The most common question I receive on my YouTube channel is about kan on. "I can't produce the higher octave at all." "My kan on sounds awful." "I'm supposed to change the note without changing the fingering?? How??"

Many of us didn't grow up hearing shinobue, so it's natural that you don't know what shinobue should sound like. As you practice, you may be thinking, "Does my tone sound good, or am I way off?" "Am I improving?" "Why am I so inconsistent?" or even "Is my shinobue broken???"

Take this fun shinobue test and share it on social media!

The same physics applies inside your mouth. You need space to resonate sound. That's why great singers like Beyonce open their mouths big, especially for the high notes. MORE SPACE = MORE SOUND

When he corrected my posture, it CHANGED me. Suddenly, I was able to play the note I had not been able to play consistently before. I know for sure that my playing will never be the same!! This slight adjustment in posture can change your playing forever, too!!!

Japan!! 日本！！！！

Bunta sensei says great power resides in "Tanden".

If I asked anyone how to play the shinobue (or any flute, for that matter), they would say, "You blow air into the mouth hole." Oh, OK. Got it. Let's blow air.

But that's where things start to go wrong because...

Learning how to get your lower lip out of the way can drastically improve your tone.

What we "think" we are doing and what we are actually doing can be vastly different. That's why dance studios have mirrors everywhere. Using a mirror can be a game changer for shinobue learners, too.

Every shinobue journey is unique. Receive your personalized guide!

Don’t waste your money or air. Learn how to stop running out of breath.

Here are 3 awesome ideas to make shinobue practice into your daily ritual!

Many shinobue manuals say to “Smile”. But the smiley position gives you a bad tone and even causes pain in your face. Why do they tell you to smile, then, and what’s the alternative?

From day 1, my teacher, Bunta Satoh sensei, said, "Your breath is too fast. Make it slow." But every time I thought I was making my breath slow, shinobue gave me a weak, frail and windy breath with no resonance.

“I found you on Instagram when looking up Japanese flute. Would you be interested in performing at New York Fashion Week?” I received this text last week and thought it was spam. I looked up the sender, and she was a budding Asian fashion designer. This was real.

"When playing longer phrases, how do you deal with the basic human function of swallowing saliva in order to play the next phrase? I don’t know who else to ask other you. Thank you!” (Anonymous)