from town to town, calling out his worshippers with music on aulos, shepherd pipes and tambourines. At Dionysus’s festivals, choruses dressed as Satyrs to perform Satyr-plays. They danced in circles while singing dithyrambs, hymns in honor of Dionysus.

Female followers of the vine God known as Meanads ran into the wilderness with their hair loose and streaming. They used music to dance, sing and play themselves into ecstatic trances.

The Korybantes, spirits of the countryside similar to the Kouretes and Dactyls, protected the young Dionysus by dancing around him and using their shields as cymbals to cover the infant's cries. Many different deities were said to have raised Dionysus; among them we find the Muses, the Goddesses of poetry, music and inspiration. They taught him the art of chorus singing and dancing, which was used in nearly all Greek theater. The Muses traveled with him around the world as he spread the art of wine-making. It was said they delighted his heart with song, dance and “their other talents.” As the God of intoxication, he was a God of inspiration and prophecy. He shared the Delphic oracle with Apollo and his Muses. Again like Apollo, Dionysus offered healing with his prophecies, most often in dreams, natural or wine-induced.

Dionysus was given the honor of inventing theater: both the plays and the buildings they were performed in. Many early theaters were open air stages, almost altars, with seats rising up to catch the voices of the actors and the music that went with them. Plays in Ancient Greece made heavy use of music to evoke emotional reactions from the audience and show how the story was progressing. Some called that much music decadent, some called it dangerous but it remained popular no matter what it was called. The Florentine Camerata (1600s) liked the idea of using music to tell stories and show emotion so much that they invented opera in imitation of Dionysus’s tragedies and comedies. The soundtracks of today’s movies and TV shows pay homage to this ancient use of music.

Dionysus was called Polyhymnus “the lover of all songs” or "much sung of" and Dionysus Melpomenus, “the singer” or “the minstrel of tragedy,” and Thyoneus, "inspired."

Dionysus Dendrites, the God of the Tree.

Singing, reed instruments, drums and cymbals mix melody and rhythm like water and wine. Every tune used to set a mood, every group that joins together in song and dance, every experimental form of music that breaks the rules calls up this God of the wild and uncontrolled. Karaoke, Kirtan, sports chants, Mardi Gras parades, rock concerts, musicals, music from other lands, songs that make us laugh and songs that let us weep all remind us of how inescapable divine inspiration truly is.

Music and Hearing Loss

Most musicians only talk about hearing loss, almost superstitiously, when discussing Beethoven but it is a real concern for ALL musicians. Ear plugs are a good thing to keep in your music bag especially for piccolo players. I wear one in my right ear every time I play picc because after a day of playing without one, I can feel a (small and temporary so far, happily) difference in my hearing.
I tried out several different ear plugs to find one that would be comfortable while protecting my hearing without blocking it completely. For orchestral work, I have a small, cheap, rubber earplug that doesn't take much, if any, effort to get in and out so I can pop it in and out during short rests. But I use a foam one that takes some time to put in properly when I'm going to play with the plug for long stretches. It's comfy, stays put and since I won't be taking it out much, I'm willing to take the extra time getting it in place. I shop for cheap plugs because I do lose them from time to time and they tend to be smaller which works better for me. I don't use earplugs made for musicians because not only are they pricier, they are usually much too big and hurt my ear (I hate most earbuds for the same reason). But other folks may not have that trouble. Everyone is built different so an earplug that works perfectly for me may not work for you. Test them out!
Playing with the plug does change how things sound but it is possible to adapt to listening more with the other ear. Anytime I think I'll need an earplug for performance, I make sure to practice with it to be used to how the music sounds with the earplug. It felt odd at first but now I can adapt to the plug quite quickly. I recommend doing some work with a tuner while wearing the earplug just to get the feel of tuning with your other ear. I use a couple of different kinds of ear plugs that block sound to different degrees. When I’m playing with a loud, amplified group, I often mix and match plugs. I wear one that blocks less sound in the ear that is farthest from the loudest instrument in the group. It's not uncommon for the picc to be loudest (at least to me) but sometimes those amplified keyboard players don't realize just how loud their sound is.
But you can be sure, if the group decides to crank it up to 11, I pull out the heaviest plugs I have and make no apologies.

 

Sound Levels of Music
Normal piano practice	60 -70dB
Fortissimo Singer, 3'	70dB
Chamber music, small auditorium	75 - 85dB
Piano Fortissimo	84 - 103dB
Violin	82 - 92dB
Cello	85 -111dB
Oboe	95-112dB
Flute	92 -103dB
Piccolo	90 -106dB
Clarinet	85 - 114dB
French horn	90 - 106dB
Trombone	85 - 114dB
Tympani & bass drum	106dB
Walkman on 5/10	94dB
Symphonic music peak	120 - 137dB
Amplifier, rock, 4-6'	120dB
Rock music peak	150dB

NOTES:

• 90-95 dB is the level when sustained exposure may cause hearing loss. 125 dB is the level when pain begins. 140dB is the level when short term exposure may cause hearing loss.
• One-third of the total power of a 75-piece orchestra comes from the bass drum.
• High frequency sounds of 2-4,000 Hz are the most damaging. The uppermost octave of the piccolo is 2,048-4,096 Hz.
• Hypertension and various psychological difficulties can be related to noise exposure.
• The incidence of hearing loss in classical musicians has been estimated at 4-43%, in rock musicians 13-30%.

Chart on decibel levels from  www.gcaudio.com/resources/howtos/loudness.html

Emotional Tempos

Grave, Largo, Adagio, Andante, Moderato, Allegro, Vivace and Presto.

Every semester, my class memorizes this list of Italian tempo terms and the order they go in, slow to fast. And every semester I attempt to explain that these terms didn’t start out with exact speeds linked to them (that developed later) and that they are supposed to be moods, emotions and styles of music. These terms are often used as “names” of individual movements in larger pieces. You can see them listed on some metronomes. (If you're curious, the number on the metronome is the number of beats in one minute so 60 is the same as one beat a second, 120 is two beats in a second and so on.) In most Classical concerts, people see

       Sonata

             I. Allegro

             II. Adagio

             III. Presto

and, if they are lucky, they know that means this Sonata has 3 movements; a fast movement followed by a slow one and finally a VERY fast movement. But the story each term suggests, the overall feeling of the music, is largely ignored. And yes, there are yet more tempo terms but we'll stick with these to keep this post from getting too outrageously long.

Grave is the slowest marking, in theory. It means heavy, burdensome and serious. Now grave is not always slower than largo (the next one) but it should be darker in mood. I think of grave style as being somber with a lot of story or history behind each note and chord.

Largo is still very slow. But it means broad, wide, abundant and open. Think of this as laid back and taking things easy. I noticed that largos drift into the pompous fairly easily but they can also have a relaxed humor hiding in them.

Adagio is possibly the most commonly used term for slow. It’s dictionary definition is slowly and gently. Adagios run a wide range of emotions. Some are absolutely tragic (Barber’s Adagio for Strings), some are peaceful and sweet like a cheery lullaby. I think of them as having an inward focus, perfect for any music linked to contemplation.

Andante is considered a somewhat slow to medium speed. This term can be translated as continuous or unbroken. It suggests a smooth and flowing style of music to me.

Moderato is an in-between speed. It is often defined as walking speed which, if you think about it, is nearly the most obscure tempo marking possible. I have rarely found even two people who naturally walk at the same speed, even in marching bands! The dictionary defines it as moderate or middle of the road. Which can be seen as flexible. It can shift between thoughtful and cheerful easily. Moderatos are tricky to pin to one mood and are quite independent to my mind.

Allegro is fast. Some books say it is only moderately fast but you will find that allegros are quite likely to be played fast (maybe too fast). Since it also means cheerful, merry and joyful there is some logic behind this. Many people associate "up" moods with faster tempos. Since allegros are generally as optimistic as they can be, they get sped up.

Vivace is also fast. It is lively, brisk, brilliant and full of life. It is about showing energy, passion and life itself in music. Again, it is not uncommon for vivaces to get sped up a bit more than they should.

Presto is the fastest term in this list. It means quick, fast, soon, early or ready. The word prestito (not presto I know but similar) means borrow which musically could suggest “stealing” time from the next beat in order to go even faster. Prestos tend to be fairly friendly but they can edge into frantic or hectic without much effort. Frightening, alarming or chasing scenes work well as prestos too. Prestos also tend to make musicians swear a blue streak. Really, this marking shouldn’t be about playing so fast the audience can’t tell one instrument from another but create a sensation of motion that carries the audience along with it rather than leaving them lying in the dust.

The lines between Allegro, Vivace and Presto can get a little blurry. There is an element of "who can play it fastest" that sneaks into all these tempos. There is a similar issue with the slow tempos seeming all the same. This is partly because, as I said, these terms didn't start out with exact speeds and partly because when you remove the emotion these terms don't really mean that much. But emotion is an inescapable part of music which may be why people have trouble talking about music in our culture. It comes too close to discussing how we feel. Yet that is precisely why we love music. It does not hesitate to pour all its emotions out into the world for us to glory in.

When is a Flute Not a Flute?

In the Renaissance and Baroque, recorders and flutes were given the same musical lines in ensembles and were treated as interchangeable. They were even both called flutes and occasionally still are. But one look at them and you can see that they aren't the same. So which one is the flute? There is some disagreement about how to classify flutes but here is the explanation I prefer;
Flute can be used as a generic name for instruments like recorders, Native American flutes, ocarinas, transverse flutes and panpipes; basically any wind instrument that produces sound by splitting the air stream on an edge without using any reeds. These instruments do not all sound exactly the same but they do all have a clear tone that is distinctly different from the reed instruments, such as clarinets and oboes. This makes our old friend the concert or transverse flute (most often called flute) just one kind of flute.

Transverse flute, concert flute, traverso or German flute.

There are two different ways that the air is directed to the edge to be split. In one group the player must use their lips to direct the air to the edge that will divide it. This means the mouth-piece is at least partly formed from the player's own lips. This is how instruments like concert flutes, panpipes and rim-blown flutes work. (For more on rim-blown flutes, see Mythical Jacuaflute.)
In the second group the player blows into a hole and the mouthpiece directs the breath to an edge that divides the air and sound emerges. This includes instruments like recorders, ocarinas and Native American style flutes.











Recorders use a "fipple" mouthpiece (the notch near the top) 
to divide the air and create sound. The recorder is also called
Blockflote, common flute, or English flute.




There is, of course, more to it than that but this is the simple explanation of the two main ways flutes create sound. Some people argue that instruments like recorders and Native American flutes are not really flutes because the player does not direct the air stream to the edge that splits it. But that argument ignores the similar sound quality and historical uses of the instruments. Please note that the recorder and Native American flutes are by no means easier to play, they just use a different technique to direct breath to the edge that splits the air than the concert flute.
To sum up; recorders, panpipes, piccolos and so on are all specific kinds of flute but if you just say flute with no qualifier, people will generally assume you mean the concert or transverse flute.

Now for some information on the moods and uses of these different instruments.

Recorders, like most Medieval instruments, are made in many different sizes, partly to expand the range and partly to imitate different human voices. The recorder has a softer, more “vocal” sound than the flute but it also has less variety in the kinds of sound it can produce. It can produce some trills and ornaments easier than the concert flute and some melodies "fit" the fingerings it uses much more easily than the concert flute (and of course some don't.) Playing in different keys or scales is trickier on the recorder but each scale has a unique personality that is less present on the concert flute. The recorder is used to imitate birds, for pastoral settings and cheerful dances. However, J. S. Bach used the simplicity of the recorder's sound to show religious devotion and the acceptance of death.

The concert flute is brighter, louder and has a larger range than the recorder. It eventually replaced the recorder's role in the orchestra but as a solo instrument it remained highly suspect. Through the 1800's, male flute players were assumed to be using their music to seduce young women. It was only recently that it became acceptable for women to play the concert flute at all. (Of course, this just meant that "unacceptable" women played flute, not that women didn't play flute.) Concert flutes are used to represent birds, water (the sea, rain, streams) and nature scenes (meadows, mountains, dawn and country villages.) It is also used for sorrow, laments and loss along with the violin.

The piccolo is descended from the fife which was used for marching and battle signals since its high range cuts through other sounds and carries over distances. (The fife actually has a longer history than the concert flute in Europe.) The picc is still used for military moods but it is also used for calm peaceful scenes by playing in octaves with other instruments. It represents birds and pastoral settings but then turns around and takes the role of storms, lightning, fireworks and fire in general.
The alto flute is considered darker or more moody than the concert flute. It is used in programmatic music about the sea, myths (especially South American myths), sacrifices and in general for eerie settings. It also has a long history of accompanying vocal music. 

The Native American flute was used for love songs meant to lure a girl out of her home (not too different from the reputation of the Concert Flute in Europe really.) In some legends, the Sun and Moon are created and brought to life by a pair of flute players. The Native American flute is thought to bring rain, crops and generally encourage fertility. Not surprisingly, this flute is used to imitate birds and for nature scenes, especially deserts and wide open spaces but it goes with forest scenes, too.

Rim-blown flutes are still fairly unfamiliar to most Western listeners but they can be found around the world. Most of my friends have trouble grasping how these flutes even work at first and I'm still learning about the shear variety of them. The Ancestor Pueblo/Anasazi flutes from the Southwest, the Middle Eastern ney, the Japanese shakuhachi, the South American quena and the Hopi flute are just a few. The music they are used for varies just as widely. I'm sure I'll learn more as I explore these instruments.

Nearly all the different kinds of flutes are used to show song, flight, nature, seduction, innocence and the loss of it. Storms, stress, fire and energy run alongside themes of water, peace and deep contentment. They speak, dance and enchant. They are charming, startling and mysterious. They are the flight of the soul in music.

The Flute Book by Nancy Toff
The Flute by Ardal Powell

For a more detailed break down of different flute designs see flutopedia classifications

Dyslexic Tutoring

When I was in Grad school, I worked as a teacher’s assistant for a couple of music theory classes. This mostly involved answering questions about homework, grading homework and occasionally pointing out that a homework assignment was too confusing for the class to handle. One semester, there was a student with several learning disabilities in the class. After talking with the teacher, she asked about the possibility of getting a tutor for the class through a program the school had in place for students with learning issues. We agreed since we didn’t want her to be downgraded for having trouble writing notes on the correct lines and spaces when she knew the answer. The school's program didn’t have a music theory tutor at the time so I told her that I was willing. She was very nervous about this until I told her that while I don’t have the same issues she did, I am dyslexic and do understand about learning difficulties in general. Then she was delighted.

I was fascinated to see the areas of music reading that tripped her up, even more because they were so different from the ones I had trouble with. She was thrilled to have a tutor who had personal experience with learning issues. Most of the tutoring involved looking over her homework and making sure what she wrote was what she meant, not very taxing for me but a huge help for her. But she had some interesting times learning some of the music theory concepts as well. I shared one or two of our discussions about intervals and chords with the teacher and he incorporated some of our thoughts in his lectures for the class. He was quite interested in all the different ways we were looking at the material and commented on how it opened up his view of learning music theory. Of course, he was a good teacher to start with and was always looking for new ways of presenting material but it was very rewarding for both of us to hear that.

Her biggest difficulty with the homework was writing the music down. She knew where all the notes went but she just couldn’t get the notes onto the right lines and spaces. 

Three different versions of the same chord.

 Lines and spaces make all the difference.

My problems were always more connected to reading what was actually written (words rather than music) so we both were very interested in talking with someone who had basically the opposite issue. It worked out quite well since she could tell me where to write the notes and get credit for the material she knew. We also discussed what she would have to do if she continued on to write music in the future. Computer programs that print music, different colored lines on the music staff and so on but at the time, that wasn't necessary.

Teaching is, in many ways, the ultimate learning method. Everyone I know who teachers comments on how many things they understand more fully after they have taught them. This is not to say you can't learn without teaching but the act of passing knowledge on to someone else turns that information around inside your head in truly remarkable ways. Even understanding your own learning issues works that way. Talking and teaching others with twists in their brains made me look at how I handled my own quirks and come up with new ways to make sense of the material. For myself and others.

Lullaby's Creation

All that exists remakes creation by existing. The painter, the sculptor, the gardener, the builder all transform the universe with their tales. The rock, the flower, the ice, the air redefine the world and stories they touch. This is just one of many stories that can be enjoyed or ignored as pleases.

Long before long ago could even exist, all of creation - all that is, all that was and all that may be - still lay wrapped tight within itself. Here, in this time that is not, all creation slept. A deep dreamless sleep where all awareness dissolves into the stuff that feeds the soul. But as always happens, when the soul is fed, dreams began. And within the dreams Creation met sensation for the first time. Through sensation, Creation learned to understand itself and all that was around it within the dream, for within the dream all is understood or if not understood then accepted as if it was well known. In this acceptance, Creation learned meaning and even language but only in the dream where logic twists itself into tangled spirals. And even now, that first learning still runs through all of creation’s understanding of itself and spins tiny knots into all reason and order.

Wild Raspberry Buds

But then, creation began to wake.
And for all its learning of dreams, creation had never experienced itself when awake. In the waking, creation found itself as lost as it had been at the start of the dream, now long forgotten. All experience was equally startling, joy and sorrow as overwhelming as a drop of water and grain of sand. All the colors exploded, smells wove together, taste drowned the horizon, sound cracked atoms and touch brought the world to an end or so it seemed. And then, slowly, creation began to notice something. It was more comforting than shade in summer, tasted more decadent than black raspberries, smelled more enticing than wine and was softer than flower petals. It was the lullaby. As creation listened, it began to realize it knew this music. It had been hearing this tune for longer than it could remember, longer even than it had been dreaming. Listening to this lullaby brought a sweeter comfort than creation could imagine or even knew how to long for and brought all of creation’s sharp, new sensations into a kind of order.

And then, creation stretched. 
As it stretched, creation realized that each section of itself heard the music differently, a note here, a hold there, with timbres shifting and rolling against each other. Each move creation made changed how a part of creation heard the lullaby and how all of creation fit the lullaby together. And as each change added to how the music could be heard, creation discovered harmony and began to find the meaning that it thought it had left in the dream. So creation began to unfold and coil round and round itself to hear all the infinite changes, and at that moment made a decision. Dream knowledge said there was no end to the changes in the music or creation itself and that this variety of self and lullaby would bring joy in the deepest sorrow.

Berry Canes and Echinacea

So creation made a decision to create as many possibilities as it could find within itself so that it could always hear the lullaby anew. And still to this very day, that line of music, that infinite diversity, that touch of chaos, that bit of dream wisdom runs through all of creation as a gift of joy that is given to all that is, all that was and all that may be.

Views from the Pit

I love playing in pit orchestras. The combination of musicians, actors, tech folk and dancers working together creates something intense and larger than life. Even shows that we don't like as much as others have a pull to them. It’s fascinating how the mistakes we make (and we all make them) are usually absorbed and masked by the show as a whole. Ask the audience about a dropped note or skipped line and they usually are amazed to learn the mistake happened at all.

The View from the Pit

Focus and Relaxation

There is a delicate balance between staying focused and trusting yourself to know the show. My mantra when my attention wanders is “stay here.” But I am just as likely to mean “let the music roll along” as “focus on each note with the intensity of preparing for a private lesson.” All the dress rehearsals and repeated performances create little grooves in your brain after awhile. Right about the point when the orchestra starts reciting the actors’ lines to each other, there is a shift in how the group plays the music. It becomes like a lazy game of catch played with filmy scarves rather than a tense game of baseball with the strings and the winds competing with each other for the fewest mistakes.

Strength and Flexibility

This year, I hurt my hand about a week before one of the shows I was playing. The injury had the odd effect of turning my hand from a palm with 5 independent fingers that could create many, many combinations into a single lump that could barely function as a flat palm. The lack of independence and flexibility were harder to cope with than the loss of strength. And I realized the strength in my hand was directly connected to the flexibility in a way I hadn’t ever noticed before. Fortunately, one of the earliest positions that my hand could handle was the one I needed to hold the flute and what’s more, I didn’t have to support the weight of the flute with that hand in order to play. Each night, my hand was more flexible which made my hand stronger and playing got easier.

Familiarity and Trust

I had to miss a couple of early rehearsals, so I had to trust my knowledge of the show rather than practicing the tricky passages. Since I have played this show for several years, this was less stressful than it might have been but it was still a very different experience than I am used to. Trusting the rest of the group to catch me if my fingers slipped, trusting myself to remember what I had done previous years and sitting back and letting the music happen is not as easy as it sounds.

On the last day of the show, just as I was getting back to normal, the clarinet player got very ill and couldn’t play. The substitute turned out to be my band teacher from junior high school. We hadn’t ever played our instruments together much but we were familiar with each other’s nonverbal cues which turned out to be the best possible thing. We sailed through the music in fine shape, meshing the intense focus she was using on sight-reading during a performance and the relaxed trust I had in my familiarity with how our parts worked together.

Focus, relaxation, strength, flexibility and trust. Five independent actions that work together to create far more than they could separately.

Sirens the Muses of the Underworld

On the ceiling of an early temple for Apollo in Delphi (were the Muses once lived) were the Keledones, the “soothing Goddesses.” They were three living, singing statues of women or wryneck birds or a mix of both who welcomed worshipers with their music.
They had the same skill with song as the Sirens.

Entwining Voices

The Sirens tangled people up with their words and music. They had the wings of birds. Or the legs of birds. Or the bodies of birds. But they always have lovely faces and entrancing voices. They dart about on the edges of reality like fragments of old stories that have escaped their meanings. They were born from the earth. They are sea nymphs. They charm the wind.

They are surrounded by flowers. They turn white as bone. They died when Orpheus helped the Argonauts pass them safely. They died when Odysseus took Circe’s advice to pass them tied to a mast. They sing like the Muses who wear their feathers. Hera introduced them to the Muses. They nest in Hera’s hands. They follow Artemis’s lead. Aphrodite gave them wings. Demeter took their wings. Demeter gave them wings. They serve Persephone. Their music causes obsession. Their music erases fear.

Like the Muses, the Sirens are singing bird women linked to water with changeable names, numbers, instruments and homes. They put secrets and unbreakable charms into song and they gathered flowers with Persephone. Three different Muses are called the Sirens’ mother: Terpsichore the dancing Muse, Melpomene the tragic Muse and Kalliope the epic Muse. The name of another Muse, Achelois, becomes the group title of the Sirens, the Acheloides, when they are daughters of the river God Achelous. One Siren and one Muse even have the same name, Thelxinoe “the enchantress” or “heart’s delight.”

Earth, Water and Air

The Sirens have roots in the sky, the sea and the earth. In older genealogies, they are children of a river and the earth or another river and a sky woman. The story goes that Heracles and Achelous, a shape-shifting river God, once fought each other for days. They were fighting over who would marry Deianeira or for possession of the cornucopia, the horn of plenty that Amaltheia used to feed baby Zeus. Hercules tore off one of Achelous’s horns and the blood of the fish-tailed God fell onto the earth, Gaia. The Sirens sprang up from the blood-soaked ground, mirroring the birth of Aphrodite and the Furies. But others say their father is the Acheron river and their mother is Sterope, a name also used by one of the Pleiades and a daughter of the sun.
Later, they became daughters of the sea God Phorcus/Phorcys, “the hidden dangers of the deep.” They sit on islands named for flowers with rocky shores and rapid waters that rush musically, singing and calling. Sailors say if anyone hears them and survives, the Sirens will turn to stone or die, raising the question of how the sailors knew the Sirens existed in the first place. Others say when the Sirens lost their contest with the Muses, they fell into the sea and became islands of white rock covered in wild flowers.

The Sirens have two more sets of parents. In the sky are Zeus and

Hera, the God of thunder and the Queen of heaven whose mane of hair stretches across the storm clouds. Closer to the ground are Dionysus and Coronis. Dionysus is a hidden earthly version of Zeus. Coronis is a nymph who may disguise Hera when mentioning the old Goddess by name would reveal far too many buried secrets. Hera once coaxed the Sirens into a song contest with the Muses. When the Sirens lost, they turned white, once again mirroring the Furies. The Muses took the Sirens’ wing feathers to weave into crowns; for inspiration perhaps. Yet after all this, Hera still appears holding the Sirens in her hands, honoring her inspiring little song birds.

Names, Names, Names

Single Sirens are unnamed aulos or lyre players. Their solos echo calls to initiation mysteries.

As pairs, the Sirens create harmonies with the aulos and the lyre. Their various names refer to glory or splendor and enchantment; Aglaopheme of the “splendid voice,” Aglaophonos the “glorious sounding,” Thelxiope who is “persuasive,” Thelxiepeia of the “enchanting words” and Thelchtereia the “soothing watcher or enchantress.”
Siren trios play aulos and lyre and sing in a mixed consort of traditions. They are the daughters of the Muse Melpomene and the horned river God Achelous, but there are two different versions of these three. One set of triplets have names that Aphrodite would approve: Peisinoe the “seductive”, Aglaope the “glorious voice” and Thelxinoe the “enchanting voice.” The other three sisters have names that Artemis might claim: Ligeia the “bright voice,” Leucosia the “white Goddess/substance,” and Parthenope the “virginal/maiden voice.”  It cannot be a coincidence that Aphrodite gave the Sirens wings when they said they wanted to be virgins, like Artemis, forever. Parthenope in particular seems to cross the boundary between these two differing Goddesses. At her tomb, torch races were held in her honor every year, a tradition of Artemis and Hecate. And she was a bird Goddess in her own right, sharing Aphrodite’s doves and swans.
The Sirens also gather in flocks, promising to tell all the stories in the world, if you will just stop your life for a moment or two. Some borrow the earlier names and others add yet more names to the list. Peisthoe the “seductive”, Pisinoe who “affects the mind,” Teles who is “perfection,” Raidne who “improves" or "sprinkles water,” Himerope whose “voice creates desire” and Molpe and her “song and dance” all spin round each other like feathers in a breeze.
And Plato tells us that there are eight Sirens, named for the scale tones, who each sing one note in perfect harmony with the spheres of the sky. The star loving Centaurs forgot to eat and starved when they heard these Sirens turning the secrets of the universe into music.

Soothing Sirens

Persephone, the Muses and the Sirens grew up together. When Persephone was carried off by Hades, the Sirens asked Demeter for wings so they could search the world for their friend. But when the Sirens wouldn’t or couldn’t tell Demeter where her daughter had gone, she bound them to the earth Persephone had vanished into.
Yet after all this, the Sirens settled into places of honor in front of Persephone’s throne. They used their music to ease the fear and pain of death and guide underworld travelers through the maze of their own souls. Persephone even sent the Sirens flying back out into the world, their wings fuller than ever, carrying her blessings. And whispers began that their true mother was Chthonia, “the depths of the earth,” bringing us back round to the story of the Sirens springing out of Gaia, the earth itself.

The Sirens are the Muses who inspire Muses. The ones who make the music of the earth, sky and sea. They are the overwhelming, uncontrollable side of inspiration that awes and terrifies us. They created the steps of the scale and accidentals. They are the sweetest possible antidote to loss, sorrow and fear of the unknown.

Nest and Red Buds

see The Muse Contest for more on the Muses.

Sources:
Ovid's Metamorphoses
Hesiod's Theogony
Women of Classical Mythology by Robert E. Bell
The Gods of the Greeks by Kerenyi
Theoi.com