The flute is an instrument with a long history. It is the oldest known musical instrument to be identified. Examples of flutes have been found in all ancient human cultures, with the oldest dating back to around 40,000 years ago. Nowadays, flutes can be found in all types of music, from classical to rock and everything in between. You can even beatbox with a flute.
When you’re first learning to play the flute, those may sound like pipe dreams; all you want to do is be able to play simple melodies to entertain yourself, or maybe to join the marching band or orchestra at school. With easy flute sheet music, you can be on your way quickly.
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What Types of Flutes Are There?
The three main types of flutes are end-blown, fipple, and transverse. Some examples of end-blown flutes played perpendicular to the body, often at an outward angle, include the ney, the shakuhachi, the xiao, and the panpipes.
Recorders, tin whistles, slide whistles, ocarinas, pipes, and the flue pipes of a pipe organ are all fipple or duct flutes that are blown through the end like end-blown flutes, but with a block inside that creates a small tunnel, the duct, for air to flow through.
Transverse flutes, where the flute is held perpendicular to the body and you blow across it to play, include the concert flute, which was created in 1810, the fife, the piccolo, and all of the larger, deeper versions of the concert flute.
Most end-blown and fipple flutes have no keys, only four to nine openings for your fingers to cover. The concert flute, piccolo, and other concert flute varieties all have keys that cover the holes with pads attached to the underneath, and all ten fingers have keys to press.
Some concert flutes feature open-holed keys, which can allow for in-between notes to be played. For example, a note can be played that’s between C and C#. Easy sheet music for flute doesn’t use any of the in-between notes; that’s a more advanced technique often used in modern classical music.
The concert flute, or just “flute,” piccolo, bass flute, contrabass flute, and double contrabass flute are all C instruments, meaning they’re tuned to the key of C, and that the lowest note most can play is a C. Some flutes have an extra key for the right pinky finger, allowing a low B and high B to be played. The alto flute is tuned in the key of G, with that being the lowest note it can play, a fifth below the flute. All flutes have a two-octave range.
What Types of Music Can You Play on the Flute?
Any type of music you love can be played on the flute. Love Broadway musicals? There’s easy sheet music for flute for that. Want to ride with the Valkyries or dance with the Sugar Plum Fairies? There’s easy flute sheet music for that. Swoon over the smooth melodies of jazz or blues? There’s easy sheet music for that, too.
Even the most complex of melodies can be simplified for you to learn when you’re first starting out on the flute. For example, take “A Million Dreams” from The Greatest Showman. It sounds complicated when the actors are singing it. However, when you distill it down to just the melody, it’s a much simpler piece of music to learn. The easy sheet music for flute at Musicnotes has both the notes on the staff — the five lines where notes are read — and the letter names to help you as you learn to read music.
Many pieces of music are arranged for flute and piano, with the piano providing the harmonies that the flute itself can seldom play. Some experienced flutists can play two notes at once using multiphonics, but it’s an advanced technique that not everyone can master.
There are also a great many songs arranged for flute ensembles, which often consist of three to four flutes and one alto flute, or three flutes, an alto flute, and either a bass flute or a piccolo. Think of a singing group with four or five people singing, and you’ll get a general idea of the sounds a flute ensemble can create.
Musicnotes has a wide variety of easy flute sheet music to get you started on your journey. It also offers a great many more complicated pieces as you become more experienced in the art of playing the flute. For example, you could start with “The Sound of Music” from the movie of the same name, or Leonard Cohen’s haunting song, “Hallelujah.” Then, as your confidence in your playing improves, you can move on to more complicated songs such as “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” from Encanto or Johann Pachelbel’s “Canon in D,” which starts out very simply but quickly becomes more complex.
You’re beginning an exciting hobby, learning to play the flute. Even if you only ever play for your own enjoyment, starting with easy flute sheet music is a great way to learn to read music and build your confidence with the instrument.
