Video transcript
Playing the recorder – Hot Cross Buns

[synth music]

SUSAN SUKKAR: Hello, everybody. I wonder if you have one of these at home sitting around. It's called a descant recorder or sometimes known as a soprano recorder. It may look like mine, or it might be all white or all brown, or it could be in two pieces rather than three pieces.

But they are all the same instrument. They're called the descant recorder, and we're going to learn to play it today. So there are a couple of things that we have to sort out at the beginning.

And the first thing is that you need to be using your left hand on the top of the instrument. Your right hand goes down on the bottom and the left hand at the top. That's really important because if you go on to play the flute or the oboe or clarinet or bassoon, you need to have the left hand on the top of the instrument.

The other thing that we need to learn is to tongue every note from the beginning of the note. That's called articulation. So when you start each note, you say a very soft 'doo' or 'too' at the beginning of the note. 'Too,' try that now, 'too.' Well done.

So we're going to learn to play some notes on our recorder, and then we're going to learn a tune. With your left hand on the top of your instrument, you're going to put your thumb over the back hole and your first finger on the hole at the top of the instrument. It's very important that you cover the holes. And if you do and you blow with nice warm air, you will sound like this.

[recorder plays]

And that note is known as B. So I'm going to play a few Bs for you, and I would like you to copy me. I'll play first. You play after.

[recorder plays]

[recorder plays]

[recorder plays]

Well done. Now we're going to add a finger onto the recorder, and that makes the note A. So your thumb is over the back and the next finger down, and we're making the note A like this.

[recorder plays]

You have a go.

[recorder plays]

Well done. Now if you're hearing this sort of sound ...

[waving sound]

... that is simply, you're not covering the holes properly. And sometimes it's the thumb at the back that's not doing the right thing. So make sure that you squeeze your fingers over the holes, that you can feel them under your fingers, and that you blow gently. Let's play some more As.

[recorder plays]

[recorder plays]

Well done. Now the final note that we're going to learn today is G. That's three fingers on the recorder and your thumb on the back. G, it's lower than A.

[recorder plays]

You have a go.

[recorder plays]

Now if you're covering all your holes properly, and you try and play B, A and G in a row, they should sound like this.

[recorder plays]

(SINGING) B, A, G, in steps coming down. If it sounds like this ...

[chaotic notes]

... that means that you're not covering your holes properly. And sometimes that means that the thumb at the back is not covering its hole. Now that we've learned B, A and G, there's a lot of great tunes that we can play. And one of those tunes is 'Hot Cross Buns.'

Now I know Easter has come and gone, but still this is a great tune to learn to play. So let's practise playing that tune without blowing into our instrument. Let's just do the fingers first.

Follow my fingers. (SINGING) B, A, G. B, A, G. G, G, G, G, A, A, A, A, B, A, G. Let's do that now again, but I'll sing the words of the tune.

(SINGING) Hot cross buns. Hot cross buns. One a penny, two a penny, hot cross buns. Well done. Now let's try playing it. Here we go.

[recorder plays 'Hot Cross Buns']

Now, if you don't tongue, it might sound like this.

[sharp notes]

So remember the 'doo, doo, doo.' Let's play it again.

[recorder plays 'Hot Cross Buns']

And one last time, one, two.

[recorder plays 'Hot Cross Buns']

Well done, everybody. Keep practising, and you'll get great on the recorder before you know it.