Flautina
English Concertina with Wooden Flute Sounds
for the iPhone and iPod Touch

Flautina Icon

Go to the iTunes App Store to buy


Flautina is a two-octave English Concertina that sounds like a wooden flute.

Once you learn to play this free app, you can apply the same skills to play my other English Concertina based apps for the iPhone/iPod Touch such as "Englitina", an authentic sounding English Concertina, and "Uillitina", which is a virtual set of Irish Uilleann bagpipes drones and chanter.

It is very easy to play and all the sounds are recorded from my personal 1857 Metzler wooden flute.

Once you learn to play this free app, you can apply the same skills to play my other English Concertina based apps for the iPhone/iPod Touch such as "Englitina", an authentic sounding English Concertina, and "Uillitina", which is a virtual set of Irish Uilleann bagpipes drones and chanter.

The chromatic range is from D4 to C#6.

Touch the '?' icon to show the names of the notes on the buttons.

Touch the 'i' icon to bring up the settings page. You can also visit the app support website by touching the Tradlessons logo on this page.

You can play along with the music on your iPhone/iPod Touch by starting the track using the iPod app, then launching Flautina.

When Charles Wheatsone designed the English concertina, he set it up to match sheet music, the right side is the notes between the lines and the left side is the notes on the lines.

Because English Concertinas play the same note both on a push or a pull of the bellows, it is a very easy instrument to play on the iPhone or iPod Touch.

You simply touch the buttons on the screen to play the notes. The spacing is exactly the same as the real instrument.

To play, hold the iPhone or iPod Touch between your thumb and little fingers of both hands, exactly like a real English Concertina, and press the buttons with your index and middle fingers. Scales alternate between the fingers of the right hand. Notes are higher in pitch as you move from the outside to the middle of the screen.

Flautina runs on the iPhone and iPod Touch.


Demonstration: "Simple Gifts"



Main Screen showing button highlights

1


Flautina Note Guide (touch the "?" icon)

2


Flautina Settings Page (touch the "i" icon)

3

You can touch the Tradlessons logo to visit the support website


Button layout compared to a real English Concertina (Englitina, same layout as Flautina)



How to play "The Kesh Jig" (for Englitina, but same fingerings apply for Flautina)



Portable speaker setup using Velcro to attach the iPhone/iPod Touch

Portable Speaker Setup


Tips and Techniques

I mostly play with the note guide enabled so I can see the note names.

I've found that to best emulate the sound of the flute, it helps to practice playing both legato and staccato styles.

Practice playing tunes with as little separation between the notes as possible to create smooth passages, but also mix it up with more staccato phrases.

For some real fun, run the output of your iPhone or iPod Touch through an external amplifier or outboard effects. I use a Roland Cube-ST portable amp that has both reverb and chorus effects, the end result is quite amazing.


Questions and Answers


Q: I'm not hearing any sounds on my iPhone! Help!

A: Make sure your ringer switch isn't in the "mute" position.


Future Plans

I am very interested in any suggestions for features or improvements to the apps for future updates, please drop me an email anytime with your ideas!


More Apps To Enjoy

AppCordions iOS Apps Catalog


Contact

For more information, please contact Michael Eskin or visit the AppCordions website:

Visit AppCordions.com


Two-tone drone puck image courtesy of Mike DeSmidt, from a 3/4 concert pitch set he built himself.

Chanter and drone audio samples for PipeKeysC graciously provided by music professor and reedmaker K. Padraig O'Kane. He may be reached at: K. Padraig O'Kane.


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