All About POSTURE for Shinobue Flute - Fix Your Tone Just by Standing!
Although your waistline will expand during diaphragmatic breathing, because you are using your core muscles to support your body upright, you do not look "front heavy" like the left person in the picture above.
Let's delve deeper into the optimal shinobue posture.
Which number is the correct posture? The answer is #1.
If you focus too much on expanding the waistline as you breathe, you might end up looking like #2, with the pit of your stomach sagging and the pelvis forward ("protruding belly" posture). In this posture, your belly feels soft (core muscles not working). #3 is what many people think of as a "good posture" (also called "military posture"), but this is not the optimal posture, either.
This is how to create an optimal posture for shinobue.
Your feet are slightly apart.
Your knees are loose (not locked)
Your tailbone is slightly tucked.
The pit of your stomach is not caved in.
Your shoulders are relaxed.
Your head sits on top of your spine and turns to shinobue, but do not move your head forward to shinobue. Bring the shinobue to your mouth.
In this way, your lower body feels sturdy, but your upper body actually feels free to play shinobue. When all the parts are aligned, you feel free.
Bunta Sensei's Posture
Pit of the stomach
The pit of this person's stomach is caved in
Imagine having a garden hose in your body to propel air with your diaphragm to shinobue. For the garden hose to work properly, it cannot have any kink. It's the same with your body. Your whole body must be aligned with no "kink".
For example, I tend to get tight on my shoulders when I get nervous. This tension blocks the flow of the breath and makes the shinobue sound worse! My core muscles should be the ones to support my body and maintain my alignment. Tensing up my shoulders only creates a "kink".
Homework:
Stand in front of a full-length mirror in your underwear. If you don't have a large mirror, go to a fitting room in a clothing store.
Try all the postures in the second photo. How does your body feel?
Now, align your body as discussed above and breathe with diaphragmatic breathing. Practice until you feel free in your upper body.
Practice this posture in your daily life: when you are walking, standing to cook, or even sitting, align your body from the tailbone to the spine, neck, and head. Support yourself with your core muscles.
You can practice shinobue all day this way even without playing it! (But I do recommend playing it often.😄)
And I guarantee you that you will feel more energetic, think more positively, notice people around you respect you more, and your dog will listen to you more (dogs are the first to read your body language since they don't rely on words for communication as humans do - I know because I trained and showed many dogs.🐾)
This is why I say shinobue is a way of life.