TromboneChat

I understand that some brass players use a flutter tongue during a warm-up or when practicing for a variety of reasons. In particular I’ve heard “to confirm that you are using a steady air stream”.

There are plenty of videos and instruction out there regarding how to do a flutter tongue. I would like to hear more about how people might use a flutter tongue as a warm-up or practice tool.

Here’s an example. Check out the flutter tongue warm up at about 11.5 minutes
https://youtu.be/NDzO1Fvz6YM?si=3mmE2sz-xkmMi5p3

For me, it's a good diagnostic tool when I feel like the face is doing a bit too much work and the air is lagging.

I do a bit of that in my warm-up. I first heard about it from Ralph Sauer, and he was a fan of using it to get the air moving.

Jim Scott

I use it for checking that I'm pushing air through the entire phrase and not letting the articulations get in the way.

i’ve used it like Harrison, Jim, and Aidan use it. It’s also another way to monitor tension in the throat (glottis).

Question about flutter tonguing on a lip slur into the high range: If the flutter stops, would that indicate that the air is backing off? On the flip side, should we expect the flutter to speed up as we ascend in range?

Flutter tongue is harder to do in the upper range, so that might be the problem. I use it as a tool to get my air moving - I don't think it's necessarily a diagnostic tool for all of your playing. That's something where I would suggest practicing the passage and if needed, just the interval without the flutter. Just my opinion.

Jim Scott

Thanks for the thoughts! I’ve noticed that using a flutter tongue stops tension in my throat. From time to time I detect a tightness accompanied by vocal sounds when I play wide interval slurs downward. Flutter tonguing has become a new tool for me to perhaps calibrate the way I’m moving my air as well as the sensation felt in my throat and associated anatomy.

I’m posting this mostly to see if others have had similar experiences. I’m also wondering, “why haven’t I heard about this approach previously?” Thank you, YouTube?

I wonder if this idea came from vocalists. I understand it's a common warmup for singers to do flutter tongue and flutter lip sirens as a voice warmup.

Very interesting. As I was searching around for other brass videos about this, I came across some vocal videos. I couldn’t figure out why they would use flutter tonguing in a vocal warm up. Perhaps to ready the tongue for singing/articulating? I will be asking.

UrbanaDave wrote: Fri Aug 29, 2025 11:10 am Very interesting. As I was searching around for other brass videos about this, I came across some vocal videos. I couldn’t figure out why they would use flutter tonguing in a vocal warm up. Perhaps to ready the tongue for singing/articulating? I will be asking.

Flutter tongue can be an aid to enunciation.

AI shared this-

AI Overview

“A flutter tongue exercise, also known as a tongue trill, is a highly effective warm-up for vocalists because it encourages air pressure and coordination while forcing the tongue and throat to relax. It's a key part of releasing tension, which is crucial for a healthy and powerful voice.”