All Plugged Up

            I can stand it no longer.  I miss playing my new flute too much.  Who cares how plugged up I am?

            My sterling silver Avanti 2000 takes my breath away even when I’m not playing it.  The offline G key and B foot joint are new features to me, as is the high C gizmo key.   Yes, I am enamored with my flute and amazed by its rich tone.

            Before I start playing, though, there is one thing I must do, metaphorically speaking:  eat a piece of humble pie.  Let me take you back to a scene from forty years ago . . .

            My new Armstrong open-holed flute has finally arrived.  It’s a definite step above the used closed-hole student model I’ve been playing since I was ten.  I feel very sophisticated with my sterling silver French model (inline G) flute with the C foot.  Learning to cover the holes is a challenge, but there is no way I am going to use the cork plugs provided for beginners.   I’ll never lower my standards to using any artificial aids.

            In the intervening years, plastic plugs have replaced corks.  My piece of humble pie takes the form of a plug for the F# key.  Since purchasing my Avanti two weeks ago, I have discovered that, no matter what I try, my right ring finger does not consistently cover the hole when I attempt the lowest notes.  Of an age to be able to blame that problem on arthritis, I’ve decided to acquiesce.  So today I carefully insert one plug.

            Voila!  Problem solved!  The combination of a cold and four days without practice mute the sound somewhat, but, even so, the low notes show new promise.  Now the only question is if I will add another plug or two or three or four (five plugs are possible).  I don’t mind being plugged up anymore.