EWI Goodness
The play-along videos at flutegirl are ideal for any Electronic Wind Instrument Player. Members can stream and download all the play-along videos with backing music only.
What is an EWI?
EWI stands for Electronic Wind Instrument. These digital instruments don't produce any sound out in the real world but can be used with headphones or used to send a signal to a sound system and then mixed with other sounds via a mixer. You can also connect your EWI directly to a computer via MIDI and use your system as a sound module.
There are many advantages to EWI's including:
- No external sound, so you can practice at any time without disturbing others.
- Many different instrument sounds. Electronic Wind Instruments usually have dozens to hundreds of different sounds, from traditional to bizarre.
- EWI's are by default tuned to C; you can change the instrument key with the flick of a switch. That means you can play the Bb or Eb part without transposing the music.
- You can change the fingering system on your EWI. I mostly use a combination of flute and recorder fingerings, but you can adjust these to find the right fit for your playing.
- Easy to record. You can simply plug directly into your recording device, so it doesn't matter if you have noisy neighbours.
I have an Akai 4000s that I have used for many years and recently got an Aerophone Mini.
Akai 4000s has 100 onboard sounds, whereas the Aerophone Mini has 6 onboard sounds but connects to an app on my Android Tablet to give me 30 sounds.
I got the Aerophone Mini because I wanted something I could put in my backpack and take over to my parents' place to do mini-concerts every day.
My mother has Dementia and is pretty far gone, but it's incredible how she comes right back to life when I play. Sadly my Mom's awareness wears off after an hour or so, but at least I get her back for a while.
I was carrying my Akai 4000s, but it's a big instrument and runs on 4 AA battery batteries. The Aerophone Mini can run on either 4 AA batteries or use the USB connection on my tablet.
So, in my backpack, I can put my Chromebook to play the Flutegirl Videos, the tablet to charge my Aerophone Mini and also produce the beautiful sounds and also, of course, my Aerophone Mini. I leave an amplifier at my parents' place, and then I'm all set to perform.
I am playing this song with Oboe sound on the Aerophone Mini. The vibrato is automatic on this instrument. All the other instruments in the Aerophone line and the Akai instruments create vibrato by your mouth, much like when playing the saxophone or clarinet.
I use the harmonica sound on my Aerophone Mini and also take it up an octave to get that sitting around on the back porch, jamming with friends feel.
I used the Tenor Sax sound on my Aerophone Mini for this Jazz standard.
I tried to smooth out the sound by hitting the first note of a phrase a bit hard with my tongue, then using a soft tongue for the rest
The EWI 4000s has solid metal buttons that react to skin touch, much like a touch screen. The Aerophone Mini has actual buttons, like a regular keyboard, making it harder to play fast.
When playing the bassoon sound, I have to be quick and accurate playing notes, or else I get that glitchy sound between notes. I had it happen a few times playing this song, but perhaps I needed more coffee.
The Aerophone Mini has three octaves, so unlike the Akai EWI 4000s (6 octaves), you can't just choose the register that works best because some of the notes fall outside the range. Because I arrange music for flute, the music at flutegirl.ca plays nicely with the Aerophone Mini's flute sound.
I used the Cello sound on my Aerophone Mini and discovered when you are using an instrument, you have to consider the qualities and idiosyncrasies of that instrument.
The Cello isn't very good for broken phrases, so I tried to use very little tongue and reduced the number of eighth note repetitions.
I think my performance of this song demonstrates very well that I can't play Bb C# D at all. Every single time that little run came along, I messed it up. At least I'm consistent.
I like the Harmonica sound for faster songs as the latency is much less than on some other instruments on the Aerophone Mini.
The French Horn sound on the Aerophone App has a rather pleasing attack, with just a bit of a harsh sound contrasting the very mellow sustain. There is some latency, though not extreme, enough to make my entries a tich late at times.
Other Resources
Alistair Parnell has the best EWI lessons on YouTube. He covers everything from setup to tricks and tips that will help you get the most out of your EWI.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMoSH4YH1-U
Another fantastic resource for all things EWI is the Patchman site. https://www.patchmanmusic.com/ in the Wind Controller Forum https://www.patchmanmusic.com/forum/, you can talk with other EWI users and find even more resources.
Flutegirl Memberships
$27.50 a year.
If you don't get an email from me within the hour, check your spam folder first, then email me at:
penny@flutegirl.ca
Please don't order twice.
|
